Class Matters

In Episode 17, Adolph Reed Jr., Bob Wages, and Mark Dudzic look back at the Labor Party experiment – 30 years after its founding convention. These key players reflect on what unions were facing after a decade of Reaganism, a resurgence of militancy in the labor movement, and how those forces made organizing a labor party a strategic possibility.

In Episode 16, a post-2024 election episode, Class Matters asks Mark Dimondstein, President of the American Postal Workers and Adolph Reed Jr., "Where do we go from here?" Join us for a lively and compelling conversation on changing the way Labor does politics, including building an issue-based politics independent of the two parties, organizing to change the terms of political debate, and the rol...

In Episode 15 of Class Matters, Adolph Reed Jr. and Mark Dudzic take on the 40+ years of anti-worker compromises that have led to worker frustration with both political parties and distrust in our government. They examine how the Labor Party effort of the 1990s/2000s aimed to channel that anger into an independent working-class politics.

In Episode 14 of Class Matters, Adolph Reed Jr. talks with labor educator Les Leopold about his new book, Wall Street's War on Workers: How Mass Layoffs and Greed Are Destroying the Working Class and What to Do About It.

In Episode 13 of Class Matters, we're talking with labor activists Marianne Pizzitola, Rose Roach, and Mark Dudzic about Medicare Advantage (Disadvantage?) health plans and what they mean for union retirees, for collective bargaining, and for the future of traditional Medicare. And we get the scoop on how retirees in New York City are fighting back against efforts to force them onto Advantage plan...

In Episode 12 of Class Matters, we're talking with labor organizer Jane McAlevey about how to democratize union negotiations and build significant worker power by practicing transparent, big, and open negotiations. That's the focus of McAlevey's latest book,  Rules to Win By: Power and Participation in Union Negotiations . McAlevey talks with Gordon Lafer and Adolph Reed Jr. about the impact of ne...

With public approval of unions at its highest since 1965, organizing drives bringing in 200,000 new union members, union election petitions to the NLRB up 51 percent, 60 million workers who want a union, and low unemployment spurring strike actions and gains in wages and benefits, many have declared that labor is on the rise. Yet in 2022, the overall share of workers who are union members declined...

Can a union-backed "Millionaires Tax" win at the ballot box in Massachusetts? It would raise $2 billion/year for quality public education, for repair and maintenance of roads and bridges and for public transportation. In Episode Ten, Adolph Reed Jr. talks with union leaders Eve Weinbaum and Dean Robinson on state-wide organizing for the amendment and its potential as a model for an electoral strat...

Inflation and the fight against it is on the public agenda today in a way not seen since the 1970s. In Episode Nine, Professor Adolph Reed Jr. leads a discussion with Sam Gindin and Samir Sonti, on what inflation means for the working class, and why anti-inflation policies have often come at the expense of workers. We also look at how this round of inflation is different, how we should fight it an...

In Part 2 of 2, Adolph Reed Jr discusses his new book,  The South: Jim Crow and Its Afterlives,  with Toure Reed. The Reeds explore how tendencies to romanticize Jim Crow undercuts our ability to address the root causes of racial inequality today. They also tackle questions from our listeners about race and about the labor movement.

In Part 1 of 2, Adolph Reed Jr discusses his new book,  The South: Jim Crow and Its Afterlives,  with Toure Reed. The Reeds explore how tendencies to romanticize Jim Crow undercuts our ability to address the root causes of racial inequality today. They also tackle questions from our listeners about race and about the labor movement.

In Episode 6, we take a look at one of the recent Supreme Court rulings – West Virginia v. EPA. It turns out this case is about much more than climate change. As you will hear from Jenny Breen, Gordon Lafer, Adolph Reed Jr., and Samir Sonti, this ruling is the first time the Supreme Court has used the "major questions doctrine" in a majority opinion. That doctrine is an attempt to squash the abili...

Adolph Reed Jr. talks with Sara Nelson, President of the Association of Flight Attendants/CWA and APWU President Mark Dimondstein about  what's ahead  for Labor   in this moment that hold s  out  both  promise and peril.   Worker organizing efforts are underway across the country including at Amazon and Starbucks. Public support for unions is a 57-year high – with polling at 68% in favor. And next...

Adolph Reed Jr. talks with Chicago Teachers Union president Jesse Sharkey and Prof. Daniel Moak about what's behind renewed criticism of our public schools. Are our schools failing our students and communities? Or are these attacks fueled by efforts to privatize schools for private profit? And how are teachers' unions and parents working together to protect and expand public education?

Richard Hooker of the International Brotherhood of Teamsters Local 623, Katie Murphy of the Massachusetts Nurses Association, and Juan Ramirez of the United Teachers of Los Angeles talk about the need to reform our health care system to control skyrocketing costs, make employers pay their fair share, and take healthcare off the bargaining table.

Adolph Reed Jr. speaks with Mark Dimondstein, president of the American Postal Workers Union, on the importance of the public Postal Service to our democracy. Reed and Dimondstein share their concerns about the country's move toward authoritarianism, the role of the labor movement, and the need for independent working-class politics.

In Episode One of Class Matters, Adolph Reed Jr., Gordon Lafer, and Samir Sonti discuss the eroding trust in government among workers in the United States.