Solidarity Works

This week, hundreds of USW members in the paper and pulp industry are convening for the biennial paper bargaining conference to have their voices heard and to set their local unions' priorities for the future.   With more than 90,000 members and more than 500 contracts, the union's paper sector is massive and has lived multiple lives throughout the decades as it merged and evolved to overcome a sl...

Anne Balay published her first book, Steel Closets, featuring the stories of forty gay, lesbian, and trans steelworkers, in 2014. Four years later, after a personal career setback, she persevered and published her second book, Semi Queer, focusing on the world of gay, trans, and black truck drivers.  For the latest episode of Solidarity Works, and in honor of Pride Month, we talk to Balay about th...

To close out Asian American and Pacific Islander Month, USW Solidarity Works speaks with three activists with the Asian Pacific American Labor Alliance (APALA) who are on the ground fighting for their diverse communities every day. Learn about combatting anti-Asian racism, immigration and documentation hurdles in America, and how to get involved with APALA by visiting usw.to/podcast . To learn mor...

The United States is the wealthiest country in the world, yet we rank 13 th when it comes to the overall quality of our infrastructure. The American Jobs Plan aims to change that.  For the latest episode of Solidarity Works, we talk with USW President Tom Conway as well as with a local union member at Dow Chemical in Michigan about the importance of investing in infrastructure and in our communiti...

International Workers' Day, also known as May Day or Labour Day in most countries, is a celebration of the working class. Its roots are found in the fight for the eight-hour day, which began in Chicago and culminated in the infamous Haymarket Affair on May 4, 1886.  For the latest episode of Solidarity Works, we are going back in time to explore this explosive watershed moment for the American lab...

President Joe Biden signed the $1.9 trillion American Rescue Plan into law on Thursday, March 11, a historic piece of legislation that aims to jolt the economy back to life. For the latest episode of Solidarity Works, we talk to two members of the union as well as USW Legislative Director Roy Houseman about what this bill means for workers, their families, and their communities. (usw.to/podcast)

One year ago, much of the United States entered various stages of lockdown due to the coronavirus. Since then, a lot has changed for most workers, but today, women remain the most economically impacted by the upheaval. Healthcare concerns, both physical and mental, are on the rise as well for many women and their families, as the pandemic moves into its second year and as vaccines are just now bec...

In the early 19th century, long before the mass movements for labor and civil rights would grip the nation, a group of determined women and girls working in the textile mills in Lowell, Massachusetts, mobilized to create the first union of working women in American history. Take a trip back in time for the latest episode of Solidarity Works, where you will revisit this legendary moment that proved...

On August 28, 1963, nearly a quarter of a million people gathered in the nation's capital for the historic March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom. Martin Luther King Jr.'s rousing "I Have a Dream" speech is the most cited moment from that monumental event, but another man, the very mastermind behind the march itself, opened the record-breaking day with a beautiful, succinct speech in his resound...

There's a lot that looks familiar in President Joe Biden's Cabinet, but there is also a newness potent throughout, from installing the nation's first openly gay Secretary to establishing the brand-new Office for Energy Jobs within the Department of Energy. Listen to the first Solidarity Works podcast episode of 2021 to learn more about the history of the U.S. Cabinet, what roles some of the Secret...

Check out the latest episode of Solidarity Works for a conversation with Guillermo Perez about labor law and the Supreme Court, the history and impact of the Lochner Era, and what labor needs to do to fight back against legislative attacks on workers' rights. 

Tune into the latest USW podcast episode to hear from National College Players Association Founder and Director Ramogi Huma on the intersection of labor and sports activism, the power of collective action, and the challenges facing college athletes during this unprecedented moment of the coronavirus pandemic. www.ncpanow.org  

From providing hundreds of thousands of family-supporting union jobs, to connecting people to lifelines including medication and paychecks, the United States Postal Service continues serving the American public 245 years after its founding. Learn about the agency's history, its current challenges, and how to help keep it funded and strong for the future in the latest Solidarity Works podcast episo...

