Jerome Scott, a member of the LRBW since its founding, was there to join the discussion.

The documentary follows the founding of the LRBW by joining together different union caucuses led by militant Black workers. Each was at a different factory but soon realized they faced the same issues. All of the factory managements had racist practices, racist pay scales and dangerous work conditions.

By getting together and founding the LRBW, they were able to work on something bigger and learn from each other. They saw that the factory owners, the mayor, and the police were all on one side.

The organization also expanded into the community, colleges and schools. Having people who did not work in the factories on their side helped them in times of strikes, firings or arrests. With an organization uniting Black workers across industries, they had enough support to put up election campaigns for city office in Detroit.

After the movie showing, there was a question-and-answer session with Jerome Scott who recently co-wrote Motown and the Making of Working-Class Revolutionaries. The book details his experience in the LRBW. Scott filled in some details not mentioned in the documentary, like how they related to other groups, and the mistakes they made. Attendees talked more about the need to fight for people’s everyday problems, organizing at the workplace, and building the strategic alliance between the Black Liberation Movement and the struggle of the multinational working class for socialism.

The screening was put on by Resistance Cinema Atlanta, Atlanta Alliance Against Racist and Political Repression, and the Freedom Road Socialist Organization. Speakers talked about what their groups do and urged everyone to join.

#AtlantaGA #GA #Labor #OppressedNationalities #AfricanAmerican

New York, NY – A new, militant group of rank-and-file unionists formed within the United Federation of Teachers (UFT) this week, called “ASAP – Alliance of Substitutes and Paraprofessionals”.

The new group, mainly consisting of members of the union’s reform caucus MORE (Movement of Rank-and-File Educators), was formed to meet a pressing need in the union. In the NYC Department of Education, substitute teachers, paraprofessionals and substitute paraprofessionals are the most neglected workers. So, union members are banding together to change this. In addition, the inequality in pay and conditions takes on a nationality, racial, and gendered character with many substitutes and most paraprofessionals being Black, Latino, immigrant and women.

While there are some groups which exist within the union to address certain specific issues that affect these education workers, such as Fix Para Pay, ASAP hopes to be the rank and file led option which really engages in militant fights on these issues.

Paraprofessionals are in the news lately, for many reasons. Most recently, Mayor Mamdani decided to sue NYC City Council for passing the Para RESPECT Check bill into law, which will provide a $10,000 bonus check for paras, which the UFT has been pushing for over the last two years. Additionally, the city’s Teacher Retirement System (TRS) attacked para retirees by demanding they make huge repayments due to a miscalculation on the part of TRS. Thankfully, this attack was partially routed by the UFT’s response via its legal team.

Meanwhile, substitutes do not have proper representation in the union. Most titles, such as teachers, social workers and paras, have their own chapters, whether based in the school or otherwise. Substitutes have no chapter of their own, which means there is no mechanism to formally represent their collective voice. Also, substitutes do not have representation on UFT’s executive board or at its delegate assembly, the union’s primary decision-making body.

Claude Copland, a member of ASAP and a substitute teacher in the Bronx, said, “As a long-term substitute teacher for almost five years now, I look forward to working with other subs and paras to help build a union that does not take any title for granted and wants to see the best outcomes for all their members.”

The Alliance of Subs and Paras vows to build the fight around these kinds of issues and will be holding related events.

ASAP is hosting a Para Town Hall, where paraprofessionals can gather to give their voice on what course of action to take with the recent lawsuit from the city against city council’s Para RESPECT Check. The event will take place over Zoom on September 16, at 6 p.m.

For more about the Alliance of Subs and Paras, follow them at: @nycsubparaalliance on Instagram.

#NewYorkNY #NY #NYC #Labor #UnitedFederationOfTeachers #Teachers

Chicago, IL – 100 nurses and their allies gathered outside the Cook County Pension Fund in downtown Chicago on Augurst 27 demanding the fund sever ties with Palantir, a surveillance technology company. National Nurses United (NNU), the largest union of registered nurses in the U.S., organized the Chicago protest, as well as seven others across the country.

NNU’s campaign to “Purge Palantir” comes as many hospitals establish deeper ties with the company. Some hospitals use Palantir to automate nurse staffing, laying off local managers and worsening working conditions. Other hospitals share patient data with Palantir, which then uses that information so ICE can target and deport immigrant patients.

“Union nurses cannot be silent when our most vulnerable people, babies and children, are being detained by federal immigration agents,” said NNU President Jamie Brown, RN. “While our patients and neighbors are living in fear of immigration raids enabled by Palantir, our hospitals are facing huge cuts, and our patients are facing mounting health care costs because of HR 1. Nurses aren’t just saying no to Palantir, but we’re calling for our public resources to go toward the benefit of working people, not billionaires and their corporations.”

Husam Marajda of U.S. Palestinian Community Network stated, “Per Palantir’s own admission, it serves to help fight ‘U.S. adversaries.’ This specifically means that Palantir serves war and terror. It means that Palantir gives technology to criminal governments and administrations like the United States and Israel and others, to commit war crimes. To kidnap and separate families. To cause destruction everywhere.”

Among Palantir’s backers and investors are the managers of various public worker pension funds, including the Illinois State Board of Investment and the Cook County Pension Fund. CTU Recording Secretary Vicki Kurzydlo explained, “We cannot tell our students and our families that we stand with them while our retirement dollars are invested in companies like Palantir, whose technologies are being used to target, arrest, and disappear people!”

Nurses and health care workers occupied the street for ten minutes. Organizers placed baby shoes in front of banners reading, “Patients over Palantir” and “Purge Palantir.” The shoes represented the over 500 babies that ICE has detained since 2025. Other protesters held notes that children wrote in ICE detention. Some raised umbrellas with big eyes attached symbolizing that nurses are “keeping an eye” on Palantir’s harmful activities.

NNU continues to organize against hospital funding cuts and Palantir. They fight for a better, healthier, future for all. One of NNU’s main calls is to, “Fund care, not billionaires.” You can sign the petition at the National Nurses United website.

