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In the latest episode of Working People, we go back to the picket line to get a critical update on the longest ongoing strike in the United States. In October 2022, over 100 workers represented by five labor unions—including production, distribution, advertising, and accounts receivable staff—walked off the job on an unfair labor practice strike at the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette (PPG). The strike began after the newspaper's management, Block Communications, which is owned by the Block family, cut off health insurance for employees on Oct. 1 of that year. After more than 2.5 years on strike, with other unions reaching contracts or taking buyouts and dissolving their units, workers represented by the Newspaper Guild of Pittsburgh are the last remaining strikers holding the line. We speak with a panel of union officers for the Newspaper Guild of Pittsburgh about how they've managed to stay on strike so long and about recent legal updates that have given them hope that an acceptable end to the strike may be on the horizon. Panelists include: Ed Blazina, striking transportation writer at the PPG and one of the Vice Presidents of the Newspaper Guild of Pittsburgh; Erin Hebert, also one of the Vice Presidents of the Newspaper Guild of Pittsburgh and a striking copy-editor and page designer at PPG; Emily Matthews, photographer on strike and treasurer for the Post-Gazette Unit of the Newspaper Guild of Pittsburgh. Additional links/info: Pittsburgh Union Progress website, Facebook page, X page, and Instagram Donate to Support Striking Pittsburgh Post-Gazette Workers Newspaper Guild of Pittsburgh website Maximillian Alvarez, The Real News Network, “TRNN wins 2025 Izzy Award for coverage of East Palestine, OH, trainwreck & chemical disaster” Bob Batz Jr., Pittsburgh Union Progress, “The strike is over for 3 Pittsburgh news production unions, but the journalists' strike continues” Ian Karbal, Pennsylvania Capital Star, “The strike at the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette is now the longest in the nation. And it's not over” Mel Buer, Working People / The Real News Network, “Two years into a strike, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette workers aren't ready to give up” Bob Batz Jr. & Steve Mellon, Pittsburgh Union Progress, “A start to the end of the strike? Feds file for temporary injunction to return Pittsburgh news unions to work” Brett Wilkins, Common Dreams / The Real News Network, “‘AI will not scab us': Post-Gazette newsroom decries use of artificial intelligence” Maximillian Alvarez, The Real News Network, “(Livestream) After months of striking, media workers aren't backing down” Maximillian Alvarez, The Real News Network, “(Livestream) Strikes at Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, University of Michigan, and more” Maximillian Alvarez, Working People / The Real News Network, “The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette's half-year strike” Permanent links below… Leave us a voicemail and we might play it on the show! Labor Radio / Podcast Network website, Facebook page, and Twitter page In These Times website, Facebook page, and Twitter page The Real News Network website, YouTube channel, podcast feeds, Facebook page, and Twitter page Featured Music… Jules Taylor, “Working People” Theme Song Audio Post-Production: Jules Taylor
In the latest episode of Working People, we go back to the picket line to get a critical update on the longest ongoing strike in the United States. In October 2022, over 100 workers represented by five labor unions—including production, distribution, advertising, and accounts receivable staff—walked off the job on an unfair labor practice strike at the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette (PPG). The strike began after the newspaper's management, Block Communications, which is owned by the Block family, cut off health insurance for employees on Oct. 1. After more than 2.5 years on strike, with other unions reaching contracts or taking buyouts and dissolving their units, workers represented by the Newspaper Guild of Pittsburgh are the last remaining strikers holding the line. We speak with a panel of union officers for the Newspaper Guild of Pittsburgh about how they've managed to stay on strike so long and about recent legal updates that have given them hope that an acceptable end to the strike may be on the horizon. Panelists include: Ed Blazina, striking transportation writer at the PPG and one of the Vice Presidents of the Newspaper Guild of Pittsburgh; Erin Hebert, also one of the Vice Presidents of the Newspaper Guild of Pittsburgh and a striking copy-editor and page designer at PPG; Emily Matthews, photographer on strike and treasurer for the Post-Gazette Unit of the Newspaper Guild of Pittsburgh. Additional links/info: Pittsburgh Union Progress website, Facebook page, X page, and InstagramDonate to Support Striking Pittsburgh Post-Gazette WorkersMaximillian Alvarez, The Real News Network, “TRNN wins 2025 Izzy Award for coverage of East Palestine, OH, trainwreck & chemical disaster”Bob Batz Jr., Pittsburgh Union Progress, “The strike is over for 3 Pittsburgh news production unions, but the journalists' strike continues”Ian Karbal, Pennsylvania Capital Star, “The strike at the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette is now the longest in the nation. And it's not over”Mel Buer, Working People / The Real News Network, “Two years into a strike, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette workers aren't ready to give up”Bob Batz Jr. & Steve Mellon, Pittsburgh Union Progress, “A start to the end of the strike? Feds file for temporary injunction to return Pittsburgh news unions to work”Brett Wilkins, Common Dreams / The Real News Network, “‘AI will not scab us': Post-Gazette newsroom decries use of artificial intelligence”Maximillian Alvarez, The Real News Network, “(Livestream) After months of striking, media workers aren't backing down”Maximillian Alvarez, The Real News Network, “(Livestream) Strikes at Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, University of Michigan, and more”Maximillian Alvarez, Working People / The Real News Network, “The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette's half-year strike”Permanent links below…Leave us a voicemail and we might play it on the show!Labor Radio / Podcast Network website, Facebook page, and Twitter pageIn These Times website, Facebook page, and Twitter pageThe Real News Network website, YouTube channel, podcast feeds, Facebook page, and Twitter pageFeatured Music…Jules Taylor, “Working People” Theme SongAudio Post-Production: Jules TaylorHelp us continue producing radically independent news and in-depth analysis by following us and becoming a monthly sustainer.Sign up for our newsletterLike us on FacebookFollow us on TwitterDonate to support this podcast
At this very moment, Palestinians in the Gaza Strip who have managed to survive Israel's scorched-earth siege and bombing are being deliberately starved to death as a result of Israel's 11-week blockade preventing food and aid from entering Gaza. As Jem Bartholemew writes at The Guardian, “The UN's humanitarian chief, Tom Fletcher, told the BBC [Tuesday] morning that 14,000 babies could die in Gaza in 48 hours if aid did not reach them in time. Five aid trucks entered Gaza on Monday but Fletcher described this as a “drop in the ocean” and totally inadequate for the population's needs.” In response to this dire humanitarian crisis, students at multiple university campuses in the US have launched hunger strikes in solidarity with the starving people of Gaza. In this urgent episode, we speak with four hunger strikers at the University of Oregon (UO), including: Cole, Sadie, and Efron, three undergraduate students who are all members of Jewish Voice for Peace - UO and who just completed a 60-hour solidarity hunger strike; and Phia, a Palestinian-American undergraduate student who has organized with JVP-UO on the hunger strike and who currently remains on hunger strike herself.Additional links/info: UO Gaza Hunger Strike Instagram and TikTok UO Gaza Hunger Strike: Community Calls to Action! Press Release: University of Oregon Students, Faculty, and Staff Launch “UO Gaza Hunger Strike” Campaign Protesting Mass Starvation and Genocide Jewish Voice for Peace - UO Instagram Nathan Wilk, KLCC, “University of Oregon protesters begin hunger strike for Gaza” Michael Arria, Mondoweiss, “Students across the U.S. are going on hunger strike as Israeli-engineered famine takes hold in Gaza” Syma Mohammed, Middle East Eye, “US: UCLA student hospitalised during hunger strike for Gaza” Jem Bartholemew, The Guardian, “First Thing: UN says 14,000 babies could die in Gaza in next 48 hours under Israeli aid blockade” Ronen Bergman & Natan Odenheimer, The New York Times, “In private, some Israeli officers admit that Gaza is on the brink of starvation” Maximillian Alvarez, Working People / The Real News Network, “‘The raids happened Wednesday, finals started Thursday': FBI agents raid homes of pro-Palestine students at University of Michigan” Maximillian Alvarez, Working People / The Real News Network, “‘A tremendous chilling effect': Columbia students describe dystopian reality on campus amid Trump attacks” Maximillian Alvarez, Working People / The Real News Network, “‘People are hiding in their apartments': Inside Trump's assault on universities” Maximillian Alvarez, The Real News Network, “‘Worse' than McCarthyism: Trump's war on higher education, free speech, and political dissent” Permanent links below… Leave us a voicemail and we might play it on the show! Labor Radio / Podcast Network website, Facebook page, and Twitter page In These Times website, Facebook page, and Twitter page The Real News Network website, YouTube channel, podcast feeds, Facebook page, and Twitter page Featured Music… Jules Taylor, “Working People” Theme Song Audio Post-Production: Jules Taylor
On today's Labor Radio Podcast Daily: The Valley Labor Report explores how Pope Leo XIII confronted the rise of industrial capitalism and the plight of the urban working class—laying the groundwork for labor-conscious Catholic social teaching. Plus: Good Night, and Good Luck screens at the DC Labor FilmFest, we mark the 1933 rubber workers' strike in Akron, and hear from labor historian William Cahn on the enduring influence of worker activism. @wpfwdc @AFLCIO #1u #UnionStrong #LaborRadioPod Proud founding member of the Labor Radio Podcast Network
On today's Labor Radio Podcast Daily: A methane explosion at Mexico's Pasta de Conchos mine in 2006 trapped 65 miners underground—sparking outrage, cross-border solidarity, and an enduring fight for justice. That's from the Solidarity Works podcast, on the Labor Radio Podcast Network.Plus: Singing for Justice screens today at the DC Labor FilmFest, the deadly 1950 South Amboy dock explosion, and a powerful labor quote from Richard Trumka. @wpfwdc @AFLCIO #1u #UnionStrong #LaborRadioPod Proud founding member of the Labor Radio Podcast Network
This week on the Labor Radio Podcast Weekly: The Valley Labor Report asks: What does the new Pope mean for labor? Catholic TikToker Union Dad breaks it down. America's Workforce talks air safety with PASS President David Spero. Heartland Labor Forum hears from frontline Social Security workers. The Boiling Point explains workers' comp with attorney George Mueller. Stick Together explores the 4-day workweek in Australia. LaborStart Canada covers Alberta's new Solidarity Pact. America Works meets a small-town pharmacist who treats circus elephants. Help us build sonic solidarity by clicking on the share button below. Highlights from labor radio and podcast shows around the country, part of the national Labor Radio Podcast Network of shows focusing on working people's issues and concerns. @LaborReporters @AWFUnionPodcast @Heartland_Labor @stick__together @labourstart @librarycongress #LaborRadioPod @AFLCIO Edited by Captain Swing, produced by Chris Garlock; social media guru Mr. Harold Phillips.
