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Why work can matter

By Andrea HsuNPR Labor and Workplace Correspondent

I became NPR’s labor and workplace correspondent in spring 2021. shortly after union organizers lost a bid to unionize at an Amazon warehouse in Bessemer, Alabama. The outcome wasn’t even close. Workers voted more than 2-to-1 against unionizing.

Little did I know then that the workers’ movement would soon take off.By the end of the year, the first Starbucks stores in Buffalo, New York, voted to form a union, starting a years-long confrontation reached all the way to the Supreme CourtAmazon workers on Staten Island next spring voted for the trade unionSince then I have been constantly trying keep up with new organizational efforts and the numerous labor disputes that have arisen, many of them leading to strikes.

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Now add to that the presidential race, with both candidates trying to attract workers. In a speech before Labor Day, AFL-CIO President Liz Shuler noted that union members make up 1 in 5 voters in swing states. It is important to remember that nationwide, only 1 in 10 US workers are union members. This statistic suggests a much higher concentration of such workers in states where the election will be decided.

If we consider that in 2016 former President Donald Trump won Michigan, by less than 11,000 votes and Wisconsin by less than 23,000 votes, you can see why union workers are the focus of the campaign — especially for Democrats.

Vice President Harris and Governor Tim Walz already have a lot of goodwill in this space. Public sector employee unions in I am especially grateful to Harris for her work in reversing harmful policies put in place by Trump, while Walz has he signed a lot of pro-worker laws in recent years has made Minnesota one of the most employee-friendly states in the country.

Now the couple hopes that union members will become their political messengers. and help get out the vote. Among the first stops on the campaign trail were a union hall and a union convention. “It’s kind of like preaching to the choir, but the choir has to sing now,” Walz told the crowd.

Given how many union members there are now, this seems like a reasonable strategy. Yes, Trump successfully won over many white, working-class households to unionization in 2016, and he will certainly retain many of those votes this fall. But over the past few years, it has been young people, many of them new to the labor movement, who have fueled enthusiasm for unionization. It’s the Starbucks workers, students-workers and employees of cultural institutions.

It is the younger generation that brings imagination, creativity and new strategies to the workers’ movement, Ruth Milkman, professor of sociology and labor studies at the City University of New York, told me about this.

If Democrats can leverage this, the labor movement could prove crucial in this election. I’ll be watching closely to see how this plays out.

Labor Day listens

By Suzanne Nuyen, First up newsletter editor

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For decades, airline unions have fought not only for better working conditions, but also for civil rights, charts a course that continues to this day. Through line, turn your eyes to the sky and listen how american unions took to the air.

Trade unions typically make headlines when their members go on strike. collectively refraining from working until their demands are met. You don’t have to be in a union to strike, although it’s riskier. The National Labor Relations Act protects Americans’ right to strike—with some big restrictions. Dive into the Details how strikes work from New Hampshire Public Radio Social Studies 101.

Generation Z and millennial workers have a bad reputation for not wanting to demonstrate above-average skills at work. Is this stereotype just another generational battle, or do young people truly lack a work ethic? Get answers at the KUOW member station Blooming,

PBS LINE FIRST Documentarians Tom Casciato and Kathleen Hughes followed the lives of two working-class families for 34 years in Milwaukee who lost well-paying manufacturing jobs and then struggled to regain their way of life. discuss their film, Two American familieson WHYY Fresh air.

This newsletter was written by Carol Ritchie.

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