#ChicagoIL #IL #Labor #NationalNursesUnited #Palantir #ImmigrantRights #ICE #AntiWarMovement

New Orleans, LA – On August 27, about 30 people gathered for a demonstration against Palantir, a data analytics corporation notorious for its use in mass surveillance and the Palestinian genocide. New Orleans Nurses United led the protest alongside National Nurses United (NNU) locals in seven other cities.

“We nurses are outside the federal building in New Orleans today because one in four people detained by ICE are taken to Louisiana detention centers,” said Hannah Miller, an ICU nurse and NNU member.

The crowd chanted “Purge, purge Palantir!” and raised picket signs that read “Palantir Out!”.

NNU chose to target Palantir in this coordinated National Day of Action because hospitals contract the corporation to manage patient information, including automated scheduling and management. Palantir is currently partnering with the Trump regime to target people for deportation based on Medicaid data from Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

“Trump and his fearmongers in Congress continue to send billions to corrupt CEOs who profit from violence and suffering. They have stolen more than a trillion dollars from healthcare for working people,” said Miller.

Nurses then occupied a busy street for over ten minutes and raised a giant banner that read, “Patients over Palantir!” They put stickers on signs and buildings informing bystanders on the dangers ICE and Palantir pose.

“We must unite to say no to Palantir making us work harder for less, no to Palantir arming masked thugs to kidnap our neighbors, no to Palantir enabling Israel’s ongoing genocide of the Palestinian people, and no to Palantir everywhere!” stated Nick Michaels, an organizer with New Orleans Stop Helping Israel’s Ports (NOSHIP).

Organizations that joined NNU in this demonstration include NOSHIP, Jewish Voices for Peace (JVP), and the Freedom Road Socialist Organization.

#NewOrleansLA #LA #Labor #Nurses #NationalNursesUnited #Palantir #AntiWarMovement #ImmigrantRights #ICE

Anaheim, CA – On Saturday, August 15, 300 Disney workers took to the streets in front of D23 at the Anaheim Convention Center to demand a fair contract from Disney. D23 is Disney’s official fan club that started in 2009.

On Saturday the fan club was hosting an event called The Ultimate Fan Event, where fan club members get exclusive insights into Disney’s upcoming movies, with first looks at trailers and access to exclusive merch. The event also features panels with celebrities, creators and executives. 

The workers holding the action are hotel and restaurant workers who are represented by Unite HERE Local 11 and have been fighting for a contract since February. The workers say they have grown tired of Disney’s mistreatment.

Ines Guzman, a Disney hotel worker, stated, “We are fighting for a good workload. The workload is so heavy for us at Disney, we have people getting injured because it’s so bad.” Guzman also said “It’s hard for us to get breaks, because for me, I’m a lead, so I have to cover half a tower, and have to cover 55 rooms. So, we can’t take breaks because how would we cover that. We work at a fast pace and we can get hurt.” Guzman continued, “The Injuries are lower back, shoulders, arms and knees.” 

During the event, workers took to the streets and shouted “What do we want? Contract! When do we want it? Now!” The workers marched the streets in front of Disneyland, with drums and megaphone-amplified voices ringing through the streets, to let them know they are not going away. The workers are demanding that Disney respond and listen to them. Recently, in negotiations, Disney made a counteroffer that the workers were not happy with and voted to refuse.

Bonnie Gutierrez, a cashier and barista at the Coffee House, stated, “To receive their counteroffer was hurtful, it was a slap in the face.” Gutierrez continued, “We were expecting a little bit more from a company that has the means. It was offensive.” 

Gutierrez also went into what they want to see in a contract, “We're wanting Disney to give us a fair wage. We are looking for this upcoming contract to include better health benefits and a pension. Also really just to keep up with inflation. Some of us commute a long way. Myself, I come from Riverside to work, and with the price of gas and food going up its hard.”

Despite the long fight and Disney’s refusal to meet their demands, the workers' spirits are still high, with many being motivated to keep going so they can support their families and themselves. Austin Linch, a Local 11 leader stated, “The workers are furious, then they see Disney is going to throw a party to celebrate their brand, and the workers are outraged that Disney is going to tout themselves as the good guy and purveyor of magic. When we know the workers are the ones who provide that.”

Throughout the action, the picket line was loud and the workers' anger showed. They show no signs of slowing down, and say they will keep fighting until they get a decent contract. The workers are fed up and angry with Disney, with many getting injured and their working conditions being poor. They say they will not stop until they are treated with respect and get the compensation they deserve.

#AnaheimCA #CA #Labor #Disney

Fort Morgan, CO — On Monday, August 3, nearly 1500 Cargill workers in Fort Morgan voted on a proposed contract negotiated by Cargill Meat Solutions and Teamsters Local 455. The vote comes after the employer locked out the union workers for nearly three months. When the ballots were counted, the workers had voted to reject the proposed agreement by a margin of 25 votes, 749 to 724.

In anticipation of a strike, Cargill stopped processing beef on April 23 and later locked out the Teamsters Local 455 members on May 20. Before the lockout, the plant had already gone nearly a month without processing cattle, as Cargill directed cattle to other facilities. The Fort Morgan plant processed roughly 4000 cattle per day last year. Cargill reported $154 billion in revenue in 2025 and was ranked by Forbes as the largest privately-held company in the United States.

In contract negotiations, the workers had proposed $5 hourly wage increases over the course of a five-year contract. “If they truly respected us and cared about the work we do they wouldn't have a problem giving us a dollar a year raise. Without us they have nothing,” said Korin Turner, a Cargill meatpacker. The tentative agreement reached between Teamsters Local 455 on July 28 offered $2.15 total in wage increases, which was the same amount that Cargill had offered back in in May.