On today's Labor Radio Podcast Daily: The Manufacturing Report exposes how viral TikTok shopping hacks push ultra-cheap Chinese factory goods—and the hidden costs behind them. Plus: weekend labor films at the DC Labor FilmFest and Reel Work in California, the 1934 Minneapolis general strike, and a powerful quote from A. Philip Randolph. @KeepitMadeinUSA @wpfwdc @AFLCIO #1u #UnionStrong #LaborRadioPod Proud founding member of the Labor Radio Podcast Network
“Labor's decline over the past half century has devastated working-class communities, undermined democracy, and deepened the grip of big business over our work lives, ourpolitical system, and our planet,” Eric Blanc writes in his new book, We Are the Union: How Worker-to-Worker Organizing Is Revitalizing Labor and Winning Big. “To turn this around, we need tens of millions more people forming, joining, and transforming unions”; however, to achieve that level of growth, “a new unionization model is necessary because the only way to build power at scale is by relying less on paid full-timers and more on workers.” In this episode of Working People, recorded at Red Emma's Cooperative Bookstore in Baltimore on March 27, TRNN Editor-in-Chief Maximillian Alvarez speaks with Blanc about his book and how worker-to-worker organizing campaigns at companies like Starbucks and Amazon are breathing life back into the labor movement.Eric Blanc is Assistant Professor of Labor Studies at Rutgers University, an organizer trainer in the Emergency Workplace Organizing Committee, author of Red State Revolt: The Teachers' Strike Wave and Working-Class Politics, and director of the Worker to Worker Collaborative.Additional links/info:Eric Blanc website, Facebook page, and X pageEmergency Workplace Organizing Committee (EWOC) websiteRed Emma's website, Facebook page, X page, and InstagramEric Blanc, University of California Press, We Are the Union: How Worker-to-Worker Organizing Is Revitalizing Labor and Winning BigEric Blanc, Jacobin, “Bet on Worker-to-Worker Organizing”Maximillian Alvarez, Working People / The Real News Network, “Want to unionize your workplace? These worker-organizers have some advice”Permanent links below…Leave us a voicemail and we might play it on the show!Labor Radio / Podcast Network website, Facebook page, and Twitter pageIn These Times website, Facebook page, and Twitter pageThe Real News Network website, YouTube channel, podcast feeds, Facebook page, and Twitter pageFeatured Music…Jules Taylor, “Working People” Theme SongAudio Post-Production: Stephen FrankHelp TRNN continue producing radically independent news and in-depth analysis by following us and becoming a monthly sustainer.Sign up for our newsletterFollow us on BlueskyLike us on FacebookFollow us on TwitterDonate to support this podcast
On today's Labor Radio Podcast Daily: UAW President Shawn Fain accepts the 2025 Solidarity Forever Award from the Labor Heritage Foundation, reflecting on the revolutionary power of telling workers' stories. Plus: the 1917 founding of the first public library workers' union and a musical tribute to IWW songwriter T-Bone Slim. @wpfwdc @AFLCIO #1u #UnionStrong #LaborRadioPod Proud founding member of the Labor Radio Podcast Network
On today's Labor Radio Podcast Daily, we hear from the On The Line podcast, where the power of honest history takes center stage. Educators and organizers are pushing back on sanitized narratives, lifting up the essential struggles—of enslaved Africans, suffragettes, and the Chicano labor movement—that truly built America. Plus: labor film highlights from D.C. to California, a victorious 1953 brewery strike, and a classic labor quote from modern-day picket lines. @laborontheline @wpfwdc @AFLCIO #1u #UnionStrong #LaborRadioPod Proud founding member of the Labor Radio Podcast Network
On today's Labor Radio Podcast Daily, we hear from Working Voices on KPFK, where educators are taking a stand to protect immigrant students by distributing red rights cards and refusing to aid ICE without a warrant. Plus: labor arts calendar highlights and the 1913 IWW dockworkers strike in Philadelphia. Today's labor quote comes from UAW President Doug Fraser, who broke barriers—and spoke hard truths—on this day in 1980. @wpfwdc @AFLCIO #1u #UnionStrong #LaborRadioPod Proud founding member of the Labor Radio Podcast Network
On today's Labor Radio Podcast Daily: In 2025, over 580 Starbucks stores have unionized—an outcome few predicted just five years ago. Today's Reinventing Solidarity podcast explores how this unexpected surge is reshaping the labor movement, especially among young workers. Plus: immigration raids echo a dark history, labor arts events from D.C. to California, and George Escobar of CASA calls out fear-based enforcement tactics. @wpfwdc @AFLCIO #1u #UnionStrong #LaborRadioPod Proud founding member of the Labor Radio Podcast Network
This week on the Labor Radio Podcast Weekly: On Working Voices, UTLA fights to protect immigrant students; from On the Line, CTU's Stacy Davis Gates marks May Day with a contract that builds working-class power; The Manufacturing Report exposes the hidden costs of cheap factory TikToks; The Labor & Energy Show goes inside Boilermakers Local 13; Reinventing Solidarity traces Jaz Brisack's journey from atheist autodidact to salting strategist; and Solidarity Works honors cross-border unity with Mexico's Los Mineros. Help us build sonic solidarity by clicking on the share button below. Highlights from labor radio and podcast shows around the country, part of the national Labor Radio Podcast Network of shows focusing on working people's issues and concerns. @KeepitMadeinUSA @CunySLU @steelworkers#LaborRadioPod @AFLCIO Edited by Captain Swing, produced by Chris Garlock; social media guru Mr. Harold Phillips.
On today's Labor Radio Podcast Daily: Congress cracked down on undocumented workers—then made exceptions for low-wage white labor. Tales from the Reuther Library exposes the racial bias baked into U.S. labor policy. Plus: labor films this weekend, a 1934 strike, and Big Bill Haywood. @wpfwdc @AFLCIO #1u #UnionStrong #LaborRadioPod Proud founding member of the Labor Radio Podcast Network
Labor Radio Podcast Daily: On the Labor Heritage Power Hour, Tim Lawson spotlights the IBEW Photo Contest, Tabitha Arnold talks labor art with Australian cartoonist Sam Wallman, and Samantha Smith uncovers the hidden history of unionizing Las Vegas showgirls. Plus, music from the DC Labor Chorus Spring Concert. @wpfwdc @AFLCIO #1u #UnionStrong #LaborRadioPod Proud founding member of the Labor Radio Podcast Network
While state officials and legislators have positioned Texas to be “the bitcoin mining capital of the world,” in small towns like Granbury, working-class residents living next to giant, loud, environmentally destructive data centers are the ones paying the price for Texas's crypto boom. “None of us are sleeping,” Cheryl Shadden, a Granbury resident who lives across the street from a 300-megawatt bitcoin mining data center owned by Marathon Digital, tells TRNN. “We can't get rid of this alien invasion in our homes…This is like being a prisoner of war. It's like being tortured with loud sounds and bright lights and being sleep deprived.”In this episode of Working People, we dive deeper into the reality of living next to crypto mining data centers like the one in Granbury, the unseen threats they pose to human and nonhuman life, and what residents in Granbury are doing to fight back. TRNN Editor-in-Chief Maximillian Alvarez speaks with: Cheryl Shadden, a registered nurse anesthetist and resident of Granbury, who lives right next to the site of the Marathon bitcoin mining operation; Dr. Shannon Wolf, Precinct Chair in Hood County, who lives about 3 miles from the bitcoin mine; and Nannette Samuelson, County Commissioner for Precinct 2 in Hood County.Additional links/info: Protect Hood County website Maximillian Alvarez, Working People / The Real News Network, “A bitcoin mine in Texas is “killing us slowly,” local residents say” Andrew R. Chow, TIME, “‘We're living in a nightmare:' Inside the health crisis of a Texas bitcoin town” Andrew R. Chow, TIME, “Noisy neighbor: Bitcoin's hidden health cost” (Video Report) Maximillian Alvarez, The Real News Network, “TRNN wins 2025 Izzy Award for coverage of East Palestine, OH, trainwreck & chemical disaster” Keaton Peters, Inside Climate News, “Texas leaders worry that bitcoin mines threaten to crash the state power grid” NBC News, “Inside the Texas bitcoin mine reportedly making residents sick” James Pollard, The Texas Tribune, “Texas Republicans want to make the state the center of the cryptocurrency universe” Permanent links below… Leave us a voicemail and we might play it on the show! Labor Radio / Podcast Network website, Facebook page, and Twitter page In These Times website, Facebook page, and Twitter page The Real News Network website, YouTube channel, podcast feeds, Facebook page, and Twitter page Featured Music… Jules Taylor, “Working People” Theme Song Studio Production: Maximillian Alvarez Post-Production: Jules Taylor