For the latest episode of Solidarity Works, hear from Coalition of Labor Union Women President Elise Bryant, USW Women of Steel Director Ann Flener-Gittlen, and Local 9460 President Deanna Hughes about what it means to step up as a woman in leadership, how to overcome the fears that can hold women back, and what women need to do in this crucial election year to move forward together.

In January 1965, after two full years of fighting for Black Americans' right to vote throughout the South, the Dallas County Voters League and the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee had felt they had hit a wall with white indifference and inaction. And so, they called upon Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. to join their campaign in Selma, Alabama. Today, in 2020, the fight for the vote continues....

Listen to the latest USW Solidarity Works podcast episode to hear from Union Veterans Council Executive Director Will Attig on the top issues veterans are currently facing, how labor and veterans can work together to create change, and why more and more service members are stepping out into the streets. You'll also hear from USW International President Tom Conway about the union's Veterans of Stee...

Listen to the latest USW podcast episode to hear from Pride at Work Executive Director Jerame Davis on the recent SCOTUS victory for LGBTQ+ workers, how the coronavirus pandemic has affected the community, and how the current swell of protests around racial injustice has helped remind a movement of its roots.

On June 20, 2020, the Poor People's Campaign, led by friend of the USW Rev. Dr. William Barber, will host the largest digital and social media gathering with the Mass Poor People's Assembly & Moral March on Washington. A reboot of MLK's monumental event in 1968, this campaign calls for all hands on deck to address systemic racism, poverty, and all other interlocking injustices of America. Listen t...

Fear, grief, anger -- workers everywhere are experiencing a storm of emotions amidst the unprecedented coronavirus pandemic. It's up to every one of us to ensure mental health is a priority, and to remember that there are real humans with real trauma behind the headlines. As part of Mental Health Awareness Month, the latest USW Solidarity Works podcast episode focuses on creating a dialogue around...

Workers in Puerto Rico, including USW members in health care, public services, and technology, have endured wave after wave of destruction and chaos in recent years. It's the job of Local 6135 members at GFR Media to document it all as it unfolds. Listen to the latest USW podcast episode to hear about reporting and resilience on the Caribbean island. And make sure to follow the USW on social media...

The coronavirus outbreak has squeezed the U.S. manufacturing sector as many companies have been forced to shut down, but others have ramped up production both to help provide front-line workers with the equipment they need as well as provide everyday essentials and services to keep America running. Check out the latest USW podcast episode, featuring International President Tom Conway, to learn abo...

The coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic has forced millions of American health care workers, including 51,000 USW members, onto the frontlines of the war against the surging outbreak. Tune in to the latest Solidarity Works podcast episode to hear about some of the conditions they are facing, what protections they need to do their jobs safely and what the union is pushing for in Washington, D.C., to ma...

When the darkness of the Great Depression swept across the globe starting in the 1930s, one woman in America lit the flame that would finally help bring light to millions of U.S. workers and their families. As we close out Women's History Month, the USW podcast Solidarity Works spotlights Frances Perkins, the first woman to serve as a president's cabinet secretary, as a reminder of what can be acc...

Nine years ago, USW member E.J. Jenkins had a vision -- he wanted to start conversations and ignite change in his community of Gary, Ind., a lakeside city just outside of Chicago struggling with mass joblessness and a housing crisis caused by a history of segregation and steel industry downturns. That vision led to what is now Black Labor Week, an annual five days dedicated to labor, to blackness...

On January 11, 1912, a group of Polish women weavers at a textile mill in Lawrence, Mass., found out their already abysmal pay had been cut as the result of a new bill that shortened the workweek from 56 to 54 hours. They shut down their machines, refusing to labor any more without the proper pay, as they were producing more than ever, and faster. What resulted was one of the most monumental strik...