Guaranteed hours became a central point of opposition to the tentative agreement. Workers said the proposed agreement would increase the number of weeks in which they could be guaranteed only 32 hours of pay from ten weeks under the previous contract to 20 weeks. “For us to drive to work five days a week and only get 32 hours, that's barely enough to live. We have kids. We need to support our families,” said Sarah Webber, a Cargill fabrication worker. “Twenty weeks out of the year only 32 hours is a big slap in the face. Our previous contract only had ten weeks a year. They doubled it in this contract.” Some workers reported working even fewer hours.

“We weren't even getting the 32 hours, only 26 or 28 hours,” said Lucilia Fuentes, a Teamsters-represented trainer on the killing floor.

Safety was another concern raised by many Cargill workers during the lockout. Several picketing Cargill employees reported suffering serious injuries involving meat-processing equipment, and multiple workers at the picket had missing fingers or visible scars on their hands.

Don Wireman, a Cargill worker who sorts the meat after it's been packaged, said, “There's boxes stacked so high they fall over on people and they can't move until the person next to them is unburying them, digging them out.”

“We have three coworkers that are missing half their fingers,” said Makayla Wilson, a Teamsters-represented control room operator at Cargill.

During the lockout, the International Brotherhood of Teamsters (IBT) paid workers $1000 per week, with an additional $250 per week coming from Teamsters Local 455. The union payments were substantially higher than the weekly earnings many workers reported receiving before the lockout. “We're getting $1250 a week right now,” said Fuentes, when interviewed one month into the lockout. “Before we were making four to five hundred a week.”

On July 20, Teamsters Local 455 stopped its $250 weekly payments and encouraged workers to apply for unemployment. “I'm getting $1250,” said Wireman. He explained that $1000 was coming from the IBT and $250 from Teamsters Local 455. “But starting the 20th, so, next week, we're only getting $1000 because they're not paying the $250.”

On August 4, one day after workers rejected the proposed contract, the IBT announced that the $1000-per-week payments would be reduced to five times each member's monthly union dues. Based on monthly dues ranging from $58.75 to $72.50, that would reduce weekly payments to approximately $294 to $363.

After workers voted down the agreement negotiated between Cargill and Teamsters Local 455 on August 3, a group of workers started a petition demanding a re-vote.

“We had a large group of members that felt like there was some misunderstanding through the language barriers,” said Chris Suazo, a Teamsters business agent representing the 1700 locked-out Cargill workers, among whom 27 different languages are spoken. “They took it upon themselves to start a petition,” said Suazo.”

“Over a thousand signed the petition,” said Servando Payan, another Teamsters business agent.

Suazo said Teamsters officials are taking a different approach to the second vote. “[We're] being very clear what a no vote would entail and what a yes vote would entail. We're now doing the ballots in their languages – Haitian Creole, Arabic, Spanish, French, Somali, Tigrinya.”

Teamsters officials defended the proposed agreement, saying they believed they had secured the best possible contract. “I believe our group has done the beef industry a great service,” said Suazo. “We've done everything possible to support them and put the workers first.” Payan said, “We feel comfortable saying we walked away from the table without any additional money on the table.”

Teamsters’ officials have scheduled a second vote for August 17, where workers will once again decide whether to accept the proposed contract while the nearly three-month lockout continues.

Editor’s note: The agreement was approved on August 17.

#FortMorganCO #CO #Labor #Teamsters #Cargill #Strike #TeamstersLocal455

New Orleans, LA – On August 13, IAFF (International Association of Fire Fighters) Local 632 filed a lawsuit with the Civil District Court of New Orleans against the city’s Roman Nelson, the city’s fire superintendent. The union is fighting against unsafe practices like ordering unqualified fire fighters to operate the fire engines, a practice that puts workers and New Orleanians at risk.

Although staffing shortages have historically plagued the department, qualified operators could earn overtime to keep the engines running. “[But] now, we're being told we won't be compensated for this dangerous and often unqualified work. And if we refuse, we risk being fired,” explained Aaron Mischler, president of Local 632.

The conflict between Local 632 and the city came to a head in the beginning of August, when three fire stations were forced to temporarily cease operations due to severe staffing shortages. “When we took this drastic measure, the city finally relented and allowed us to pay guys overtime to keep services up and running,” said Aaron Mischler.

The city of New Orleans has repeatedly attacked workers’ wages to compensate for severe fiscal mismanagement. Mayor Helena Moreno announced layoffs, hiring freezes and furloughs as soon as she took office in November 2025. “We're a public union, we don't generate income, we'll always be a red line. They're always looking to cut corners on safety at the detriment of us and the public,” argued Mischler.

While the legal battle continues, some local news outlets are blaming the union for the city’s failures. Local 632 firefighters want to set the record straight on who the real instigator of this fight is. “Even if you see station closures, we will always get the job done. We put ourselves on the line every day for the people's safety. There's nothing the public has to worry about, this is a fight between us and the city. The city is choosing to do this, not us firefighters,” asserted Mischler.

New Orleanians should keep an eye out for announcements from IAFF Local 632 for future calls to action and solidarity in their ongoing struggle against Roman Nelson and company.

#NewOrleansLA #LA #Labor #Firefighters #IAFFLocal632

Seattle, WA – On Saturday, August 15, dozens gathered outside Embassy Suites Hotel to picket in support of hotel workers with UNITE HERE Local 8. The workers have been negotiating their contract for six months and have been on strike for 59 days.

The strike began on June 12 after Embassy Suites repeatedly failed to meet workers' demands, which included year-round healthcare, higher wage increases and protection from Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). The organizers of the picket said that negotiations with the company have been difficult and unproductive.

“Unfortunately, the hotel did not engage in good faith negotiations with the staff,” said Gabe Rubliovschi, a hotel worker at Embassy Suites and organizer with Unite Here Local 8, “12 days into the strike, they came to the table with the exact same offer of a 40-cent increase over the next six months.”

Many UNITE HERE hotel workers across the country went on strike in 2024 and won between $9 and $10 raises over a contract period of four years. The Embassy Suites workers’ wage demands are in line with other unionized hotels in the area.