While state officials and legislators have positioned Texas to be “the bitcoin mining capital of the world,” in small towns like Granbury, working-class residents living next to giant, loud, environmentally destructive data centers are the ones paying the price for Texas's crypto boom. “None of us are sleeping,” Cheryl Shadden, a Granbury resident who lives across the street from a 300-megawatt bitcoin mining data center owned by Marathon Digital, tells TRNN. “We can't get rid of this alien invasion in our homes…This is like being a prisoner of war. It's like being tortured with loud sounds and bright lights and being sleep deprived.” In this episode of Working People, we dive deeper into the reality of living next to crypto mining data centers like the one in Granbury, the unseen threats they pose to human and nonhuman life, and what residents in Granbury are doing to fight back. TRNN Editor-in-Chief Maximillian Alvarez speaks with: Cheryl Shadden, a registered nurse anesthetist and resident of Granbury, who lives right next to the site of the Marathon bitcoin mining operation; Dr. Shannon Wolf, Precinct Chair in Hood County, who lives about 3 miles from the bitcoin mine; and Nannette Samuelson, County Commissioner for Precinct 2 in Hood County.Additional links/info:Protect Hood County websiteMaximillian Alvarez, Working People / The Real News Network, “A bitcoin mine in Texas is “killing us slowly,” local residents say”Andrew R. Chow, TIME, “‘We're living in a nightmare:' Inside the health crisis of a Texas bitcoin town”Andrew R. Chow, TIME, “Noisy neighbor: Bitcoin's hidden health cost” (Video Report)Maximillian Alvarez, The Real News Network, “TRNN wins 2025 Izzy Award for coverage of East Palestine, OH, trainwreck & chemical disaster”Keaton Peters, Inside Climate News, “Texas leaders worry that bitcoin mines threaten to crash the state power grid”NBC News, “Inside the Texas bitcoin mine reportedly making residents sick”James Pollard, The Texas Tribune, “Texas Republicans want to make the state the center of the cryptocurrency universe”Permanent links below…Leave us a voicemail and we might play it on the show!Labor Radio / Podcast Network website, Facebook page, and Twitter pageIn These Times website, Facebook page, and Twitter pageThe Real News Network website, YouTube channel, podcast feeds, Facebook page, and Twitter pageFeatured Music…Jules Taylor, “Working People” Theme SongStudio Production: Maximillian AlvarezPost-Production: Jules TaylorHelp TRNN continue producing radically independent news and in-depth analysis by following us and becoming a monthly sustainer.Sign up for our newsletterFollow us on BlueskyLike us on FacebookFollow us on TwitterDonate to support this podcast
On today's Labor Radio Podcast Daily: Inside the sugar production line with the Bakery Workers Union's BCTGM Voices Project. In the labor arts world, Bargaining Shorts screen at California's Reel Work Labor Film Festival. On this day in labor history: Philadelphia's longest transit strike ends after 44 days. And today's labor quote comes from Equity's Andrea Hoeschen on the fight at The Second City in Chicago. @BCTGM @wpfwdc @AFLCIO #1u #UnionStrong #LaborRadioPod Proud founding member of the Labor Radio Podcast Network
The Trump administration continues to escalate its authoritarian assault on higher education, free speech, and political dissent—and university administrators and state government officials are willingly aiding that assault. On the morning of April 23, at the direction of Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel, law enforcement officers, including FBI agents, raided the homes of multiple student organizers connected to Palestine solidarity protests at the University of Michigan. “According to the group Students Allied for Freedom and Equality (SAFE), agents seized the students' electronics and a number of personal items,” Michael Arria reports at Mondoweiss. “Four individuals were detained, but eventually released.” In this urgent episode of Working People, we speak with a panel of graduate student workers from the University of Michigan and Columbia University about how they and their unions are fighting back against ICE abductions, FBI raids, and top-down political repression, all while trying to carry on with their day-to-day work. Panelists include: Lavinia, a PhD student at the University of Michigan School of Information and an officer in the Graduate Employees Organization (GEO); Ember McCoy, a PhD candidate in the School for Environment and Sustainability at the University of Michigan and a rank-and-file member of GEO and the TAHRIR Coalition; Jessie Rubin, a PhD student in the School of Arts and Sciences at Columbia University and a rank-and-file member of Student Workers of Columbia (SWC); and Conlan Olson, a PhD student in Computer Science at Columbia and a member of the SWC bargaining committee. Additional links/info: Graduate Employees Organization (GEO), University of Michigan website, Instagram, Facebook page, and X page Student Workers of Columbia-UAW Local 2710 website, Instagram, Facebook page, and X page TAHRIR Coalition UMich X page Legal Fund of Michigan Students for Palestine GEO Worker Solidarity Fund GEO Press Release: FBI and police raid homes of pro-Palestine activists, including a GEO member Mahmoud Khalil statement from ICE detention: “My name is Mahmoud Khalil and I am a political prisoner” Allie Wong, The Intercept, “This is not about antisemitism, Palestine, or Columbia. It's Trump dismantling the American dream“ Grant Miner, The Nation, “Columbia expelled me for my palestine activism, but I won't be silenced” Michael Arria, Mondoweiss, “FBI and police raid homes of Palestine activists in Michigan” Alvin Powell, The Harvard Gazette, “Harvard files lawsuit against Trump administration” Maximillian Alvarez, The Real News Network, “‘Worse' than McCarthyism: Trump's war on higher education, free speech, and political dissent” Maximillian Alvarez, Working People / The Real News Network, “‘A tremendous chilling effect': Columbia students describe dystopian reality on campus amid Trump attacks” Maximillian Alvarez, Working People / The Real News Network, “‘People are hiding in their apartments': Inside Trump's assault on universities” Permanent links below… Leave us a voicemail and we might play it on the show! Labor Radio / Podcast Network website, Facebook page, and Twitter page In These Times website, Facebook page, and Twitter page The Real News Network website, YouTube channel, podcast feeds, Facebook page, and Twitter page Featured Music… Jules Taylor, “Working People” Theme Song Studio Production: Maximillian Alvarez Post-Production: Jules Taylor
On today's Labor Radio Podcast Daily: Work Week Radio defends freedom of speech as a core labor value, Calamity screens at the DC Labor FilmFest; the Clara Lemlich Awards honor women organizers in NYC; and NoVa Book Club tackles Love Songs of W.E.B. DuBois. Plus, a wildcat strike by Black tobacco stemmers in 1937 Richmond and a quote by Honorée Fanonne Jeffers. @labormedianow0020@wpfwdc @AFLCIO #1u #UnionStrong #LaborRadioPod Proud founding member of the Labor Radio Podcast Network
On today's Labor Radio Podcast Daily for Monday, May 5: A chilling glimpse into campus shutdowns and community exclusion, from the Union Talk podcast. Plus, two powerful films — Calamity and Clockwatchers — screen at the DC Labor FilmFest, and we remember the Battle of Harlan County and labor leader John Sweeney. @aftunion @wpfwdc @AFLCIO #1u #UnionStrong #LaborRadioPod Proud founding member of the Labor Radio Podcast Network
This Week on the Labor Radio Podcast Weekly: From San Francisco to South Africa, this week's show brings you powerful stories of labor resistance, solidarity, and organizing across borders. WorkWeek Radio takes us to a San Francisco ICE rally demanding the release of detained student activist Mahmoud Khalil, then dives into the fight for Medicare and Medicaid with Dr. Ana Manilow ahead of a national day of action for single payer on May 31. Work Stoppage rounds up headlines from workers organizing at PetSmart, Kroger, the Port of Casablanca and more, with a deep dive into the misclassification crisis in construction and the continuing contract battle at Starbucks. On Union Talk, AFT President Randi Weingarten joins three professors and union leaders to expose Trump's assault on higher ed and what it means for academic freedom and student rights. BCTGM Voices highlights union-made sugar from beets, with two local union presidents in Idaho sharing what union contracts mean to their work and their families. Tales from the Reuther Library features Dr. Justine Modica on the Seattle-based Worthy Wages childcare movement, where SEIU workers organized for equity in early childhood education. And in Buwa Basebetsi, Moss Manganyi remembers the massive May Day strike of 1986 in apartheid-era South Africa—a turning point for worker power. Plus, on Shows You Should Know, Harold Phillips brings us a special spotlight on building trades podcasts—featuring new voices from the United Association, Laborers' International Union, and more—plus stories from firefighters and educators pushing back on anti-worker policies. Help us build sonic solidarity by clicking on the share button below. Highlights from labor radio and podcast shows around the country, part of the national Labor Radio Podcast Network of shows focusing on working people's issues and concerns. @labormedianow @WorkStoppagePod @aftunion @BCTGM @ReutherLibrary #LaborRadioPod @AFLCIO Edited by Captain Swing, produced by Chris Garlock; social media guru Mr. Harold Phillips.
