The Labor Exchange on KGNU

KNGU Labor Exchange - we discuss the June 30th Colorado Primary with Jacob Becklund, Political Director of the Colorado AFL-CIO.

On today’s episode we're listening to "Art is a Hammer to Shape the World" a panel from the Great Labor Arts Exchange held in conjunction with the 2026 Labor Notes Conference in Chicago as presented by the Labor Heritage Power Hour. 

On this episode of the Labor Exchange we hear a recap of the 2026 Colorado Legislative session with Kjersten Forseth, lobbyist for the Colorado AFL-CIO. 

On this episode of the Labor Exchange we hear a recap of the 2026 Colorado Legislative session with Kjersten Forseth, lobbyist for the Colorado AFL-CIO

On this episode of the Labor Exchange we recognize Labor History Month by learning with author Leigh Campbell Hale about the Columbine Mine Massacre and union organizing in Colorado's northern coal fields.

We hear from SEIU Local 105's Andy Jacob from the America's Workforce Union Podcast - the country's only daily labor focused podcast. Plus we hear from Marge Taniwaki as she accepts her induction into the Colorado Labor Hall of Honor.     

We talk to Raúl O. Paz-Pastrana director of Backside: The Unseen Hands of Horse Racing; a PBS Independent Lens  documentary that takes you to the unseen world of the workers at the Kentucky Derby.

We talk with Colorado AFL-CIO Political Director Jacob Becklund on how to effectively engage in politics, his vision for the future and how the labor movement can build power in Colorado.

On this episode we listen to testimony from the Worker Protection Act and two bills dealing with farm worker overtime in the state. An effort to improve and streamline overtime for farm workers failed and a bill to increase the amount of time worked before being eligible for overtime moved forward. 

Nearly 4000 UFCW Local 7 Meatpacking workers are on strike against JBS USA. We talk with Leticia Avalos, a JBS worker, UFCW member and shop steward and Kim Cordova, President of UFCW Local 7 about unfair labor practices at the plant and how workers are standing up against this multinational company.      

On this episode of the Labor Exchange we listen to labor radio from around the world with the Labor Radio Podcast weekly.

On this week’s Labor Exchange we talk to Boulder Public Library workers Michael Serrano and Rachel Garfield-Levine. Workers at the library have formed a union and are seeking recognition and a contract. 

On this bonus episode of the KGNU Labor Exchange we talk to Adrian Rogers, President of AFSCME Local 1733 in Memphis Tennessee.  The local famously gained union recognition in the 1968 Memphis Sanitation Strike which was the for civil rights and union rights for Memphis City Workers. It was during his support for this strike that the Reverend Martin Luther King Jr gave his final speech titled I’ve...

With a special new years message, we listen back to our episode with artist Austin Sauerbrei about his book Trouble! At Coal Creek. 

We talk with Kate Biester, a high school social studies teacher and Sheridan Education Association President. The Sheridan School District has refused to honor the educators  collective bargaining agreement and educators in the small school district south of Denver are fighting for recognition and a fair contract.

We talk to filmmakers Jen Bradwell and Todd Boekelheide, winner of an Academy Award, on their film Make a Circle about the challenges around early childhood education and solutions that help families and early childhood educators. Watch it on Rocky Mountain PBS using PBS Passport.

We talk about worker solidarity at Casa Bonita, a theme restaurant in Colorado, as workers join together to demand a fair contract. Contract negotiations are ongoing following a strike over the Halloween holiday weekend. We talk to Michelle Mendenhall (IATSE). She started at Casa Bonita behind the bar and is now on the entertainment crew. Riley Holmes (Actors Equity) plays Black Bart and the Sheri...

NYC 1970. Construction workers and anti-Vietnam War student protestors violently clash in what became known as the Hard Hat Riot. Marc Levin's new film on American Experience digs deep into this tumultuous history with archival footage and interviews with people on the ground in 1970. Listen to his interview with Labor Exchange Host Robert Lindgren. 

With a poverty rate above the state average and a higher median wage, Boulder is at a crossroads around the minimum wage and affordability. We catch up with Alejandra Beatty, President of the Boulder Area Labor Federation about an effort to lower the rate of the minimum wage in Boulder County and wider fights around what tipped workers should be paid. 

Legendary United Steelworkers President Leo Gerard passed recently at the age of 78. We talk with Joel Buchanan, a longtime member of the United Steelworkers about the work and legacy of President Gerard. 

We hear from Chris deGruy Kennedy from the Bell Policy Center and Joel McClurg from the Colorado Blueprint to End Hunger about challenges in Colorado's state budget and a proposed solution with a graduated income tax. 

This week we talk with Austin Sauerbrei about his debut graphic novel Trouble at Coal Creek that tells the story of a rarely told piece of east Tennessee labor history. The book is available from Haymarket Books.  

On this episode of the Labor Exchange we talk with Caroline Nutter with the Colorado Fiscal Institute about the Special Session of the Colorado General Assembly addressing budget shortfalls related to the Trump administrations budget bill.

On this episode we remember Sheila Ivy Traister, a leader with SAG-AFTRA and the AFL-CIO who passed away recently. We listen back to a conversation with her from 2023 about the work of an artist, the importance of unions in the entertainment industry and the Screen Actor Guild Awards. This is a special extended version of our radio interview. 

On this episode of the Labor Exchange we hear the most recent Labor Radio Podcast Weekly, a digest of the top labor radio from across the country.