Unionization Is Starting to Spread Across the Retail Sector
Inspired by the recent wave of union campaigns at Starbucks and Amazon, retail workers at major chains like Target are launching new organizing drives across the United States.
325 Articles by: Alex N. Press
Alex N. Press is a staff writer at Jacobin who covers labor organizing.
The Union-Busting Crime Wave at Starbucks and Amazon Is Getting Worse
Starbucks and Amazon are running parallel union-busting campaigns across the country, willfully violating labor law in a desperate attempt to defeat nascent worker organizing in their companies.
Starbucks Is Facing a Wave of Worker Organizing — but So Are Its Local Competitors
Starbucks isn’t the only coffee shop whose workers are unionizing. Boston has seen a wave of organizing at independent coffee shops. The latest: 1369 Coffee House, whose workers recently filed for union recognition.
Amazon Workers Just Suffered a Defeat. But the Fight Is Far From Over.
Amazon defeated the Amazon Labor Union’s drive to make a Staten Island sorting center the US’s second unionized Amazon facility. But the Amazon union fight is just beginning — and workers still have winds at their back that were unimaginable not long ago.
On International Workers’ Day, We’re Still Fighting for the Eight-Hour Day
In 1886, workers came together on the original May Day to demand an eight-hour day. Today, from Starbucks stores to Amazon warehouses, that struggle continues.
The Class War Is Raging at Amazon’s Staten Island Complex
The atmosphere was electric at a prevote rally Sunday in Staten Island where workers prepared to cast ballots on whether to become the second Amazon facility to join the Amazon Labor Union. Bernie Sanders was among the speakers.
Unionized Nursing Homes Literally Saved Lives at the Pandemic’s Height
A new study finds that the COVID-19 mortality rate in unionized nursing homes was more than 10 percent lower than in their nonunion counterparts. Unionizing the whole industry, the numbers suggest, would have saved the lives of 8,000 nursing home residents.
Service Workers at America’s Biggest Companies Still Don’t Make $15 an Hour
A new study finds that majorities of service workers at some of the United States’ biggest name-brand companies — including Dunkin’, Burger King, and Dollar General — are still paid less than $15 an hour, even as CEO pay skyrockets.
Working at Amazon Is Hazardous to Your Health
A new report shows just how dangerous it is to work at Amazon. Injury rates last year at Amazon warehouses were 20 percent higher than the already alarmingly high 2020 rate — and more than twice that of non-Amazon warehouses.
Indiana University Graduate Workers Are on Strike and Demanding Union Recognition
Indiana University graduate workers began an unusual recognition strike today in hopes of compelling the school’s administration to recognize their union. Jacobin spoke with one of the strikers about how this came about and what happens next.
On Homelessness, Eric Adams Has Made Sadism New York’s Official Policy
New York mayor Eric Adams’s ongoing push to remove all homeless encampments from the city is a theater of cruelty: a waste of resources that does nothing to address homeless New Yorkers’ need for housing.
Starbucks Is Desperate to Stop Unionization, So It’s Firing Worker Leaders
Starbucks is firing worker activists as it seeks to blunt the momentum of the union drive sweeping the company. Jacobin spoke to worker Laila Dalton, who was fired just weeks after the NLRB issued a complaint against Starbucks for retaliating against her.
A Major Strike Is on the Horizon at Grocery Stores Across Southern California
Nearly 50,000 grocery workers across Southern California have authorized a strike. Should they walk out, it would be the largest work stoppage since the pre-pandemic teachers’ strike wave.
A Stunning New Chapter Begins for Amazon Warehouse Workers
In a staggering upset, Staten Island Amazon workers just won a union election. And the rerun election at the company’s Bessemer, Alabama, warehouse is too close to call. It’s the start of a new chapter for workers at one of the world’s most powerful companies.
NLRB Says Trucking Companies Are Illegally Misclassifying Port Drivers to Stop Unionization
Logistics companies are reportedly engaged in illegal union busting at the LA and Long Beach ports — including by misclassifying employees as independent contractors. The NLRB wants the employers to reclassify drivers and compensate them for lost income.
Starbucks Worker: The Entire Food Industry Should Go Union
Starbucks has been charged by the National Labor Relations Board with retaliation against two supporters of a unionization drive in Phoenix. We spoke with one of them about her experience at Starbucks and her mission to help all food industry workers unionize.
Ironworkers Have Filed More Than 100 Unfair Labor Practice Charges Against G&D Integrated
A big fight is on at a small shop in Illinois, where the Iron Workers Union has filed more than 100 unfair labor practice charges against a logistics company. Workers are urging the NLRB to order the company to bargain with the union.
The Mainstream Media Is Helping Eric Adams Get Away With a Law-and-Order Crackdown
Eric Adams, New York City’s new mayor, is a fascinating, eccentric character. He’s also the architect of a ruthless law-and-order crackdown on the city’s poorest, most vulnerable residents.
Your Boss Wants to Know Your Love Language So He Can Better Exploit You
The fad of employers using workers’ “love languages” as an HR tool is a good reminder that the boss will do anything to avoid giving you a raise.
New York Times Tech Workers Win a Union
The boom in tech worker organizing has reached the New York Times, where nearly 600 just voted to join the NewsGuild. It’s the largest tech-worker union in the United States.