This is the full 4-27-2025 episode of the Labor Express Radio program. On the latest episode of Labor Express Radio, plans for May Day 2025 in Chicago and Labor Notes now has their own podcast! Recent episodes cover tariffs, Trump's attacks on immigrant workers and how organized labor is fighting back.Labor Express Radio is Chicago's oldest labor news and current affairs radio program. News for working people, by working people. Labor Express Radio airs every Sunday at 8:00 PM on WLPN in Chicago, 105.5 FM. For more information, see our Facebook page... laborexpress.organd our homepage on Archive.org at:http://www.archive.org/details/LaborExpressRadioLabor Express is a member of the Labor Radio / Podcast Network, Working People's Voices – Broadcasting Worldwide 24 Hours A Day. laborradionetwork.org #laborradionetwork #LaborRadioPod #1u #UnionStrong
The Trump administration continues to escalate its authoritarian assault on higher education, free speech, and political dissent—and university administrators and state government officials are willingly aiding that assault. On the morning of April 23, at the direction of Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel, law enforcement officers, including FBI agents, raided the homes of multiple student organizers connected to Palestine solidarity protests at the University of Michigan. “According to the group Students Allied for Freedom and Equality (SAFE), agents seized the students' electronics and a number of personal items,” Michael Arria reports at Mondoweiss. “Four individuals were detained, but eventually released.” In this urgent episode of Working People, we speak with a panel of graduate student workers from the University of Michigan and Columbia University about how they and their unions are fighting back against ICE abductions, FBI raids, and top-down political repression, all while trying to carry on with their day-to-day work.Panelists include: Lavinia, a PhD student at the University of Michigan School of Information and an officer in the Graduate Employees Organization (GEO); Ember McCoy, a PhD candidate in the School for Environment and Sustainability at the University of Michigan and a rank-and-file member of GEO and the TAHRIR Coalition; Jessie Rubin, a PhD student in the School of Arts and Sciences at Columbia University and a rank-and-file member of Student Workers of Columbia (SWC); and Conlan Olson, a PhD student in Computer Science at Columbia and a member of the SWC bargaining committee.Additional links/info:Graduate Employees Organization (GEO), University of Michigan website, Instagram, Facebook page, and X pageStudent Workers of Columbia-UAW Local 2710 website, Instagram, Facebook page, and X pageTAHRIR Coalition UMich X pageLegal Fund of Michigan Students for PalestineGEO Worker Solidarity FundGEO Press Release: FBI and police raid homes of pro-Palestine activists, including a GEO memberMahmoud Khalil statement from ICE detention: “My name is Mahmoud Khalil and I am a political prisoner”Allie Wong, The Intercept, “This is not about antisemitism, Palestine, or Columbia. It's Trump dismantling the American dream“Grant Miner, The Nation, “Columbia expelled me for my palestine activism, but I won't be silenced”Michael Arria, Mondoweiss, “FBI and police raid homes of Palestine activists in Michigan”Alvin Powell, The Harvard Gazette, “Harvard files lawsuit against Trump administration”Maximillian Alvarez, The Real News Network, “‘Worse' than McCarthyism: Trump's war on higher education, free speech, and political dissent”Maximillian Alvarez, Working People / The Real News Network, “‘A tremendous chilling effect': Columbia students describe dystopian reality on campus amid Trump attacks”Maximillian Alvarez, Working People / The Real News Network, “‘People are hiding in their apartments': Inside Trump's assault on universities”Permanent links below…Leave us a voicemail and we might play it on the show!Labor Radio / Podcast Network website, Facebook page, and Twitter pageIn These Times Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/the-real-news-podcast--2952221/support.
I would like to see Texas become the center of the universe for bitcoin and crypto,” US Senator Ted Cruz (R-Texas) said in 2021. In 2024, Republican Governor Greg Abbott said Texas “wears the crown as the bitcoin mining capital of the world.” But in small towns like Granbury, TX, about an hour southwest of Fort Worth, residents are the ones paying the price for Texas' crypto boom. Granbury's 300-megawatt bitcoin mine, which is owned by Marathon Digital, a Florida-based cryptocurrency company, uses a mix of liquid immersion and industrial fans to prevent over 20,000 computers from overheating. Many residents say that it's the constant sound from those fans that has made life increasingly unbearable in their small town—and that their concerns are going ignored by the company and government officials. In this episode of Working People, we speak with four residents of Granbury living near the Marathon bitcoin mine: Danny Lakey, Karen Pearson, Nick Browning, and Virginia Browning. Additional links/info: Protect Hood County website Andrew R. Chow, TIME, “‘We're living in a nightmare:' Inside the health crisis of a Texas bitcoin town” Andrew R. Chow, TIME, “Noisy neighbor: Bitcoin's hidden health cost” (Video Report) Maximillian Alvarez, The Real News Network, “TRNN wins 2025 Izzy Award for coverage of East Palestine, OH, trainwreck & chemical disaster” Maximillian Alvarez, Working People / The Real News Network, “‘I had to move away from everything that I ever had': Chemically exposed residents of East Palestine, OH, and Conyers, GA, have been left behind” Maximillian Alvarez, The Real News Network, “‘This is murder!': Industrially poisoned South Baltimore residents march on state capitol, demand help from Gov. Moore” Maximillian Alvarez, Steve Mellon, & Mike Balonek, The Real News Network, “Trainwreck in ‘Trump Country': Partisan politics hasn't helped East Palestine, OH (DOCUMENTARY)” Keaton Peters, Inside Climate News, “Texas leaders worry that bitcoin mines threaten to crash the state power grid” NBC News, “Inside the Texas bitcoin mine reportedly making residents sick” James Pollard, The Texas Tribune, “Texas Republicans want to make the state the center of the cryptocurrency universe” Permanent links below… Leave us a voicemail and we might play it on the show! Labor Radio / Podcast Network website, Facebook page, and Twitter page In These Times website, Facebook page, and Twitter page The Real News Network website, YouTube channel, podcast feeds, Facebook page, and Twitter page Featured Music… Jules Taylor, “Working People” Theme Song Studio Production: Maximillian Alvarez Post-Production: Jules Taylor
“I would like to see Texas become the center of the universe for bitcoin and crypto,” US Senator Ted Cruz (R-Texas) said in 2021. In 2024, Republican Governor Greg Abbott said Texas “wears the crown as the bitcoin mining capital of the world.” But in small towns like Granbury, TX, about an hour southwest of Fort Worth, residents are the ones paying the price for Texas's crypto boom. A 300-megawatt bitcoin mine, which is owned by Marathon Digital, a Florida-based cryptocurrency company, uses a mix of liquid immersion and industrial fans to prevent over 20,000 computers from overheating. Many residents say that it's the constant sound from those fans that has made life increasingly unbearable in their small town—and that their concerns are going ignored by the company and government officials. In this episode of Working People, we speak with four residents of Granbury living near the Marathon bitcoin mine: Danny Lakey, Karen Pearson, Nick Browning, and Virginia Browning.Additional links/info:Protect Hood County websiteAndrew R. Chow, TIME, “‘We're living in a nightmare:' Inside the health crisis of a Texas bitcoin town”Andrew R. Chow, TIME, “Noisy neighbor: Bitcoin's hidden health cost” (Video Report)Maximillian Alvarez, The Real News Network, “TRNN wins 2025 Izzy Award for coverage of East Palestine, OH, trainwreck & chemical disaster”Maximillian Alvarez, Working People / The Real News Network, “‘I had to move away from everything that I ever had': Chemically exposed residents of East Palestine, OH, and Conyers, GA, have been left behind”Maximillian Alvarez, The Real News Network, “‘This is murder!': Industrially poisoned South Baltimore residents march on state capitol, demand help from Gov. Moore”Maximillian Alvarez, Steve Mellon, & Mike Balonek, The Real News Network, “Trainwreck in ‘Trump Country': Partisan politics hasn't helped East Palestine, OH (DOCUMENTARY)”Keaton Peters, Inside Climate News, “Texas leaders worry that bitcoin mines threaten to crash the state power grid”NBC News, “Inside the Texas bitcoin mine reportedly making residents sick”James Pollard, The Texas Tribune, “Texas Republicans want to make the state the center of the cryptocurrency universe”Permanent links below…Leave us a voicemail and we might play it on the show!Labor Radio / Podcast Network website, Facebook page, and Twitter pageIn These Times website, Facebook page, and Twitter pageThe Real News Network website, YouTube channel, podcast feeds, Facebook page, and Twitter pageFeatured Music…Jules Taylor, “Working People” Theme SongStudio Production: Maximillian AlvarezPost-Production: Jules TaylorBecome a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/the-real-news-podcast--2952221/support.
If you've been out and about in Vancouver Washington, you may have noticed some new additions to the walls of businesses such as Richland Hub (https://richlandhub.com/) or White Oak Books (https://whiteoakbooks.net/.) These and other businesses are displaying posters that explore our region's deep Labor history. The posters are part of a May Day Scavenger Hunt (https://tinyurl.com/mbwpk8px) put together by a coalition of Southwest Washington educator, health care, state worker, and other unions that will culminate in a May Day celebration at the Clark County Historical Museum (https://cchmuseum.org/) on May 1st at 5:00 PM. Harold sits down with several members of these unions PSE (https://www.pseclassified.org/) member Rachel Rice EEA (https://www.eeaoffice.com/) member Katherine Aimone OFNHP (https://ofnhp.aft.org/) member Connor Daniels CCAHE (https://www.ccahe.org/) member Sydney Brahmavar WPEA (https://www.wpea.org/) member Courtney Braddock EEA (https://www.eeaoffice.com/) member Marj Hogan to find out more about May Day, what YOU could win by taking part in this fun community activity, and the scavenger hunt's surprising connection to... Pokemon Go? Find out more about this May Day celebration and how you can participate in the scavenger hunt at https://tinyurl.com/mbwpk8px. Remember working people in Southwest Washington, this is YOUR podcast! Email us at podcast@swwaclc.org and let us know what you think about the show, and what you'd like to hear in future episodes! We're a proud member of the Labor Radio Podcast Network - find more radio shows and podcasts that speak to working people about working people's issues at www.LaborRadioNetwork.org.
On this week's Labor Radio Podcast Weekly: This week's episode takes us from South Africa to California, Wisconsin to the Pilbara — with a few sharp words about Trump along the way. Work Stoppage: The fight against illegal deportations and labor's role in defending our communities from unjust immigration policies. Power at Work: How recent administrative policies are hitting hospitality workers in California — and how unions are pushing back. Buwa Basebetsi Updates: In South Africa, workers at East Rand's M&N Waste stand up against poor treatment and demand better conditions. We Rise Fighting: UAW Local 291 is on strike in Oshkosh, Wisconsin — we bring you voices from the picket line. Classes of Mail: Ever wonder how scanners keep the postal system running? Alan breaks it down in a surprisingly fascinating look behind the scenes. Stick Together: Author Alexis Vassiley discusses Striking Ore, his powerful new book on the rise and fall of union power in Australia's Pilbara region.