Hayden Eyerly, a front desk agent with Embassy Suites, confirmed the story, saying that the company, “called us back to the negotiation table on day 12, and we were expecting a new offer of some sort. But they were assuming we’d have a new offer ready, when our response to their previous offer was to go on strike! So, it was a big waste of time, but it made it a whole lot easier to come back out here and yell at them.”

“As someone who started working here before the pandemic, we’ve seen staffing levels cut in half from what they used to be,” said Jus Adsuara, a Local 8 Vice President and hotel worker. “I’m doing twice as much work compared to before the pandemic, but my wage definitely hasn’t doubled.”

Staffing at hotels nationwide has not returned to its pre-pandemic levels. Additionally, Seattle’s hospitality industry is reeling from decreases in Canadian travelers, some of which have been attributed to Trump’s oppressive immigration policies.

Adsuara further explained, “We are really concerned about the presence of ICE in our city, and we want the right to be notified and the right to stay home if ICE is near the building.”

One-third of hotel workers nationally are immigrants; about 3 million immigrants work in hospitality. Hotel workers in Minneapolis have won protections from ICE, which Embassy Suites workers look to as an example.

As cries of “If we don’t get no contract, you won’t get no sleep” echoed throughout the picket, Jus had one more message for management: “We’ll be out here as long as it takes. We’ve said that from the very beginning, and we really mean it.”

#SeattleWA #WA #Labor #Strike #UniteHereLocal8 #HotelWorkers

Rockville, MD – On August 14, Teamsters Local 639 at Verbal Beginnings, an education center for autistic children, held a rally as they entered their fourth week on strike. The workers at Verbal Beginnings organized just a little over a year ago and have garnered attention from the Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA) community due to being one of the first workplaces in their field to unionize.

The striking workers held signs reading, “Fair pay in ABA!” and chanted “What do we want? Contract!” Members of Montgomery County Educators Association, city council members, and several community members and activists joined them on the picket line in solidarity.

“To see just how much the community supports the struggle of the workers, it’s really incredible,” said Jane Bruno, one of the workers from Verbal Beginnings and a member of Teamsters Local 639. “And I think a lot of people feel this way, but they're afraid to speak out. They're afraid to try to rock the boat. But I think we’re showing them that, ‘hey, you can come together. You can. You can fight for these things because you do deserve better.’ It’s really powerful.”

The fight for a decent contract at Verbal Beginnings has been going on for over a year, with key issues centering around pay to keep up with Maryland’s high cost of living, proper PPE for the workers, and safeguards to address basic needs such as fixing holes in the walls of the workplace. “I shouldn’t have to work three jobs just to make a living,” said another worker with Verbal Beginnings, “we deserve to be able to make a living in this field.”

Though the workers have sent several proposals to management, the bosses have refused to move on most of the workers’ demands, including those around wages.

“We're definitely still pretty far off,” said Bruno, “We're still not there as far as what they're offering, and what we would be able to accept, that actually allows us to come back to work and for us to be able to make a living wage and pay all of our bills.”

Many workers have expressed repeatedly that at the heart of the strike is the desire to return to and to be able to take care of the children, while shining a light on the hypocrisy of the leadership that claims the same.

“VB, you say you care about these kids and us, that that’s your mission,” said Bruno, “Well, actions speak louder than words! Ball’s in your court now, go out and prove it.”

#RockvilleMD #MD #Labor #Strike #Teamsters #TeamstersLocal639

Los Angeles, CA – On Sunday, July 26, over 100 activists from different organizations came together to celebrate the launch of Bulosan – a network fighting for the labor movement in the United States and international solidarity with unions and workers in the Philippines.

“The core of our organization is made up of union organizers and workers who understand the importance of building genuine trade unions, building solidarity between workers in the Philippines and workers in southern California, and organizing overseas Filipino workers to contribute to the struggle back home. Before launching our organization, we grew to include several more organizers and workers and we are now growing every week,” said one of the Bulosan organizers.

The program started with report-backs from U.S. union members who recently went on a labor solidarity trip to the Philippines and saw firsthand the militancy and discipline of the KMU trade unionists. They noticed that workers in the Filipino labor movement are connected and involved across different industries and unions. “When there is a labor action in the Philippines, everybody comes out for it,” said Ryan Calbreath of the United Electrical Workers.

Then a panel of workers who traveled to Crockwell, California shared their experiences on the picket lines of the C&H refinery strike. C&H ILWU Local 6 workers have been on strike since June 15 over proposed cuts to health care, overtime and sick days. The workers have refused to unload the sugar from the ports where it arrives from sugar plantations of Negros Island in the Philippines.

The panel summated that workers in the Philippines and workers in the United States have more in common with each other than with their bosses. And sometimes, like with C&H sugar, they even have the same bosses.

The program ended with solidarity statements from other organizations including Migrante USA, International Coalition for Human Rights in the Philippines, International Women’s Alliance, and Centro CSO.

Leilani Gonzalez, executive co-chair of Centro CSO, shared a solidarity statement supporting the labor movement in the Philippines. “It's important to continue to organize and raise the political consciousness of workers, to question the systems of oppression and connect it back to imperialism and join organizations like Bulosan. We look forward to working together more against our shared enemy.”

To learn about how you can support Bulosan, follow them on Instagram: @BulosanLA

#LosAngelesCA #CA #Labor #International #Philippines #Bulosan

While a different survey of households showed that the unemployment rate fell from 4.2% in June to 4.1% in July, this was mainly due to unemployed workers giving up their job search, which meant that they are no longer counted as unemployed. The measure of people working and unemployed, called the Labor Force Participation rate, fell to 61.4, the lowest level in 50 years, not counting April and May of 2020, when the COVID-19 pandemic was gripping the country. All in all, more than a million workers have dropped out of the labor force over the last year.

