We are interviewing Lilly R, a socialist activist and an undergraduate student and worker at Clark University in Worcester, MA. Undergraduate workers are currently trying to organize a union with Teamsters Local 170. Graduate workers have already organized at Clark with the Teamsters union, going on strike three years ago in order to secure aContinue reading “Interview with Lilly R, Striking Clark University Undergraduate Worker”
Category Archives: Labor Struggles & Solidarity
How a New, Union-Backed Workers’ Party Could Win In the Next Elections
by Nick WurstSMART-TD Local 1473 & Railroad Workers United (personal capacity)Worcester, MA Unions are more popular than the two corporate parties. The labor movement has consistently received significantly more support from the American public than either the Republican and Democratic parties in recent years. For the 8th year in a row, support for unions wasContinue reading “How a New, Union-Backed Workers’ Party Could Win In the Next Elections”
More Strikes and Organizing, But No Breakthrough Yet
photo: IAM by Peggy WangMassachusetts Teachers Association (personal capacity)Boston, MA In 2024, there were several militant union actions. 33,000 Boeing workers went on strike for nearly 2 months, only settling after rejecting three tentative agreements negotiated by leadership. 50,000 East Coast longshoremen struck for three days, disrupting the flow of $3.5 billion in goods theyContinue reading “More Strikes and Organizing, But No Breakthrough Yet”
SOLIDARITY NEEDED: Argentina’s Right Populist Melei Government Intensifies Repression
The right wing populist regime of Javier Milei in Argentina is carrying out brutal neo-liberal attacks on the Argentinean working class and all oppressed peoples. It also unleashing brutal repression and in particular is targeting the Workers’ Party (PO), an affiliate of the electoral alliance, FIT, and the social movement, Polo Obrero. Judge Casanello hasContinue reading “SOLIDARITY NEEDED: Argentina’s Right Populist Melei Government Intensifies Repression”
UAW Leading the Fight to Organize the South
ISG members on the picket line during the Big 3 contract battle and strike in 2023. Mansfield, MA. by Jeff BoothAFSCME Local 3650 (personal capacity)Boston, MA The United Auto Workers (UAW) is on the move with high-profile strikes and new union organizing, showing new determination to fight the big corporations. In April, the UAW reversedContinue reading “UAW Leading the Fight to Organize the South”
ISG in Action: Railroad Workers United Convention
RWU Convention hosted a session on Logistics Chokepoints at Labor Notes 2024. by Nicholas WurstSMART-TD Local 1473 (personal capacity) & Railroad Workers United (personal capacities)Worcester, MA On April 18 & 19, ISG members participated in Railroad Workers United’s (RWU) ninth convention in Chicago. RWU is an activist organization of rank-and-file railroad workers, families, and supportersContinue reading “ISG in Action: Railroad Workers United Convention”
ISG in Action: Labor Notes 2024
Members of the Independent Socialist Group (ISG) joined with almost 5,000 other attendees at this year’s Labor Notes conference in Chicago, April 19-21. The conference, which is organized every two years, brings labor activists together to discuss rebuilding a fighting labor movement, including how to organize reform caucuses in our unions and how to overturnContinue reading “ISG in Action: Labor Notes 2024”
Union Baristas Win First Contract at Coffee by Design
Lauren Gamble, member of the Independent Socialist Group, reflects on winning a first contract at Coffee by Design (CBD), a small coffee chain in Portland, ME. She served on the bargaining committee for Union by Design, which now represents CBD baristas and retail staff. Union by Design is affiliated to the Laborers’ International Union ofContinue reading “Union Baristas Win First Contract at Coffee by Design”
Support A Strong Contract for the Boston Teachers Union!
The Independent Socialist Group (ISG) supports the 10,000+ members of the Boston Teachers Union (BTU) in their fight for a contract to improve staffing and pay. The union wants a $4/hr increase for paraprofessionals, who make under $30,000/year yet are required to live in Boston, where median rent is almost $4,000/month. Inflation has gone upContinue reading “Support A Strong Contract for the Boston Teachers Union!”
Why Labor Unions and the Working Class Need a Workers’ Party
by Peggy WangMassachusetts Teachers Association/Association of Professional Administrators (personal capacity)Boston, MA Workers have been making headlines by unionizing, striking, and making militant demands. But winning first contract agreements is taking longer, corporations like Amazon refuse to negotiate at all, and only one in ten US workers are in unions. Corporations use their vast amounts ofContinue reading “Why Labor Unions and the Working Class Need a Workers’ Party”
Independent Socialist Group 