Originally published April 2023. Updated April 2024. by Nicholas Wurst & Claire BaylerSMART-TD Local 1473 (personal capacity) & Railroad Workers United (personal capacities)Worcester, MA Check out publicrailnow.org and railroadworkersunited.org/support-public-ownership for more info. In October of 2022, amid the highly contentious battle over the Class 1 freight railroad workers’ contract, Railroad Workers United (RWU) adopted aContinue reading “Why We Need Public Ownership of the Railroads”
Category Archives: Labor Struggles & Solidarity
May Day 2024: The Labor Movement Needs Socialism
This article was originally published in Issue 17 (April-May) of Socialism Today. Pick up a copy today! International Workers Day is a socialist holiday started by US unions during the struggle for the eight-hour workday in the late 1800s. It was adopted by the socialist Second International in 1904 as a day to “demonstrate energetically…forContinue reading “May Day 2024: The Labor Movement Needs Socialism”
Freighter Collision Collapses Francis Scott Key Bridge, Fight for Workers Safety and Job Security
By Jacob Bielski & Claire Bayler (former Baltimore dockhand)Springfield & Worcester, MA On Tuesday, March 26th, the Dali, a 985-foot-long cargo ship, collided with and destroyed the Francis Scott Key Bridge, which spans the outer Baltimore Harbor in Maryland. Authorities shut down traffic after hearing the ship’s mayday calls, but eight maintenance workers on breakContinue reading “Freighter Collision Collapses Francis Scott Key Bridge, Fight for Workers Safety and Job Security”
Unionizing Portland, Maine’s Coffee By Design
An interview with Lauren G., a barista at Coffee by Design.by ISG Maine Branch What sparked interest in unionizing? We were facing a huge amount of turnover and understaffing. Some resulted from poor planning because a good chunk of employees were leaving to go to college, and, at the same time, long-time workers decided theyContinue reading “Unionizing Portland, Maine’s Coffee By Design”
A BREAKTHROUGH FOR THE LABOR MOVEMENT?
by Jeff BoothBoston, MAAFSCME Local 3650 (personal capacity) Four high-profile, important union struggles ended recently. Wages, benefits, and working conditions were improved for hundreds of thousands of workers from the contract campaign at UPS, the UAW strike against all the “Big 3” auto companies, the largest healthcare workers strike in US history led by SEIU-UHWContinue reading “A BREAKTHROUGH FOR THE LABOR MOVEMENT?”
UAW Workers’ Strike Wins a Stronger Deal—Missed Opportunity for More
“Though the final contracts are significant improvements compared to past concessionary contracts, there are still important unresolved demands and issues. Wage increases aren’t enough to make up for pay losses due to inflation and give-backs during the Great Recession. Pensions, retiree healthcare, and other benefits and protections are not restored for all workers. All EV production jobs still don’t automatically fall under the national agreements. And the contracts accept the closure of many facilities and subsequent job losses. The UAW could have fought for more, especially considering only a third of their Big 3 members were called out on strike. General support for unions is the strongest it’s been in 60 years, and there was overwhelming public support (by a 4-1 margin) for the strike.”
UAW Workers Can Win More!
Picket line at the Stellantis Mopar site in Mansfield, MA where 46 UAW members were on strike for 6 weeks in September and October. The site is at risk of closure, with the company planning to consolidate it with a facility in Fishkill, NY, where workers would be offered positions or have to forfeit theirContinue reading “UAW Workers Can Win More!”
UMass Amherst Grad Workers Struggle for a Fair Contract
by B.W. SculosRio Grande Valley United Faculty, TFA/TSTA, NEA member (Personal capacity)Edinburg, TX Union activity and popularity are on the rise across the United States. A major aspect of these increases is rooted in the tireless efforts of graduate student workers. Graduate students have organized new unions where they didn’t exist, particularly at private universities,Continue reading “UMass Amherst Grad Workers Struggle for a Fair Contract”
Nationalize Yellow Trucking!
Corporate mismanagement destroys 30,000 jobs By Ronan FoleyBoston, MA Following years of financial crisis—and despite a $729 million taxpayer bailout from President Trump in 2020—Yellow Trucking has shut down and filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy. The nearly 30,000 employees of Yellow, including 22,000 members of the International Brotherhood of Teamsters (IBT), have all been laidContinue reading “Nationalize Yellow Trucking! “
ISG In Solidarity with Striking United Auto Workers
On Friday, September 15th, members of the Independent Socialist Group (ISG) joined with United Auto Workers (UAW) and other supporters at a practice picket in Mansfield, MA. Following the expiration of their contracts Thursday night, 13,000 UAW members at assembly plants in Michigan, Missouri, and Ohio who work at the “Big 3” auto companies (GeneralContinue reading “ISG In Solidarity with Striking United Auto Workers”
Independent Socialist Group 