The fall in the Labor Force Participation Rate was concentrated among oppressed nationalities. The biggest drop in the LFPR was among Asian Americans, where it fell by a whole point. The LFPR among African Americans fell by 0.6, while there was no drop at all in the LFPR among white Americans.

One reason for people giving up on the job search was that for the last six months, more than one in four unemployed had been out of work for six months or more. This is a record high percentage for a time not following a severe recession such as 1981-83, 2007-2009, and 2020 when the unemployment rate topped out near or above 10%.

Job losses were led by job cuts in public schools, where almost 50,000 jobs were lost in July. While some said this was because of summer vacation, the report was adjusted to account for this. Compared to a year earlier in July of 2025, public schools still had 80,000 fewer employees. The next biggest job loss was in leisure and hospitality, which includes restaurants, hotels and entertainment. These industries lost 40,000 jobs in July.

Despite the bad economic news, the stock market rose, with all the major indices (the Dow Jones Industrial Average, the Standard & Poor’s 500, and the NASDAQ) all up for the day. Just another example of when bad news for workers becomes good news for the capitalists and rich of Wall Street.

#SanJoseCA #CA #CapitalismAndEconomy #Economy #Labor #Jobs

Rockville, MD – In the early morning of July 20, Teamsters Local 639 at Verbal Beginnings, an education center for autistic children, went on strike in order to get a decent contract.

Formed a little over a year ago, the union has come head-to-head with the bosses as Verbal Beginnings has failed to meet their demands and provide fair pay for their workers.

The strike has garnered attention from the Applied Behavioral Analysis (ABA) therapy community, as Verbal Beginnings is one of the first workplaces in the field to both unionize and go on strike.

The union won the strike vote in May 2025 and has been in negotiations with Verbal Beginnings since September 2025. While steady progress has been made on some issues, the company has been unwilling to reach an agreement on raising the wage rate.

The current wage rate does not keep up with the cost of living in the area, which is among the highest in the state. Since the center opened four years ago, the company has not adjusted wages for cost of living increases.

The registered behavioral technicians are the backbone of Verbal Beginnings and what keeps it running.

“So much of what we’re doing is for the children,” said Jane Bruno, one of the striking workers at Verbal Beginnings. “What’s good for us is good for the kids. If they really do care about the kids as much as they say they do, we’re offering a way to help those children. Help those children by helping us.”

The striking workers marched right up to the doors of the community center, shouting slogans of “Who are we? Teamsters!” and holding signs saying, “No ABA without fair pay!” and “Stop the war on workers!” As of the time of this writing, the workers are still on strike and will continue to demand competitive wages from Verbal Beginnings.

#RockvilleMD #MD #Labor #Teamsters #Education #Teachers #Strike

Chicago, IL – On Thursday morning, July 30, the Chicago Board of Education passed an amended budget to avoid over 1000 layoffs of workers in Chicago Public Schools (CPS). The revised budget counts on the state of Illinois to allocate an additional $150 million to CPS for the 2026-2027 school year. The amount is a fraction of the funding Illinois committed to provide to school districts under the Evidence-Based Funding (EBF) for Student Success Act, passed back in 2017. Unions, community organizations and other stakeholders are pressuring the general assembly and Governor J.B. Pritzker to follow through on these commitments.

Hundreds of students, teachers and other school workers gathered before the board meeting in downtown Chicago. CPS students in youth organizations demanded more mental health programming and staff. Chicago Teachers Union (CTU) members wore red and carried signs reading “Budget incomplete” and “Protect our students.” Lunchroom workers, organized with Unite Here Local 1, demanded a contract from CPS after a year of stalled negotiations.

Inside the board meeting, CPS Chief Executive Officer Macquline King urged the board to accept CPS’s budget proposal unamended. The proposal featured layoffs of over 700 teachers, 800 school support personnel, and 100 central office and citywide staff. She emphasized the need to close a $732 million budget deficit amidst declining student enrollment.

During public comment, however, board members heard from many CTU members about the negative impacts that the proposed layoffs would have on the students and the school communities in the coming school year. Libby Lundeen, a second-grade teacher in the Austin neighborhood, said the layoffs will leave her school with only one fourth-grade teacher for a classroom of 45 students, a size that is “untenable.”

“These layoffs may be numbers to you, but to the schools they serve, they are instrumental in keeping our schools running and our students learning,” Lundeen said. “Join us to demand that the state pay its share and save our educators. Do not accept this current budget without exhausting all options.”

Many speakers united around the call to start the school year with the staff in place, then fight for the state funding required to maintain them through the end of the school year.

In response to such community pressure, school board member Michilla Blaise introduced the amendment to increase anticipated state revenue by $150 million and to use this money to “avoid” making the layoffs permanent. She emphasized that “over 75% of the staff laid off are people of color” and that the state is “the only path to long-term structural solutions.”

In 2017, the Evidence-Based Funding (EBF) for Student Success Act committed the Illinois legislature to fund schools at 90% of adequacy by 2027. With the deadline upon us, Chicago Public Schools is funded at only 73% of what it needs to provide students with an adequate education. An estimated $985 million would be required to meet the state’s initial commitment. Even with the $150 million in additional revenue that the amendment assumes from the state, the district would continue to be funded at less than 77% of adequacy.

Board member Jitu Brown gave further context to the relative shortcomings and inequities of state funding. “For three decades, Illinois was 49th in public education due to an overreliance on property taxes, despite the fact of having an international city within its midst. This was foundational to creating an apartheid school system. The schools in Streeterville and Lincoln Park, by design, were far more resourced than schools in Austin and Altgeld Gardens. The state has caused harm, and they owe us.”

Brown continued to emphasize the need for long-term structural solutions to the deficit. “If you look at other large urban districts, Los Angeles funds between 58% and 70% of their schools from the state of California; New York, 40% to 48%; Chicago, 29%.”

The amendment to assume increased state funding passed by a vote of 11-7 with one abstention. CTU representatives praised the decision. In an interview with Fox 32 Chicago, CTU Vice President Jackson Potter emphasized the evidence of political will in Springfield, with Speaker Emanuel “Chris” Welch pledging to push for more funding in the November veto session.