One year ago, Columbia University became ground zero for the student-led Gaza solidarity encampment movement that spread to campuses across the country and around the world. Now, Columbia has become ground zero for the Trump administration's authoritarian assault on higher education, academic freedom, and the right to free speech and free assembly—all under the McCarthyist guise of rooting out “anti-semitism.” From Trump's threats to cancel $400 million in federal grants and contracts with Columbia to the abduction of international students like Mahmoud Khalil by ICE agents, to the university's firing and expulsion of Student Workers of Columbia-United Auto Workers union president Grant Miner, “a tremendous chilling effect” has gripped Columbia's campus community. In this urgent episode of Working People, we speak with: Caitlin Liss, a PhD candidate in history at Columbia University and a member of Student Workers of Columbia-UAW (SWC); and Allie Wong, a PhD student at the Columbia Journalism School and a SWC member who was arrested and beaten by police during the second raid on the Gaza solidarity protests at Columbia on April 30, 2024. Additional links/info: Student Workers of Columbia-UAW Local 2710 website April 17: Day of Action to Defend Higher Ed website Mahmoud Khalil statement from ICE detention: “My name is Mahmoud Khalil and I am a political prisoner” Allie Wong, The Intercept, “This is not about antisemitism, Palestine, or Columbia. It's Trump dismantling the American dream“ Grant Miner, The Nation, “Columbia expelled me for my palestine activism, but I won't be silenced” Jonah E. Bromwich & Hamed Aleaziz, The New York Times, “Columbia student hunted by ICE sues to prevent deportation” AAUP letter to college and university legal offices: “Institutions Should Not Provide Student and Faculty Info To Enable Deportations” Alan Blinder, The New York Times, “Trump Has Targeted These Universities. Why?” Oliver Laughland, The Guardian, “‘Detention Alley': inside the Ice centres in the US south where foreign students and undocumented migrants languish” Alice Speri, The Guardian, “‘A huge cudgel': alarm as Trump's war on universities could target accreditors” Annie Ma, Makiya Seminera, & Christopher L. Keller, Associated Press, “Visa cancellations sow panic for international students, with hundreds fearing deportation” Maximillian Alvarez, Working People / The Real News Network, “‘People are hiding in their apartments': Inside Trump's assault on universities” Maximillian Alvarez, Working People / The Real News Network, “‘Kill these cuts before they kill us': Federally funded researchers warn DOGE cuts will be fatal” Permanent links below… Leave us a voicemail and we might play it on the show! Labor Radio / Podcast Network website, Facebook page, and Twitter page In These Times website, Facebook page, and Twitter page The Real News Network website, YouTube channel, podcast feeds, Facebook page, and Twitter page Featured Music… Jules Taylor, “Working People” Theme Song Studio Production: Maximillian Alvarez Post-Production: Jules Taylor
One year ago, Columbia University became ground zero for the student-led Gaza solidarity encampment movement that spread to campuses across the country and around the world. Now, Columbia has become ground zero for the Trump administration's authoritarian assault on higher education, academic freedom, and the right to free speech and free assembly—all under the McCarthyist guise of rooting out “anti-semitism.” From Trump's threats to cancel $400 million in federal grants and contracts with Columbia to the abduction of international students like Mahmoud Khalil by ICE agents, to the university's firing and expulsion of Student Workers of Columbia-United Auto Workers union president Grant Miner, “a tremendous chilling effect” has gripped Columbia's campus community. In this urgent episode of Working People, we speak with: Caitlin Liss, a PhD candidate in history at Columbia University and a member of Student Workers of Columbia-UAW (SWC); and Allie Wong, a PhD student at the Columbia Journalism School and a SWC member who was arrested and beaten by police during the second raid on the Gaza solidarity protests at Columbia on April 30, 2024.Additional links/info:Student Workers of Columbia-UAW Local 2710 websiteApril 17: Day of Action to Defend Higher Ed websiteMahmoud Khalil statement from ICE detention: “My name is Mahmoud Khalil and I am a political prisoner”Grant Miner, The Nation, “Columbia expelled me for my palestine activism, but I won't be silenced”Jonah E. Bromwich & Hamed Aleaziz, The New York Times, “Columbia student hunted by ICE sues to prevent deportation”AAUP letter to college and university legal offices: “Institutions Should Not Provide Student and Faculty Info To Enable Deportations”Alan Blinder, The New York Times, “Trump Has Targeted These Universities. Why?”Oliver Laughland, The Guardian, “‘Detention Alley': inside the Ice centres in the US south where foreign students and undocumented migrants languish”Alice Speri, The Guardian, “‘A huge cudgel': alarm as Trump's war on universities could target accreditors”Annie Ma, Makiya Seminera, & Christopher L. Keller, Associated Press, “Visa cancellations sow panic for international students, with hundreds fearing deportation”Maximillian Alvarez, Working People / The Real News Network, “‘People are hiding in their apartments': Inside Trump's assault on universities”Maximillian Alvarez, Working People / The Real News Network, “‘Kill these cuts before they kill us': Federally funded researchers warn DOGE cuts will be fatal”Permanent links below…Leave us a voicemail and we might play it on the show!Labor Radio / Podcast Network website, Facebook page, and Twitter pageIn These Times website, Facebook page, and Twitter pageThe Real News Network website, YouTube channel, podcast feeds, Facebook page, and Twitter pageFeatured Music…Jules Taylor, “Working People” Theme SongStudio Production: Maximillian AlvarezPost-Production: Jules TaylorBecome a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/the-real-news-podcast--2952221/support.
This is the full 4-13-2025 episode of the Labor Express Radio program. On the latest episode of Labor Express Radio, CTU members vote on a historic tentative agreement between the teachers' union and Chicago Public Schools. CTU VP Jackson Potter discusses what was won in this TA. Omar Lopez of Consejo de Defensa de Inmigrante discusses plans for May Day 2025 in Chicago.Labor Express Radio is Chicago's oldest labor news and current affairs radio program. News for working people, by working people. Labor Express Radio airs every Sunday at 8:00 PM on WLPN in Chicago, 105.5 FM. For more information, see our Facebook page... laborexpress.organd our homepage on Archive.org at:http://www.archive.org/details/LaborExpressRadioLabor Express is a member of the Labor Radio / Podcast Network, Working People's Voices – Broadcasting Worldwide 24 Hours A Day. laborradionetwork.org #laborradionetwork #LaborRadioPod #1u #UnionStrong
On Labor History Today: Para Power: AFT president Randi Weingarten talks with Nick Juravich, associate director of the Labor Resource Center at UMass Boston, about class, race and education and his book Para Power: How Paraprofessional Labor Changed Education. PLUS: Nick's almost-favorite labor song, and, on Labor History in 2:00, Florence Reece is born. Labor History Today is a member of the Labor Radio Podcast Network. @AFTunion @rweingarten @NickJuravich @AFISilver @LaborHeritage1 @wpfwdc @aflcio #1u #unions #laborradiopod
International students are being abducted and disappeared by ICE in broad daylight. Life-saving research projects across the academy are being halted or thrown into disarray by seismic cuts to federal grants. Dozens of universities are under federal investigation for their Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion programs, their allowance of trans athletes to compete in college sports, and their tolerance of constitutionally protected Palestine solidarity protests. In today's urgent episode of Working People, we get a harrowing, on-the-ground view of the Trump administration's all-out assault on institutions of higher education and the people who live, learn, and work there. TRNN Editor-in-Chief Maximillian Alvarez speaks with Todd Wolfson, President of the American Association of University Professors, Associate Professor of Journalism and Media Studies at Rutgers University, and co-director of the Media, Inequality and Change Center; and Chenjerai Kumanyika, Assistant Professor at the Arthur L. Carter Journalism Institute at New York University, AAUP Council Member, and Peabody-award winning host of Empire City: The Untold Origin Story of the NYPD. Additional links/info: April 17: Day of Action to Defend Higher Ed website American Association of University Professors (AAUP) website Federal Unionists Network website AAUP letter to college and university legal offices: “Institutions Should Not Provide Student and Faculty Info To Enable Deportations” Alan Blinder, The New York Times, “Trump Has Targeted These Universities. Why?” Oliver Laughland, The Guardian, “‘Detention Alley': inside the Ice centres in the US south where foreign students and undocumented migrants languish” Alice Speri, The Guardian, “‘A huge cudgel': alarm as Trump's war on universities could target accreditors” Joy Connolly, Chronicle Review, “Colleges must stand together to resist Trump” Collin Binkley, Associated Press, “More than 50 universities face federal investigations as part of Trump's anti-DEI campaign” Maximillian Alvarez, Working People / The Real News Network, “‘Kill these cuts before they kill us': Federally funded researchers warn DOGE cuts will be fatal” Permanent links below… Leave us a voicemail and we might play it on the show! Labor Radio / Podcast Network website, Facebook page, and Twitter page In These Times website, Facebook page, and Twitter page The Real News Network website, YouTube channel, podcast feeds, Facebook page, and Twitter page Featured Music… Jules Taylor, “Working People” Theme Song Studio Production: Maximillian Alvarez Post-Production: Jules Taylor
On Tuesday, April 8, unions, unionized federal workers, and their supporters around the country mobilized for a national “Kill the Cuts” day of action to protest the Trump administration's cuts to life-saving research, healthcare, and education programs. As organizers stated on the Kill The Cuts website, "By cutting funds to lifesaving research and medical care, the Trump administration is abandoning families who are suffering and costing taxpayers billions of dollars. These cuts are dangerous to our health, and dangerous to our economy. On Tuesday, April 8th, 2025 workers across the country are standing up and demanding NO cuts to education and life-saving research." In this on-the-ground edition of Working People, we take you to the front lines of the Kill the Cuts rally that took place in Washington DC, and we speak with workers and union representatives whose lives and work have already been affected by these cuts.Speakers include: Margaret Cook, Vice President of the Public, Healthcare, and Education Workers sector of the Communications Workers of America (CWA); Matt Brown, Recording Secretary of NIH Fellows United (United Auto Workers Local 2750); Rakshita Balaji, a post-baccalaureate researcher at the National Institutes of Health (NIH); and Amanda Dykema, shop steward for American Federation of State, County, and Municipal Employees (AFSCME) Local 1072 at the University of Maryland, College Park.Additional links/info: Kill the Cuts website NIH Fellows United website Maximillian Alvarez, Working People / The Real News Network, “What's really behind Trump's war on federal unions?” Jocelyn Kaiser, Science, “NIH under orders to cancel $2.6 billion in contracts” Permanent links below… Leave us a voicemail and we might play it on the show! Labor Radio / Podcast Network website, Facebook page, and Twitter page In These Times website, Facebook page, and Twitter page The Real News Network website, YouTube channel, podcast feeds, Facebook page, and Twitter page Featured Music… Jules Taylor, “Working People” Theme Song Studio Production: Maximillian Alvarez Post-Production: Jules Taylor
