unions

There is something truly exasperating about digesting the steady flow of horror stories relating to Hollywood producer Harvey Weinstein. In part, of course, it is because the reports that Weinstein allegedly raped and sexually assaulted women over decades are deeply disturbing. In part, it is because one can be certain that there are still young aspiring actresses desperate for a big break who are being exploited by the Hollywood system – both in “casting” sessions and in the movies they must make to get noticed.

Thursday night Jared Golden, the Majority Whip of Maine's state House, and the progressive running for Congress in the sprawling 2nd congressional district, was the recipient of the Maine AFL-CIO's Edie Beaulieu Legislative Award "in recognition of outstanding leadership and support for working class people and working families' priorities.

Media unions, Harvey harassment and Lil Wayne vs. the police state + this day in history w/the assassination of Anwar Sadat and our song of the day by Daphni on your Morning Monarchy for October 6, 2017.

Claim and Qualification

As distressed and downright feeble as organized labor appears at the moment (and no one is going to pretend that 11% density across the board isn’t alarming), there are some things that can be done to re-energize and revitalize the Movement.  We shall list them in order of ascending difficulty, beginning with the easiest.

-by Randy BryceHappy Labor Day!What does that mean to you?Living in Wisconsin it’s almost become kind of an annual celebration that “we’re still here.” It’s a gathering of survivors so to speak.In 2011 Scott Walker took over the office of governor and proceeded to “divide and conquer” the workers of Wisconsin.

Jenny Marshall and Randy Bryce-by Jenny Marshall,candidate for Congress (NC-05)Labor Day: the one Monday of the year in which most American workers can count on a day off. On Labor Day, so many of us stay home from work only to find ourselves muddling through whatever at-home tasks we’ve been avoiding for a while. But Labor Day has its roots in something more powerful than that.

-by NoahHappy Labor Day Weekend to all DWT readers. The American Labor Movement has given us, among other things, a 40 hour work week, a minimum wage, lunch breaks, pay for working overtime, paid vacations, the weekend, safety regulations... all things that Americans died for on picket lines and battlefields, and all things that Republicans hate and continue to fight against.

Just as we prepare for the Labor Day weekend, Guardian reporter Ed Pilkington exposes a plot by a right-wing alliance to "defund and defang" the American union movement. That's hardly new but after years of whittling down the union movement, the conservatives see an opportunity for a knock out blow.

With Labor Day almost upon us, it’s appropriate we discuss anything germane to what was once referred quaintly and respectfully (if not affectionately) as the “working class.”  Strikes, protests, street violence, the incremental passage of labor laws:  All part of the American Labor Movement’s dramatic history.