Work Stoppage

If you're not a patron you can get the full episode by visiting patreon.com/workstoppage and support us with $5 a month. For the finale of our series discussion various attempts at organizing soldiers during the 1970s, we arrive at one of the most dynamic of the era, Portugal. With the collapse of Portugal's fascist dictatorship in the wake of the Carnation Revolution, the organized military playe...

After some quick follow ups on organizing at Ben & Jerry's and Grindr, we get into the big stories in labor as 2023 winds down. More and more unions are standing up against genocide, with 1199 and NNU joining the call for a ceasefire. The UAW filed ULPs against 3 automakers this week for interfering with organizing campaigns. The NLRB ordered Starbucks to reopen 23 stores it closed for unioniz...

If you're not a patron you can get the full episode by visiting patreon.com/workstoppage and support us with $5 a month. On this week's installment of our series examining attempts to organize unions of soldiers, we move to Western Europe. In a whirlwind tour we discuss Germany, Italy, France, and Spain's various forms of military labor organizations. The refusal of the US to de-Nazify West German...

We've got a very Kentucky-centric episode this week, with two different labor disputes at the KCVG airport with union busting at Amazon and a strike by Teamsters at DHL. Also in Kentucky, Sunergos coffee workers in Louisville finally won a first contract after a weeklong strike. In academic organizing news, adjunct faculty at Columbia College in Chicago are on the longest adjunct strike in US hist...

If you're not a patron you can get the full episode by visiting patreon.com/workstoppage and support us with $5 a month. On Part 4 of our series looking at attempts to organize soldiers, we discuss the Scandinavian countries. While none of the various soldier unions formed in these countries transformed their society, they showed a wide range of levels of effectiveness. From Norway's quasi-company...

Lina is away this week so it's just the boys on this episode of Work Stoppage. The UAW became the largest and most prominent union to join the calls for a ceasefire this week, the same week they launched the largest organizing drive the US has seen in years. Portland teachers ended their three week strike with a new contract with major wins. Sweden's labor movement continues to shut down Tesla as...

If you're not a patron you can get the full episode by visiting patreon.com/workstoppage and support us with $5 a month. For the third installment of our series discussing the history of attempts to unionize members of the military, based largely on the book Left Face: Soldier Unions and Resistance Movements in Modern Armies by David Cortright and Max Watts, we discuss the Dutch. From the 1960s to...

Black Friday means we've got a retail and service work news packed episode this week. First we start on a sad note discussing the end of the Medieval Times strike in California. Next we discuss the McCarthyite retaliation being faced by unionized public defenders in New York City for taking a stand in favor of Palestinian human rights. A recent piece in The Guardian exposes the way service workers...

If you're not a patron you can get the full episode by visiting patreon.com/workstoppage and support us with $5 a month. We're back with the next installment of our discussion of attempts in (relatively) recent history to form unions within military organizations. In this episode we cover the brief period following the end of the Vietnam War when major public worker unions in the US began seriousl...

The whole crew is back together again for another big week of labor news. After our weekly roundup of how workers around the world are standing up for Palestine, we get into a slew of stories about major new contracts. Kaiser Permanente workers ratified their new contract nearly unanimously after their historic three day strike last month. UAW workers at the Big 3 also ratified their new agreement...

The whole crew is a bit overwhelmed this week, Dan is sick, John's class is in crunch mode, and Lina's putting the finishing touches on the rest of the Military Unions series. So this week we're unlocking one of our favorite Movie Time episodes for everyone. Both these labor movies are likely less well known by most of our audience, but they're some of the best we've discussed. Part 2 of our serie...

This week we are very happy to to be joined by Maximillian Alvarez Editor in Chief of The Real News Network and host of Working People Podcast. We start with highlighting some of the many brave actions by workers, activists, and unions in solidarity with Palestine in opposition to those complicit and exacerbating the genocide being enacted by Israel. From people blocking weapons ships in Oakland a...

If you're not a patron you can get the full episode by visiting patreon.com/workstoppage and support us with $5 a month. One question that has arisen over and over in the history of revolutionary movements has been: what about the military? Does it make sense to try and organize soldiers, sailors, and airmen, especially if they come from working class backgrounds? Or is it a futile effort to try a...