In contrast to King’s focus on the negative outcomes of the 2017 budget process, Potter pointed out the positive outcomes from the same time period. “When we had a similar crisis the last time the Board of Education included state money that hadn’t yet manifested in the budget in 2017, we won the biggest increase in school funding in the state’s history. Ten years later, now we have to win them fully funding the formula that is part of the state statute that is legally required.”

In the meantime, Jackson does expect a “restoration” of critical positions as a result of the budget amendment. “So those class sizes that were 45 can come down to under 30 where they are more manageable and students can get a much more beneficial, holistic experience that they deserve.”

Despite optimism and will to fight for additional funding from labor leaders, CEO King responded to the budget vote with an email to parents and school workers threatening furloughs and interruptions to the school year after the vote.

“CPS needs to stop placing the burden of broken promises and bad financial decisions on the backs of students and teachers,” said CTU member Jake Hanawalt, who received a layoff letter from Englewood STEM High School. “Instead, they need to join us in Springfield this year and demand that the state fully fund our schools.”

#ChicagoIL #IL #Labor #PeoplesStruggles #CTU #Teachers

Michigan City, IN – Slot attendants and dual-rate slot attendants at Blue Chip Casino Hotel Spa voted overwhelmingly to unionize with Teamsters Local 135 in an NLRB election held July 30 and 31. 18 workers voted yes, only two voted no, and one ballot was challenged, equating to a 90% landslide for the union. Every eligible voter cast a ballot.

The outstanding victory caps off more than a month of organizing that began June 23, when slot attendants marched on the boss and delivered a union recognition letter to General Manager JC Rieger. After Blue Chip refused voluntary recognition, Teamsters Local 135 filed for an NLRB election that same day.

In the weeks between the march and the vote, Boyd Gaming, which owns Blue Chip, mounted an aggressive campaign to defeat the union. They delayed pre-scheduled annual raises earned by the slot attendants and dual rates, citing the impending NLRB election. At the same time, they gave sizable raises to the other non-union departments in hopes of demoralizing the workers.

The company brought in a union-avoidance consulting firm it has yet to disclose to the Office of Labor-Management Standards (OLMS), as federal law requires. Workers say at least three consultants worked the floor, including two who went by the names “Louisa” and “Charlie.” Union-busting consultants regularly lie about their real names to obscure their identities and avoid accountability for their shameful activities. Blue Chip must, by law, disclose their real identities to the OLMS.

The consultants pulled slot attendants into repeated one-on-one and small-group meetings to pressure them into voting no. Management sent anti-union letters to workers' homes, papered break rooms and back-of-house areas with misleading propaganda, and bombarded workers' phones with text messages. Boyd Gaming even enlisted employees from a separate, non-union department to lobby slot attendants against the union.

None of it worked. Union organizers and slot attendants said that management appeared visibly shaken by the result of the vote when the NLRB agent read out the count on the afternoon of July 31.

Blue Chip Teamsters will now move to elect their bargaining committee and begin drafting contract proposals. Teamsters Local 135 conducts open bargaining, meaning any union member can sit in on negotiations with the company, a practice the local uses to keep rank-and-file workers directly involved and organized throughout the fight for a first contract.

The Blue Chip win is part of a broader surge in casino organizing by the Teamsters, who have organized hundreds of new casino workers over the past year, including table games dealers in Indiana and Virginia. The union now represents more than 6000 casino workers nationwide.

#MichiganCityIN #IN #Labor #Election #Casino #Feature

New Orleans, LA – On July 15, former Dollar General employees rallied at the site of their former store on Earhart Boulevard to protest the company’s decision to close the store and terminate all employees without notification, severance pay or the ability to transfer to the only remaining location in Orleans Parish.

“I tried the transfer. They blocked all of us out of the system,” former employee David Williams said at the event.

Members of the Liberate and Unite New Orleans chapter of Students for a Democratic Society (LUNO SDS) were also in attendance to express their solidarity with the fired workers.

LUNO SDS member and UPS worker Silas Gillett stated, “I just found out the other day that they’re shutting our warehouse down.” He continued to draw parallels between UPS and the Dollar General closure saying, “No transfers, no severance – they’re just laying people off; that’s all we get. if they can do this to one of us, they can do this to all of us. We’ve got to show up and show out for each other.”

Workers also spoke on the hypocrisy demonstrated by Dollar General’s rejection of their “core values” when it comes to how they treat their employees. Former employee Sunshine Best said, “Dollar General says in this mission statement is ‘serving others.’”

Best continued, “Communities deserve honesty. Workers deserve respect, and accountability requires fairness.”

Through store closures and the blatant disrespect that these workers have faced, Dollar General has firmly communicated what it thinks of our communities and of the people they need to operate. The workers, however, are not discouraged. They chanted, “Worker’s rights, day and night! This ain’t right, we’re gonna fight!”

#NewOrleansLA #LA #Labor

Chicago, IL – On the afternoon of Wednesday, July 15, over 200 National Nurses United (NNU) nurses from Illinois and across the country held a rally and picket outside of Illinois Senator Dick Durbin’s condo in Lakeview.

They demanded that Durbin reject and return all campaign contributions from Palantir Technologies, the AI tech company responsible for collecting civilians’ personal data on behalf of government agencies such as the US Immigration Customs and Enforcement (ICE), the U.S. Department of War, and the Israeli military. About 15% of Palantir’s revenue comes from healthcare, and its software is currently managing 21% of U.S. hospital beds.

Brenda Langford is a registered nurse at Cook County and is one of the vice presidents of NNU. Langford spoke about how Palantir’s Timpani and Inspire scheduling software affect the day-to-day lives of nurses.