International students are being abducted and disappeared by ICE in broad daylight. Life-saving research projects across the academy are being halted or thrown into disarray by seismic cuts to federal grants. Dozens of universities are under federal investigation for their Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion programs, their allowance of trans athletes to compete in college sports, and their tolerance of constitutionally protected Palestine solidarity protests. In today's urgent episode of Working People, we get a harrowing, on-the-ground view of the Trump administration's all-out assault on institutions of higher education and the people who live, learn, and work there. TRNN Editor-in-Chief Maximillian Alvarez speaks with Todd Wolfson, President of the American Association of University Professors, Associate Professor of Journalism and Media Studies at Rutgers University, and co-director of the Media, Inequality and Change Center; and Chenjerai Kumanyika, Assistant Professor at the Arthur L. Carter Journalism Institute at New York University, AAUP Council Member, and Peabody-award winning host of Empire City: The Untold Origin Story of the NYPD.Additional links/info:April 17: Day of Action to Defend Higher Ed websiteAmerican Association of University Professors (AAUP) websiteFederal Unionists Network websiteAAUP letter to college and university legal offices: “Institutions Should Not Provide Student and Faculty Info To Enable Deportations”Alan Blinder, The New York Times, “Trump Has Targeted These Universities. Why?”Oliver Laughland, The Guardian, “‘Detention Alley': inside the Ice centres in the US south where foreign students and undocumented migrants languish”Alice Speri, The Guardian, “‘A huge cudgel': alarm as Trump's war on universities could target accreditors”Joy Connolly, Chronicle Review, “Colleges must stand together to resist Trump”Collin Binkley, Associated Press, “More than 50 universities face federal investigations as part of Trump's anti-DEI campaign”Maximillian Alvarez, Working People / The Real News Network, “‘Kill these cuts before they kill us': Federally funded researchers warn DOGE cuts will be fatal”Permanent links below…Leave us a voicemail and we might play it on the show!Labor Radio / Podcast Network website, Facebook page, and Twitter pageIn These Times website, Facebook page, and Twitter pageThe Real News Network website, YouTube channel, podcast feeds, Facebook page, and Twitter pageFeatured Music…Jules Taylor, “Working People” Theme SongStudio Production: Maximillian AlvarezPost-Production: Jules TaylorBecome a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/the-real-news-podcast--2952221/support.
On Tuesday, April 8, unions, unionized federal workers, and their supporters around the country mobilized for a national “Kill the Cuts” day of action to protest the Trump administration's cuts to life-saving research, healthcare, and education programs. As organizers stated on the Kill The Cuts website, "By cutting funds to lifesaving research and medical care, the Trump administration is abandoning families who are suffering and costing taxpayers billions of dollars. These cuts are dangerous to our health, and dangerous to our economy. On Tuesday, April 8th, 2025 workers across the country are standing up and demanding NO cuts to education and life-saving research." In this on-the-ground edition of Working People, we take you to the front lines of the Kill the Cuts rally that took place in Washington DC, and we speak with workers and union representatives whose lives and work have already been affected by these cuts.Speakers include: Margaret Cook, Vice President of the Public, Healthcare, and Education Workers sector of the Communications Workers of America (CWA); Matt Brown, Recording Secretary of NIH Fellows United (United Auto Workers Local 2750); Rakshita Balaji, a post-baccalaureate researcher at the National Institutes of Health (NIH); and Amanda Dykema, shop steward for American Federation of State, County, and Municipal Employees (AFSCME) Local 1072 at the University of Maryland, College Park.Additional links/info:Kill the Cuts websiteNIH Fellows United websiteMaximillian Alvarez, Working People / The Real News Network, “What's really behind Trump's war on federal unions?”Jocelyn Kaiser, Science, “NIH under orders to cancel $2.6 billion in contracts”Permanent links below…Leave us a voicemail and we might play it on the show!Labor Radio / Podcast Network website, Facebook page, and Twitter pageIn These Times website, Facebook page, and Twitter pageThe Real News Network website, YouTube channel, podcast feeds, Facebook page, and Twitter pageFeatured Music…Jules Taylor, “Working People” Theme SongStudio Production: Maximillian AlvarezPost-Production: Jules TaylorBecome a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/the-real-news-podcast--2952221/support.
If you've been paying attention to the news you probably know that the state of Washington is facing a severe budget deficit. Governor Bob Ferguson and the state Legislature have a plan to address that deficit which includes severe cuts to public services and the public servants who provide them. Harold talks with Charles Loeffler and Joshua Eaton, two Washington Federation of State Employees (https://wfse.org/) members, about the challenges our public employees are facing, the varying proposals the Governor, the state House and Senate are proposing, and the innovative way they've found to get public employees message out: the Washington For All Anthem! You can watch the Washington For All Anthem music video at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1nlD8ahPUfc (If you just want to listen to the song, check out the next episode of the podcast: https://swwaclc.podbean.com/e/the-washington-for-all-anthem/ We've uploaded the full song as a separate track. Click the "download" link to download an .mp3 copy.) Want to see Josh and Charles play the Anthem live? Join them in Olympia on April 9th - https://wfse.org/dcyf-policy-committee/calendar/washington-all-day-action (Can't make it to Olympia? There's probably a Washington For All rally happening where you live in Washington - check the link above!) Remember working people in Southwest Washington, this is YOUR podcast! Email us at podcast@swwaclc.org and let us know what you think about the show, and what you'd like to hear in future episodes! We're a proud member of the Labor Radio Podcast Network - find more radio shows and podcasts that speak to working people about working people's issues at www.LaborRadioNetwork.org.
On this week's Labor Radio Podcast Weekly: Labor Notes Podcast: How TSA Agents and Federal Workers are fighting a hostile administration. Heartland Labor Forum: Cuts to Haskell Indian Nation's University in Lawrence. My Labor Radio: Discussion with Eric Blanc on his new book We Are The Union. The Flight Deck: Women's history month: two captains discuss their inspiring stories. Economics for the People: The political economy of the Middle East. The SAG-AFTRA Podcast: Jane Fonda discusses her career with Fran Drescher. Help us build sonic solidarity by clicking on the share button below. Highlights from labor radio and podcast shows around the country, part of the national Labor Radio Podcast Network of shows focusing on working people's issues and concerns. @LaborNotes @Heartland_Labor @mgevaart @UnitedPilots @sagaftra#LaborRadioPod @AFLCIO Edited by Captain Swing, produced by Chris Garlock; social media guru Mr. Harold Phillips.
Last week, President Trump escalated his administration's war on the federal workforce and workers' rights when he signed an executive order to end collective bargaining with federal labor unions across the government. The National Treasury Employees Union, which represents 150,000 government employees, has sued the Trump administration over the executive order.In response to these intensifying assaults on federal workers, agencies, and critical programs like Social Security, unions, social justice and community organizations, veterans groups, and people of conscience will be participating in protest actions in locales across the US on Saturday, April 5. In this episode, we speak with James Jones, a maintenance mechanic with the National Park Service, a veteran, and a member of the Federal Unionists Network, to get a firsthand account of the Trump administration's attacks on federal workers, agencies, and the people who depend on their services.Additional links/info: Federal Unionists Network website Indivisible website “Hands Off!” National Day of Action (April 5) website Joe DeManuelle-Hall, Labor Notes, “Trump Goes Nuclear on the Federal Workforce” Tyler Pager, The New York Times, “Trump Moves to End Union Protections Across Broad Swath of Government” Daniel Weissner, Reuters, “Union Sues to Block Trump from Ending Collective Bargaining for Many federal workers” Anjeanette Damon, ProPublica, “Curious How Trump's Cost Cutting Could Affect Your National Park Visit? You Might Not Get a Straight Answer” Maximillian Alvarez, Working People / The Real News Network, “‘It's not Elon versus government, it's Elon versus everyone': A dire warning from fired federal workers” Permanent links below… Leave us a voicemail and we might play it on the show! Labor Radio / Podcast Network website, Facebook page, and Twitter page In These Times website, Facebook page, and Twitter page The Real News Network website, YouTube channel, podcast feeds, Facebook page, and Twitter page Featured Music… Jules Taylor, “Working People” Theme Song Studio Production: Maximillian Alvarez Post-Production: Jules Taylor
Last week, President Trump escalated his administration's war on the federal workforce and workers' rights when he signed an executive order to end collective bargaining with federal labor unions across the government. The National Treasury Employees Union, which represents 150,000 government employees, has sued the Trump administration over the executive order.In response to these intensifying assaults on federal workers, agencies, and critical programs like Social Security, unions, social justice and community organizations, veterans groups, and people of conscience will be participating in protest actions in locales across the US on Saturday, April 5. In this episode, we speak with James Jones, a maintenance mechanic with the National Park Service, a veteran, and a member of the Federal Unionists Network, to get a firsthand account of the Trump administration's attacks on federal workers, agencies, and the people who depend on their services.Additional links/info:Federal Unionists Network websiteIndivisible website“Hands Off!” National Day of Action (April 5) websiteJoe DeManuelle-Hall, Labor Notes, “Trump Goes Nuclear on the Federal Workforce”Tyler Pager, The New York Times, “Trump Moves to End Union Protections Across Broad Swath of Government”Daniel Weissner, Reuters, “Union Sues to Block Trump from Ending Collective Bargaining for Many federal workers”Anjeanette Damon, ProPublica, “Curious How Trump's Cost Cutting Could Affect Your National Park Visit? You Might Not Get a Straight Answer”Maximillian Alvarez, Working People / The Real News Network, “‘It's not Elon versus government, it's Elon versus everyone': A dire warning from fired federal workers”Permanent links below…Leave us a voicemail and we might play it on the show!Labor Radio / Podcast Network website, Facebook page, and Twitter pageIn These Times website, Facebook page, and Twitter pageThe Real News Network website, YouTube channel, podcast feeds, Facebook page, and Twitter pageFeatured Music…Jules Taylor, “Working People” Theme SongStudio Production: Maximillian AlvarezPost-Production: Jules TaylorBecome a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/the-real-news-podcast--2952221/support.
