The recent defeat of the UAW at the Chattanooga, Tennessee Volkswagen plant marked a serious setback for the working class, the auto-workers of the Tennessee plant, as well as hundreds of thousands of rank-and-file autoworkers within in the UAW. Workers at the plant voted against representation by a narrow margin of 712 to 626. A victory for labor would have marked the unionization of the first foreign auto plant in the U.S. and one of only a handful of unionized plants in the South. As the growth and survival of the U.S. labor movement in general, and the UAW in particular, depends in part on unionizing the largely unorganized South, union militants and rank-and-file activists need to draw key lessons from this defeat and augment our tactics and strategies.
Saint Paul, MN – A sea of red spread over the Saint Paul School District headquarters Feb. 18 as more than 500 teachers and their supporters rallied at the school board meeting, most wearing the color used by the Saint Paul Federation of Teachers. The group rallied outside the School District building at 360 Colbourne then marched inside to pack the board meeting. Teachers and their supporters overwhelmed the meeting room, spilling out and filling two overflow rooms. Speaker after speaker told the school board and Superintendent Silva that they need to actually negotiate with the teachers if they want to avoid a strike. Teachers have set a strike vote for Feb. 24.
Newark, NJ – Workers and supporters of SEIU Local 32BJ held a rally at Newark Airport, Feb. 11, to demand pay equity for all airport workers of the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey. A spirited crowd turned up in Terminal C to present demands. Workers from JFK and LaGuardia airports came to support Newark workers.
Saint Paul, MN – On Feb. 10 the Executive Board of the Saint Paul Federation of Teachers voted unanimously to call a strike vote for their members on Feb. 24. This comes after almost nine months of contract negotiations in which teachers have put forward bold proposals to defend and improve public education in Saint Paul, which have garnered the support of parents and community members but drawn negative responses from School District officials.
Raleigh, NC – An estimated 80,000 to 100,000 people mobilized early in the morning of Feb.8 for the annual Historic Thousands on Jones Street in Raleigh, organized by the NAACP. This march was in conjunction with the start of the Moral Marches for 2014, intended to continue the momentum from last year's Moral Monday movement, in which thousands of protesters demonstrated at the doorstep of the state capitol. Over 900 people were arrested during acts of civil disobedience during the 2013 protests, refusing to give up their right to assembly.
Jacksonville, FL – Protesters from the Jacksonville Progressive Coalition stood outside of a local Staples retail store, Feb. 8, demanding that the U.S. Postal Service (USPS) stop using non-union labor at Staples. In order to cut costs, the Postal Service recently opened up mail centers at participating Staples stores around the nation as part of a test program. Instead of employing union postal workers with good pay and benefits, these new centers are staffed by underpaid, non-union retail workers.
Republicans, Democrats Miss the Mark on Inequality
Milwaukee, WI – As soon as President Obama's State of the Union address was over, debates around the speech's central theme of wealth inequality were distributed in carefully packaged arguments to all who would listen.
Republicans, Democrats Miss the Mark on Inequality
Milwaukee, WI – As soon as President Obama's State of the Union address was over, debates around the speech's central theme of wealth inequality were distributed in carefully packaged arguments to all who would listen.
Minneapolis, MN – The Supreme Court heard oral arguments this week in Harris v. Quinn, and the ruling could have a devastating impact on public sector workers and their unions.