“At face value, [Timpani and Inspire] do a terrible job of what they're supposed to do,” Langford stated. “They're inflexible and don't accommodate nurse’s needs. They mess up our schedules, they don't provide a good mix of skills and experience among nurses for any given shift and ultimately they, of course, tend to short staff. We have learned of ICU units where nurses were tripled with patients because of these apps. This is unsafe!”

Langford’s words were met with strong agreement from the crowd. “On the back end,” Langford continued, “nurses are worried for the safety and privacy of themselves and their patients. Through all these products, Palantir has access to a whole host of sensitive data. Nurses need to download Timpani and Inspire on their personal phones, accept the terms, and input their entire profile into these apps in order to be able to use them.”

The nurses who spoke expressed concern not only for themselves, but for their patients, particularly those with vulnerable immigration status.

“The Trump administration and ICE has contracted Palantir to compile data on immigrants for their deportation machines, and to make it easier for the federal agencies to surveil, detain, and even kill those of us who protest and resist,” said Cathy Kennedy, president of NNU and California Nurses Association. “Recently in Maine, they killed Joan Sebastián Durán Guerrero, and in Houston, Lorenzo Salgado Araujo, like they killed VA RN Alex Pretti, and mother Renee Good.”

Maria Heavener, an elementary school teacher and member of the Chicago Teachers Union, spoke to her encounter with ICE during Operation Midway Blitz last October. “They came within feet of our school and started deploying tear gas at our community members while our students were outside at recess,” Heavener stated. “[Palantir is] profiting off of this despair that they're putting families into. And then they're taking that profit and turning around and buying our representatives!”

Elinor Keener of Anti-War Committee – Chicago explained that in addition to being used to criminalize and deport immigrants in the US, Palantir helps Israel conduct its genocide in Gaza by developing “kill lists.” With very little human oversight, its AI software surveils Palestinians in order to choose targets for assassination and arrest, and then plans a sequence of attacks designed to kill the target. Those attacks often kill civilians near the target as well. When mass murder is built into the software, it is not ‘collateral damage’ – it’s genocide,” said Keener.

Keener then went on to describe how the Illinois State Board of Investment, which includes State Treasurer Michael Frerichs, nearly tripled its investment in Palantir over the past year. However, the board also quietly divested $33 million from companies complicit in genocide, apartheid and ICE attacks, which they tried to obscure from their 2025 annual report. “They hid this because elected officials like Michael Frerichs and Dick Durbin don’t want to admit that when we organize, we shape the political landscape,” Keener stated.

Despite the 90-degree heat and strong afternoon sun, the crowd at the rally was energized and engaged. The organizers had planned to hand-deliver their petition to the door of Senator Durbin’s condominium, but building security refused to let them inside. Undeterred, the crowd took the street and rallied there instead. “So, Senator Durbin,” Cathy Kennedy said, “we nurses wanna know, whose side are you on? Are you with our nurses, our patients, our communities; or are you with Peter Thiel, Alex Karp, JD Vance, and Donald Trump? Which side are you on?”

Supporters of the call to remove Palantir from the healthcare system can sign the NNU’s petition and follow their Save Our Hospitals Tour.

#ChicagoIL #IL #Labor #NNU #Nurses #AntiWarMovement #Palantir

Crockett, CA – On Monday, July 13, members and allies of the International Longshore and Warehouse Union Local 6 turned out in force for a picket at the C&H Sugar Factory in Crockett. This is the fifth week of an all-hands strike in protest of bad-faith bargaining offered by C&H.

Chants of “Union power!” and “Contract now!” rang out across the factory gates as workers marched en masse to the entrance, undeterred by vans full of scabs and private security. In addition, picketers demanded justice for the “Negros Nineteen,” who were massacred on April 19 by the Armed Forces of the Philippines. Among those killed were labor organizers Lyle Prijoles and Kai Sorem, from the San Francisco Bay Area and Washington state, respectively.

ILWU Local 6 is fighting aggressive cuts to sick leave, retiree healthcare and seniority benefits proposed by C&H, as well as refusing to unload a cargo ship of “blood sugar” brought from the Philippines. Throughout its history since its foundation in 1934, Local 6 has engaged in multiple rounds of militant struggle including five strikes, and 2026 is no exception.

Coordinated actions by workers and allies have repeatedly prevented the delivery of sugar at two separate ports in Richmond and Crockett. Picketers have operated on land and sea to actively deny factory access to scab workers and prevent the ship from docking, including a “floating picket” conducted when bosses tried to sneak the ship to another port using tugboats in the dead of night. In more than a month, just 25% of the sugar has been unloaded at a non-union port in Richmond, where it sits in open storage exposed to motor oil, animal feces and other contaminants.

“The labor movement is the last best chance for most Americans,” said Harvey Schwartz, labor historian and 57-year veteran reporter for the ILWU Dispatcher. “I'm optimistic about union leadership, and we have a lot of very strong young workers.” Chanting intensified as black vans drove past the picket line, bringing scabs hired by C&H bosses to desperately maintain production. Meanwhile, workers organized a screen with their backs and signs to prevent scab security from filming the faces of picketers.

Addressing the crowd, ILWU International Vice President Brandon Wolff said, “This is what it means to be part of a real union, a real family, and a real community. What's important to me is these 75 and 80-year-old people at home right now, wondering if they're gonna be able to get their diabetic medicine, wondering if they're gonna be able to get their flu shots, because this fucking company canceled their health benefits!”

“Brothers and sisters of Local 6, we got you!” Wolff continued. “From the top to the bottom to everywhere in between, from Alaska, to San Diego, to Hawaii and Australia, we've got a lot of international support coming in, we got you! So Local 6 and their counsel, go give 'em hell!” The crowd roared out in response and formed ranks to march on the bosses.

Over 200 people representing a multitude of different working-class organizations stood together in solidarity, including allied labor unions, political parties, and other groups. They included other ILWU Locals 142 (Hawaii) and 29 (San Diego), United Educators of San Francisco (UESF), Gabriela, Bayan, Kapit-Bisig Unyonista LA, Bay Area Tenant and Neighborhood Councils (TANC), Industrial Workers of the World (IWW), International League of People's Struggles (ILPS), East Bay Democratic Socialists of America (DSA), Freedom Road Socialist Organization (FRSO), and many more.

