Category: Labor
Trump, Health Secretary, say US healthcare workers ‘Don’t get infected’ with Covid-19
94,000 healthcare workers have contracted the virus. While the true toll Covid-19 has taken on healthcare workers is not yet known, one investigation found that more than 760 have died from the virus. by Jake Johnson, staff…
Thinking outside the box for worker power
by Wade Rathke Pearl River In organizing unions, captive audience meetings are the scourge of organizing drives. The employers have the right to make the meetings mandatory in order to deliver their anti-union screeds, but…
Save Lives? Give healthcare workers raises
New Orleans Hey, bosses of healthcare workers, listen up! Yo, consumers and families of healthcare services, pay attention to this, like your life is at stake, since for more than half of you over 65,…
Longshoremen shut down West Coast ports for Juneteenth: ‘The loudest voice we have’
“A movement requires sacrifice, and that’s what we’re doing as longshoremen.” by Andrea Germanos, staff writer Juneteenth — Friday, June 19, 2020 Longshoremen and women across the West Coast are set to use “the loudest…
Meat industry sacrificed workers during pandemic to keep exports moving
‘It Was a Fake Meat Shortage’ “Our country sacrificed the lives of meat workers to protect the business of meat companies.” by Eoin Higgins, staff writer Wednesday, June 17 As workers in meat processing plants around…
‘How the Trump White House sees you’: top economic adviser under fire for calling workers ‘human capital stock’
“They’ve always been indifferent to human life. And in the face of mass death, the masks are coming off.” by Jake Johnson, staff writer Tuesday, May 26 In a remark critics characterized as further evidence that…
Getting OSHA on the job
by Wade Rathke Pearl River If there were ever a time that workers needed to feel safe on the job, it’s got to be now in the middle of a pandemic. Even with the lifting…
Inside one of Amazon’s hardest-hit warehouses: ‘Why aren’t we closing the building?
by Will Evans May 20, 2020 In late March, workers at an Amazon warehouse near Hazleton, Pennsylvania, got the dreaded announcement. Over the loudspeaker, a manager’s voice rang through the warehouse: “We have recently learned of…
Home work
Little Rock There is talk everywhere about “re-opening.” When? How? The “new” normal is a question on everyone’s mind. I find it interesting and curious how much you hear about people working from home. The…
Workers and bosses are caught in a reopening Catch-22
Pearl River In the United States when dealing with a program that is touted as a lifesaver for what will likely be fifty million unemployed workers and another program that is designed, ostensibly, to help…
Betsy DeVos sued for garnishing wages of nearly 300,000 student loan borrowers during pandemic
“The Trump administration is taking money from borrowers who are living on the edge of poverty, in the middle of a pandemic, and in violation of the law.” by Julia Conley, staff writer A home health…
May Day for workers and the vast army of the unemployed
Pearl River May Day traditionally has been marked around the world with workers marching under the banners of their unions and labor-friendly political parties. In the USA, Labor Day marks the end of the summer,…
Why offering businesses immunity from coronavirus liability is a bad idea
by Timothy D. Lytton, Georgia State University Governors around the country are attempting to restart the economy by easing restrictions put in place to prevent the spread of COVID-19. The prospect of returning to “normal”…
On May Day, pro-worker groups demand protections for frontline whistleblowers who expose corporate disregard for labor safety
“The current crisis has elevated workplace whistleblowing and collective action to a matter of national health.” by Andrea Germanos, staff writer Friday, May 1 As workers marked May Day with sickouts and walkouts across the U.S….
The Trump Administration has put workers at coronavirus risk, Senators say
Citing ProPublica’s reporting, 22 Senate Democrats have asked the White House to explain its management of federal employee safety. by Maryam Jameel Wednesday, April 29, 3:40 p.m. EDT Democratic senators are questioning the Trump administration about…
Workers gear up for major May Day strike in pushback against unsafe conditions amid pandemic
One organizer explained that the goal is to “push back with large numbers against the right-wing groups that want to risk our lives by reopening the economy.” by Andrea Germanos, staff writer Workers at some of…
Thinking of workers in the time of pandemic on the eve of May Day 2020
by Wade Rathke New Orleans Today, I’m sharing a guest piece that I contributed to the Working-Class Perspectives series on the even of May Day and during a difficult time for workers around the world….
Abbott’s fast COVID test poses safety issues
by Rachana Pradhan April 23, 2020 Lab personnel say worries are mounting over the safety of a rapid coronavirus test by Abbott Laboratories that President Donald Trump has repeatedly lauded ― particularly, the risk of infection…
In largest strike yet, Amazon workers call in sick over unsafe working conditions
‘Enough Is Enough’ “No worker should be subjected to unsafe conditions at work. And no worker should be retaliated against for standing up for their rights.” by Julia Conley, staff writer Hundreds of Amazon workers…
Dozens of grocery store workers have died. Here’s what workers say their employers did wrong.
Scores of workers said store managers at some of the largest grocery stores in the country – including Kroger, Walmart and Whole Foods Market – implemented policies that effectively incentivize sick and at-risk workers to report…
Trump Labor Secretary under fire for efforts to roll back unemployment benefits, paid leave in coronavirus stimulus
“Trump’s Labor Department has been working diligently to ensure that no U.S. worker has it too easy in the middle of a pandemic and burgeoning economic depression.” by Jake Johnson, staff writer From his guidance rolling…
Coal Industry attempts to cut payments to miners with Black Lung, AZ Rep Grijalva speaks out
“They’re Crooks” Coal companies are “going to try to use this virus thing to stop paying benefits,” warned one retired miner suffering from black lung. by Jake Johnson, staff writer Some of the largest coal companies…
Farmworkers are now deemed essential. But are they protected?
“They’re going to continue working because they don’t feel that they have a choice. You know, bear with it, work through it,” Elenes said. “It’s really distressing because these workers are the backbone of this country…
NLRB moves to make unionizing more difficult while COVID-19 ravages workers
‘Nearly Impossible for Workers’ “The Trump NLRB takes this moment to publish a rule that will make it harder both for workers to unionize and to keep unions they have. Shameful does not even begin to…