As we've mentioned many times before on the show, movements today are a part of a legacy of extraordinary actions taken by ordinary people. Tapping into our own labor history provides us with a blueprint for action in today's turbulent world. On March 25th, 1911, a fire began in the scrap bins under a cutter's table on the 8th floor of the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory in New York City. Within minutes, the entire floor was engulfed in flames, spreading to the ninth floor and 10th floors–where 200+ workers were just finishing up to go home for the night. By the time workers were alerted to the conflagration, options for escaping the fire were few. By the time the fire was brought under control, 146 workers were dead. New York City saw sweeping reforms in the aftermath of the fire, catapulting some pro-reform lobbyists like Francis Perkins all the way to the highest halls of government with the introduction of the New Deal 20 years later. Near the 114th anniversary of this tragedy, Mel sat down with labor historian Dr. Erik Loomis, professor at the University of Rhode Island and author of his forthcoming book, “Organizing America: Stories of Americans Who Fought for Justice” to talk about the struggle for better working conditions in the garment industry in New York City, the fire itself and the reforms enacted afterwards, and why it's important to learn from our own labor history in this current moment. Additional links/info: Cornell University - ILR School: Remembering the 1911 Triangle Factory Fire Dr. Erik Loomis on Bluesky More information about Dr. Loomis's forthcoming book, “Organizing America” Permanent links below… Leave us a voicemail and we might play it on the show! Labor Radio / Podcast Network website, Facebook page, and Twitter page In These Times website, Facebook page, and Twitter page The Real News Network website, YouTube channel, podcast feeds, Facebook page, and Twitter page Featured Music… Jules Taylor, “Working People” Theme Song Studio Production: Mel Buer Post-Production: Jules Taylor
As we've mentioned many times before on the show, movements today are a part of a legacy of extraordinary actions taken by ordinary people. Tapping into our own labor history provides us with a blueprint for action in today's turbulent world.On March 25th, 1911, a fire began in the scrap bins under a cutter's table on the 8th floor of the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory in New York City. Within minutes, the entire floor was engulfed in flames, spreading to the ninth floor and 10th floors–where 200+ workers were just finishing up to go home for the night. By the time workers were alerted to the conflagration, options for escaping the fire were few. By the time the fire was brought under control, 146 workers were dead. New York City saw sweeping reforms in the aftermath of the fire, catapulting some pro-reform lobbyists like Francis Perkins all the way to the highest halls of government with the introduction of the New Deal 20 years later. Near the 114th anniversary of this tragedy, Mel sat down with labor historian Dr. Erik Loomis, professor at the University of Rhode Island and author of his forthcoming book, “Organizing America: Stories of Americans Who Fought for Justice” to talk about the struggle for better working conditions in the garment industry in New York City, the fire itself and the reforms enacted afterwards, and why it's important to learn from our own labor history in this current moment.Additional links/info:Cornell University - ILR School: Remembering the 1911 Triangle Factory FireDr. Erik Loomis on BlueskyMore information about Dr. Loomis's forthcoming book, “Organizing America”Permanent links below…Leave us a voicemail and we might play it on the show!Labor Radio / Podcast Network website, Facebook page, and Twitter pageIn These Times website, Facebook page, and Twitter pageThe Real News Network website, YouTube channel, podcast feeds, Facebook page, and Twitter pageFeatured Music…Jules Taylor, “Working People” Theme SongStudio Production: Mel BuerPost-Production: Jules TaylorHelp TRNN continue producing radically independent news and in-depth analysis by following us and becoming a monthly sustainer.Sign up for our newsletterFollow us on BlueskyLike us on FacebookFollow us on TwitterDonate to support this podcast
This week, we're taking a more national focus, and checking in with the National Association of Letter Carriers, who have been embroiled in a years-long contract negotiation with the US Postal Service. In our episode today, I'm sitting down with Melissa Rakestraw, member of the National Association of Letter Carriers, Branch 825 in Chicago, IL, to discuss the state of negotiations with our nation's letter carriers, the unprecedented rejection of the recent Tentative Agreement and what happens next, and what would happen if the US Postal Service was privatized. As a short editorial note before we begin, the interest arbitration process between USPS and the Letter Carriers began on March 17th, with Dennis R. Nolan set as the neutral arbitrator. This episode was recorded at the end of February, before those dates had been set. Postal workers are also set to hit the streets this weekend–“Fight Like Hell!” rallies are scheduled for March 23 across the country to protest the proposed privatization of the US Postal Service. Additional links/info: March 13, 2025: NALC statement on DeJoy's agreement with DOGE “Fight like hell! Say ‘Hell No!' to a privatized USPS!” - Find a Rally Near You Joe Demanuelle-Hall: “Federal Workers Organize Against Billionaire Power Grab” Permanent links below… Leave us a voicemail and we might play it on the show! Labor Radio / Podcast Network website, Facebook page, and Twitter page In These Times website, Facebook page, and Twitter page The Real News Network website, YouTube channel, podcast feeds, Facebook page, and Twitter page Featured Music… Jules Taylor, “Working People” Theme Song Studio Production: Mel Buer Post-Production: Jules Taylor
This week, we're taking a more national focus, and checking in with the National Association of Letter Carriers, who have been embroiled in a years-long contract negotiation with the US Postal Service.In our episode today, I'm sitting down with Melissa Rakestraw, member of the National Association of Letter Carriers, Branch 825 in Chicago, IL, to discuss the state of negotiations with our nation's letter carriers, the unprecedented rejection of the recent Tentative Agreement and what happens next, and what would happen if the US Postal Service was privatized.As a short editorial note before we begin, the interest arbitration process between USPS and the Letter Carriers began on March 17th, with Dennis R. Nolan set as the neutral arbitrator. This episode was recorded at the end of February, before those dates had been set.Postal workers are also set to hit the streets this weekend–“Fight Like Hell!” rallies are scheduled for March 23 across the country to protest the proposed privatization of the US Postal Service.Additional links/info:March 13, 2025: NALC statement on DeJoy's agreement with DOGE“Fight like hell! Say ‘Hell No!' to a privatized USPS!” - Find a Rally Near YouJoe Demanuelle-Hall: “Federal Workers Organize Against Billionaire Power Grab”Permanent links below…Leave us a voicemail and we might play it on the show!Labor Radio / Podcast Network website, Facebook page, and Twitter pageIn These Times website, Facebook page, and Twitter pageThe Real News Network website, YouTube channel, podcast feeds, Facebook page, and Twitter pageFeatured Music…Jules Taylor, “Working People” Theme SongStudio Production: Mel BuerPost-Production: Jules TaylorHelp TRNN continue producing radically independent news and in-depth analysis by following us and becoming a monthly sustainer.Sign up for our newsletterFollow us on BlueskyLike us on FacebookFollow us on TwitterDonate to support this podcast
This week, we're staying in Southern California, where the workers of Touchstone Climbing Gym in Los Angeles have been negotiating their first contract with their employer. Touchstone Climbing, a regional climbing gym with over a dozen locations in California, experienced a wave of unionization in its Los Angeles locations early last year. The successful campaign with Workers United created a wall-to-wall union at each of the company's five locations in the Los Angeles area. Members of the LA-based gym are often themselves union members, and the response from the climbing community has been overwhelmingly positive. However, workers have been navigating a frustrating negotiation in order to reach an agreement on a first contract. Chief among workers' demands is better communications, higher safety standards, and better pay. With me today to discuss their unionization, and their negotiations are Ryan Barkauskas, PT desk staff at The Post in Pasadena and Jess Kim, Former Desk Staff at the Post in Pasadena, now FT Workers United organizer. Additional links/info: Touchstone Workers United Instagram Climbing Business Journal - “Touchstone Workers United Win Union Election - First Southern California Climbing Gyms to Unionize” Eaton Fire Gofundme for Sam, 10+ year Yoga Instructor Eaton Fire Gofundme for Martell, Front Desk Worker at The Post in Pasadena Permanent links below… Leave us a voicemail and we might play it on the show! Labor Radio / Podcast Network website, Facebook page, and Twitter page In These Times website, Facebook page, and Twitter page The Real News Network website, YouTube channel, podcast feeds, Facebook page, and Twitter page Featured Music… Jules Taylor, “Working People” Theme Song Studio Production: Mel Buer Post-Production: Jules Taylor