ILWU Local 6's strike continues into its fifth week, with workers committed to doing whatever it takes to secure a decent contract.

#CrockettCA #CA #Labor #ILWU #Strike #ThePhillippines #ILPS #Bayan #Gabriela #Feature

Indianapolis, IN – Drivers for uniform and workplace-supply company Vestis walked off the job at 2 a.m. Monday, July 13, launching an unfair labor practice strike organized by Teamsters Local 135.

The union says the strike is about accountability. Local 135 alleges Vestis threatened workers for engaging in protected concerted activity, a right guaranteed under the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA).

Vestis, based in Roswell, Georgia, provides uniform rental, workwear, floor mats, linens and related workplace supplies to businesses across North America. The company was spun off from Aramark in 2023, separating Aramark's uniform services division into its own publicly-traded company. Vestis drivers deliver and service uniforms and supplies for businesses like UPS.

In a statement posted to Facebook, Local 135 said the union remains “ready, willing, and available” to meet with the company to bargain in good faith and called for Vestis to respect workers' rights and negotiate fairly to end the dispute.

The union is asking Teamsters members, families and labor supporters in the Indianapolis area to join the picket line, which will run 24 hours a day, seven days a week, at 2050 Oliver Avenue.

#IndianapolisIN #IN #Labor #Teamsters #Strike #Vestis #IBT135 #NLRA #Feature

Minneapolis, MN – On July 1, over 200 people rallied in support of the MN 15, a group of Minneapolis community members that were indicted on bogus conspiracy charges relating to ICE resistance in the Twin Cities. 14 of the 15 were due in court to enter not guilty pleas to federal charges.

Rally speakers noted that most of the people indicted were union members, and many union officials spoke of the need to stand up to defend our union siblings, reminding attendees of the longstanding union motto, “An injury to one is an injury to all!”

Speakers included representatives from GLU-UE 1105, Macalester AAUP, MN Nurses Association (MNA), SEIU Local 26, IBEW Local 292 and the MN AFL-CIO, as well as one MFE 59 member facing indictment in this case, and a Black Lives Matter-MN organizer, who was indicted for a January protest calling out David Easterwood, a Cities Church pastor and director of the local ICE field office.

The crowd chanted “We got your back!” while those indicted and family members went to their court appearance. Monique Cullars-Doty, BLM-MN founder and indicted Cities Church protester, told the crowd, “I encourage everyone to stand up for [the Minnesota 15]. Reach out and remind them that they are not alone, to remind them that we stand with them in this fight.”

After the rally, a long line formed out the door, across the large plaza and down the sidewalk, with supporters who wanted to attend today’s court hearing. Most were turned away, despite an overflow courtroom with capacity for 80. After court, defendants came out of the building with their fists in the air, greeted by cheering crowds of supporters.

Montana Hirsh from the Minnesota Immigrant Rights Action Committee stated, “We stand in solidarity with the MN 15 because federal agents don’t get to come into our streets and kidnap our neighbors, brutalize our communities and separate families without a militant fight back from the people. Protesting ICE and defending our communities is the right thing to do. We will continue to fight in the streets until all the charges are dropped on anti -ICE protesters. From Minneapolis to LA, protesting is not a crime!”

#MinneapolisMN #MN #ImmigrantRights #ICE #PoliticalRepresssion #PeoplesStruggles #Labor #Feature

Chicago, IL – On June 26, members of United Steelworkers (USW) Local 7-1 and their families held a solidarity rally and marched outside of British Petroleum's (BP) Chicago corporate office. The rally was attended by USW members from locals all over Indiana, Illinois and beyond, as well as by members of USW International executive board. In support were local officials, members of the Chicago Teachers Union, community members and union workers from all around Chicago. 

Eric Schultz, president of USW Local 7-1, said in his speech, “They starve our families out and they're just going to wait and wait and wait until we break. What they don't understand is every day our membership's getting stronger. Every day!” Schultz then led the crowd in chants of, “One day longer! One day stronger!”

Since March 19, over 800 members of USW 7-1 have been locked out of their jobs at the BP oil refinery in Whiting, Indiana. USW 7-1 has called the lockout illegal, saying that BP has shown that they are more interested in breaking the union than they are at bargaining in good faith. BP’s offers at the bargaining table would cut pay, remove seniority-based promotions, further limit bargaining rights, and cut over 100 jobs.

This conflict began after BP brought in Jordan Marks as plant manager. BP hired Marks after he oversaw the ten-and-a-half month lockout of USW Local 13-243 workers at a ExxonMobil refinery in Beaumont, Texas. “These aren't negotiations. This is a ransom,” said Eric Schultz when speaking about the BP offer. 

The Whiting Indiana refinery is currently being operated by scabs brought in by BP from out of state. Since the lockout began, there has already been at least one incident where the refinery lost power, and a major flaring event occurred in April. Picketers outside the refinery were not notified of the flares by BP. Flaring is when a refinery burns off excess gases to prevent pressure buildups and is known to release toxic pollutants in the surrounding area while they do it. The picketers reported smelling sulfur and hydrogen.

“When they're scabbing it, they're putting the community and everybody in jeopardy that we could have a disaster or a catastrophe there. We can't stand for that. We cannot allow it. Our members know those jobs, and you know how to run that refinery better than anyone else. And we're going to make damn sure you get back there with your heads held high with your jobs!” said USW International Secretary-Treasurer Myles Sullivan in his speech at the rally. 

USW 7-1 is asking supporters to sign a petition to show that they stand united in solidarity with members of USW Local 7-1 and to demand BP end the lockout and negotiate a fair contract! The petition can be found at this link: usw.to/bp-end-lockout

#ChicagoIL #IL #Labor #USW #SteelWorkers #BP