Boston, MA – On August 5, the National Association of Letter Carriers (NALC) began its 73rd biennial national convention. Tensions among the rank and file heading into the convention were high, as the national body has been unable to finalize a tentative agreement with the United States Postal Service despite the contract expiring May 20, 2023. Letter carriers are working for near-poverty wages due to rapid inflation.
Boston, MA – On the evening of June 2, an estimated 55,000 people gathered in Boston’s Franklin Park to protest the police murder of George Floyd. The event began with the blocking of Blue Hill Avenue, next to the park in the working-class neighborhood of Dorchester, for a die-in. Protesters laid down in the street for eight minutes and 46 seconds – marking the length of time that Floyd was held down by the Minneapolis police officers who crushed the life out of his body. The enormous crowd chanted the names of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor and others who have been killed by police throughout the country.
Boston, MA – Workers and students packed into the office of Boston’s Chinese Progressive Association on April 27 to hear labor activists from the Philippines speak about the state of working-class struggle in their country. The event, sponsored by the Boston chapter of the Asian Pacific American Labor Alliance (APALA), featured speakers Raymond “Mong” Palatino and Ed Cubello.
Approximately 1700 hotel workers in Boston walked off the job on Wednesday, October 3. The strike includes seven hotels across the city: the Sheraton Boston, Westin Copley Square, Westin Waterfront, Aloft Seaport, Element Seaport, W Hotel, and the Ritz-Carlton. All the hotels involved are operated by Marriott International, which is both the largest hotel employer in Boston and the largest hotel chain in the world.
Boston, MA – UNITE HERE Local 26 members on Northeastern University’s campus ratified a five-year agreement, Oct. 10, just hours before they were scheduled to begin a strike.
Boston, MA – Northeastern University dining hall workers voted 316 yes to 2 no on Oct. 4 to authorize a strike. They additionally announced that if no resolution is reached by 11:59 p.m. on Tuesday, Oct. 10, they will strike. Picket lines would begin in the early morning hours of Oct. 11.
Boston, MA – On Wednesday evening, Sept. 20, dining hall workers at Northeastern University announced that they are prepared to call a strike if their demands are not met. The workers are members of UNITE HERE Local 26, the same union that represents food service workers at Harvard University, who engaged in a successful 22-day strike last fall.
Boston, MA – Food service workers at Northeastern University launched a one-day strike on Jan. 20, the day of Donald Trump’s inauguration as president. A majority of the 375 workers employed in the university’s dining halls joined in the work stoppage to protest Trump’s policy proposals.
Boston, MA – Food service workers at Northeastern University announced that they will be walking off of the job at 12:00 noon on Jan. 20, in protest of President-elect Donald Trump’s anti-immigrant and anti-worker policy proposals. The one-day, mid-contract work stoppage will continue through the rest of Inauguration Day. The workers are members of UNITE HERE Local 26, the same union which led a 22-day strike of food service workers at Harvard University last October.
Boston, MA -Harvard, the world’s wealthiest university, saw its first workers’ strike in over 30 years this week as Harvard University Dining Service (HUDS) food service workers, members of UNITE HERE Local 26, took to the picket lines on Oct. 5. Workers were in contract negotiations with the Harvard administration since the end of May. The administration is refusing to budge on key workers’ demands including equitable healthcare, year-round employment, and a racial justice task force to promote equality at work.