This week, we're staying in Southern California, where the workers of Touchstone Climbing Gym in Los Angeles have been negotiating their first contract with their employer. Touchstone Climbing, a regional climbing gym with over a dozen locations in California, experienced a wave of unionization in its Los Angeles locations early last year. The successful campaign with Workers United created a wall-to-wall union at each of the company's five locations in the Los Angeles area. Members of the LA-based gym are often themselves union members, and the response from the climbing community has been overwhelmingly positive.However, workers have been navigating a frustrating negotiation in order to reach an agreement on a first contract. Chief among workers' demands is better communications, higher safety standards, and better pay. With me today to discuss their unionization, and their negotiations are Ryan Barkauskas, PT desk staff at The Post in Pasadena and Jess Kim, Former Desk Staff at the Post in Pasadena, now FT Workers United organizer. Additional links/info: Touchstone Workers United InstagramClimbing Business Journal - “Touchstone Workers United Win Union Election - First Southern California Climbing Gyms to Unionize”Eaton Fire Gofundme for Sam, 10+ year Yoga InstructorEaton Fire Gofundme for Martell, Front Desk Worker at The Post in PasadenaPermanent links below…Leave us a voicemail and we might play it on the show!Labor Radio / Podcast Network website, Facebook page, and Twitter pageIn These Times website, Facebook page, and Twitter pageThe Real News Network website, YouTube channel, podcast feeds, Facebook page, and Twitter pageFeatured Music…Jules Taylor, “Working People” Theme SongStudio Production: Mel BuerPost-Production: Jules TaylorHelp us continue producing radically independent news and in-depth analysis by following us and becoming a monthly sustainer.Sign up for our newsletterFollow us on BlueskyLike us on FacebookFollow us on TwitterDonate to support this podcast
In this urgent episode of Working People, we focus on the Trump-Musk administration's all-out assault on federal workers and its takeover and reordering of our entire system of government. “At least 20,000 federal workers have so far been fired by the Trump administration,” Ed Pilkington and Chris Stein report in The Guardian, “most of them recent hires on probationary periods who lack employment protections. In addition, the White House claims that more than 75,000 employees have accepted its offer of deferred resignations. The purge has prompted speculation that Trump is engaging in one of the biggest job cutting rounds in US history, which could have a powerful knock-on effect on the American economy.” In today's episode, we take you to the front lines of struggle and hear directly from three federal workers about what is happening inside the federal government, why it concerns all of us, and how federal workers and concerned citizens of all stripes are fighting back. Panelists include: Cat Farman, president of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) Union, Local 335 of the National Treasury Employees Union; Jasmine McAllister, a rank-and-file CFPB Union member and data scientist who was illegally fired two weeks ago; and Will Munger, a rangeland scientist who works across the intermountain west and who, until this month, served as a postdoctoral researcher with the USDA Agricultural Research Service. Additional links/info: CFPB Union website, Federal Unionists Network website, Bluesky page, and Instagram 5Calls.Org website Ed Pilkington & Chris Stein, The Guardian, “US personnel office walks back email ultimatum from Musk to workers” Maximillian Alvarez, The Real News Network, “Elon Musk is making technofascism a reality before our eyes” Democracy Now!, “‘Grand Theft Government': Federal workers send SOS over Musk's DOGE, mass firings & service cuts” Emily Anthes & Apoorva Mandavilli, The New York Times, “Mass federal firings may imperil crops, cattle and pets” Permanent links below… Leave us a voicemail and we might play it on the show! Labor Radio / Podcast Network website, Facebook page, and Twitter page In These Times website, Facebook page, and Twitter page The Real News Network website, YouTube channel, podcast feeds, Facebook page, and Twitter page Featured Music… Jules Taylor, “Working People” Theme Song Studio Production: Maximillian Alvarez Post-Production: Jules Taylor
A strike by Southern California healthcare workers at Kaiser organized under the National Union of Healthcare Workers (NUHW) has now carried on for 20 weeks, prompting the intervention of California Governor Gavin Newsom. After months of deadlock, Kaiser refused to yield to workers' demands for pensions and adequate time to attend to patient care duties. Over a month after Newsom's office offered to bring both sides into mediation, Kaiser finally agreed to sit down with the Governor's mediators, with sessions beginning on March 10. Mental health patients in particular have been left in the lurch by Kaiser's intransigence, and the crisis is only worsening as the aftermath of the recent Los Angeles wildfires takes its toll on the area's residents. Working People co-host Mel Buer investigates the ongoing strike in this interview with Kaiser workers Jessica Rentz and Adriana Webb.Editor's note: this episode was recorded on February 25, 2025, before Kaiser agreed to mediation on March 3, 2025. Additional links/info: Previous coverage of the strike from The Real News:‘What they're offering is stabilization, not care': Kaiser Strands Patients in Limbo as Strike Approaches Fourth MonthKaiser workers' strike enters second week in Southern CaliforniaABC7, February 7: “Kaiser Permanente mental health workers strike can end with help of a mediator, Gov. Newsom suggests”Links to support the strike:Mutual Aid: “Adopt a Striking Worker”Strike GoFundMe Picket Line Locations NUHW Strike Page Permanent links below…Leave us a voicemail and we might play it on the show!Labor Radio / Podcast Network website, Facebook page, and Twitter pageIn These Times website, Facebook page, and Twitter pageThe Real News Network website, YouTube channel, podcast feeds, Facebook page, and Twitter pageFeatured Music…Jules Taylor, “Working People” Theme SongStudio Production: Mel BuerPost-Production: Jules TaylorBecome a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/the-real-news-podcast--2952221/support.
We kick off the new season of Working People with another crucial installment of our ongoing series where we speak with the people living, working, and fighting for justice in America's “sacrifice zones.” In this episode, cohost Maximillian Alvarez speaks with a panel of guests about the ongoing public health crises in East Palestine, OH, where a Norfolk Southern train derailment in Feb. 2023 changed residents' lives forever, and in Conyers, GA, where residents continue to deal with the toxic fallout of a chemical fire that broke out in Sept. 2024 at a facility owned by pool chemical company BioLab. Panelists include: Ashley McCollom, a displaced resident of East Palestine; Hannah Loyd, a displaced resident of Conyers; and Kristina Baehr, a community safety lawyer with Just Well Law. Additional links/info: Ashley's Facebook page Ashley's GoFundMe page Hannah's Facebook page Just Well Law website Maximillian Alvarez, Working People / The Real News Network, “‘Everytime we come back, we all get sick': GA residents affected by September BioLab fire are still going through hell” Maximillian Alvarez, Working People / The Real News Network, “Trainwreck in ‘Trump Country': Partisan politics hasn't helped East Palestine, OH (DOCUMENTARY)” Maximillian Alvarez, Working People / The Real News Network, “One year later, East Palestine residents want Norfolk-Southern held accountable” Maximillian Alvarez, Working People / The Real News Network, ““Let's unite!”: Poisoned residents of America's sacrifice zones are banding together” Steve Mellon, Pittsburgh Union Progress, “Vance visit on derailment's second anniversary leaves residents wondering, ‘Who has our backs?'” Grace Gibson, The Georgetown Environmental Law Review, “Hawaiʻi's Red Hill Water Crisis Isn't Over” Permanent links below… Leave us a voicemail and we might play it on the show! Labor Radio / Podcast Network website, Facebook page, and Twitter page In These Times website, Facebook page, and Twitter page The Real News Network website, YouTube channel, podcast feeds, Facebook page, and Twitter page Featured Music… Jules Taylor, “Working People” Theme Song Studio Production: David Hebden Post-Production: Jules Taylor
In this urgent episode of Working People, we focus on the Trump-Musk administration's all-out assault on federal workers and its takeover and reordering of our entire system of government. “At least 20,000 federal workers have so far been fired by the Trump administration,” Ed Pilkington and Chris Stein report in The Guardian, “most of them recent hires on probationary periods who lack employment protections. In addition, the White House claims that more than 75,000 employees have accepted its offer of deferred resignations. The purge has prompted speculation that Trump is engaging in one of the biggest job cutting rounds in US history, which could have a powerful knock-on effect on the American economy.” In today's episode, we take you to the front lines of struggle and hear directly from three federal workers about what is happening inside the federal government, why it concerns all of us, and how federal workers and concerned citizens of all stripes are fighting back. Panelists include: Cat Farman, president of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) Union, Local 335 of the National Treasury Employees Union; Jasmine McAllister, a rank-and-file CFPB Union member and data scientist who was illegally fired two weeks ago; and Will Munger, a rangeland scientist who works across the intermountain west and who, until this month, served as a postdoctoral researcher with the USDA Agricultural Research Service. Additional links/info: CFPB Union website, Federal Unionists Network website, Bluesky page, and Instagram 5Calls.Org website Ed Pilkington & Chris Stein, The Guardian, “US personnel office walks back email ultimatum from Musk to workers”Maximillian Alvarez, The Real News Network, “Elon Musk is making technofascism a reality before our eyes”Democracy Now!, “‘Grand Theft Government': Federal workers send SOS over Musk's DOGE, mass firings & service cuts”Emily Anthes & Apoorva Mandavilli, The New York Times, “Mass federal firings may imperil crops, cattle and pets”Permanent links below…Leave us a voicemail and we might play it on the show!Labor Radio / Podcast Network website, Facebook page, and Twitter pageIn These Times website, Facebook page, and Twitter pageThe Real News Network website, YouTube channel, podcast feeds, Facebook page, and Twitter pageFeatured Music…Jules Taylor, “Working People” Theme SongStudio Production: Maximillian AlvarezPost-Production: Jules TaylorBecome a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/the-real-news-podcast--2952221/support.
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