This week we are joined by Alexander Edward of Minion Death Cult and long time UPS worker! We start with some follow-up on Walgreens and CVS walkouts, felony vandalism charges being dropped against University of California Grad Student Workers, and the Las Vegas Culinary Union where 35,000+ Workers are set to strike on Nov 10th. In our main stories we start with actions by workers with the support...

One of the biggest labor stories of 2023 has been the historic Stand Up Strike by the UAW, with the union taking on all of the Big 3 US automakers at the same time for the first time ever. After six weeks on strike, with nearly 50,000 autoworkers on the picket lines, this week the union reached agreements with all three companies. These agreements, though they remain tentative until the rank and f...

Support Starbucks Workers: https://starbucksworkersunited.controlshift.app/calendars/red-cup-rebellion We're back with another week of labor struggle. We start with a brief discussion of the incredibly racist labor policies of the British Navy. Next we discuss the supposedly amazing work conditions at Nintendo of America which CEO Doug Bowser claims are so good employees don't want a union. Two mo...

If you're not a patron you can get the full episode by visiting patreon.com/workstoppage and support us with $5 a month. We're back to our regular bonus schedule this week with another episode on labor cinema. This week we have two historical dramas from the 1970s, Joe Hill and The Molly Maguires. First we discuss the 1971 Swedish biopic of the legendary IWW organizer and songwriter. Joe Hill foll...

This week we have to start with some difficult news. While we do talk about Starbucks Workers United's statement in support of Palestinian liberation it is in response to Starbucks' attack on the workers for their stance. We also talk about Israel revoking work permits to people who live in Gaza and the abuses that they perpetrate on the Palestinian people while they are made literally illegal whi...

This week we felt it was important to discuss the ongoing attacks against Palestine and how the US labor movement can stand up against complicity with ethnic cleansing. We discuss unions who have already spoken out against the war crimes our government is supporting, and what workers in Palestine have asked workers around the world to do to support them.  We also discuss why it is important for pe...

We are forced by recent events to start this week's episode with a call for all the forces of labor to stand in solidarity with the oppressed people of Palestine. The fight against apartheid and colonialism is a crucial part of the class struggle and workers in the Imperial Core, especially the US, have a particular responsibility to resist the complicity of our government. Getting into the labor...

If you're not a patron you can get the full episode by visiting patreon.com/workstoppage and support us with $5 a month. We've talked about some of the more well known general strikes in US history: the interwar strikes in Seattle, Minneapolis, San Francisco, and Toledo. But even before them, in the 19th century, there was one general strike that predated them all. In New Orleans in 1892, tens of...

We start this week's episode celebrating the power move by Drew Barrymore's writing staff turning down an offer to return after being stabbed in the back during the strike. Next we discuss VFX workers at Disney voting unanimous to join IATSE. One of our biggest stories this week is the largest healthcare strike in US history, as 75,000 workers at Kaiser Permanente struck for 3 days in 5 states. We...

Strike Support Toolkit: https://uaw.org/standwithus/dealershipcanvass/  Another huge week in labor as the militancy of workers has become contagious across the country. We start out discussing the move to shutter Moog Music in North Carolina following a union drive. Then, we cover the new anti-trust complaint filed against Amazon by the FTC. Also this week, Gavin Newsom vetoed a very popular bill...

If you're not a patron you can get the full episode by visiting patreon.com/workstoppage and support us with $5 a month. After wrapping up our series on the history of allegations of mafia involvement in the International Longshoremen's Association, we'd be remiss not to discuss likely the single biggest cultural touchstone related to the issue, the film On The Waterfront. Elia Kazan's 1954 crime...

UAW Strike Support FAQ: https://labornotes.org/2023/09/when-auto-workers-stand-heres-how-stand-them Lina is away this week, so we're joined by longtime friend of the show Ethan to help us discuss all the week's big labor news. The strike by UAW workers at the Big 3 has seized the public consciousness in its first week as workers around the country have been inspired by the thousands of auto worker...