Environment
A Taste of Working-Class Environmentalism with a Hospital Cook from Albert Lea
|
A cook and farmer on climate, labor, and the community organizing ecosystem in Minnesota.
Workday Magazine (https://workdaymagazine.org/category/minnesota/page/3/)
A cook and farmer on climate, labor, and the community organizing ecosystem in Minnesota.
This article is a joint publication of Workday Magazine and The American Prospect. Michael Rubke, a desk attendant at La Rive condo complex in Minneapolis, is fighting for a union against a behemoth building management company, FirstService Residential of Minnesota, that has a near-monopoly on high-rise condos in the Twin Cities. It’s been a difficult battle so far. The unionization campaign is “at square one,” the 41-year-old explained over the phone after working an overnight shift. “They’re pretending we’re not there.”
But that lack of formal union representation did not stop Rubke and his colleagues throughout the Twin Cities from fighting for—and winning—statewide legislation this summer that improves the terms of their jobs, by beating back a little-known provision used to erode the job security of contracted workers.
Descendants Honor 90th Anniversary of Ancestors’ Militant Labor Strike from Unicorn Riot on Vimeo.This video was produced in collaboration with Unicorn Riot and Workday Magazine. On July 27, workers, descendants of the strikers, and the local labor community came together at Wabun Park in Minneapolis to honor the 90th anniversary of the 1934 Truckers’ Strike that brought Minneapolis to a standstill and served as a spark for radical and militant labor struggle across the country.
The strike lasted about three months, as Teamsters Local 574 truckers demanded a fair wage and official recognition of the union. The trucking companies had the support of the Citizens Alliance, an anti-trade union organization that sought to break the strike. The strike’s impact reverberated throughout the city, bringing much of the Minneapolis economy to a halt.
After reaching an agreement, the trucking companies did not honor the terms and workers returned to the streets. On July 20, 1934, the Minneapolis police attacked and opened fire on picketers in the streets of the Warehouse District.
Read a Spanish-language version of this interview here. Dina Velasquez Escalante is a poultry worker in southwest Minnesota. She spends her workdays inspecting the chicken millions of Americans eat every day. She looks for tumors, stray bones and organs, and removes bile. After six years of hard work and cultivating expertise on almost every position on the line, she’s now in the laboratory testing samples of poultry to ensure the highest quality.
As a union steward with the United Food and Commercial Workers International Union (UFCW) Local 663 at Butterfield Foods in Butterfield, Minnesota, Escalante is also tasked with ensuring her fellow workers receive fair treatment and safety on the line.
Este artículo también está disponible en inglés. Traducción de María Uhlmann
Dina Velasquez Escalante trabaja en una planta avícola en el sudoeste de Minnesota. Su día de trabajo consiste en inspeccionar el pollo que millones de estadounidenses consumen a diario. Lo que busca son tumores, huesos y órganos, además de retirar la bilis. Luego de 6 años de trabajo intenso, y de adquirir experiencia en casi todos los puestos de la línea de producción, ahora se encuentra en el laboratorio analizando muestras de pollo para asegurar la mejor calidad.
Public transportation is a lifeline for small town residents in Minnesota. Syd Bauer explains how the bus plays a role in their commitment to climate justice and pandemic safety.
Adjunct and contingent faculty make up the majority of instructional staff at colleges and universities today. Faith Ericson explains what that means for these highly qualified and underpaid workers and the role of liberal arts education outside of major city centers.
How grocery store workers in Greater Minnesota fighting for better pay and working conditions are sticking together and transforming their union.
A group of labor advocates, faculty, and other university staff organized to pass a reform to the 1971 law that predefined bargaining units for public employees.
Minneapolis sex workers and allies took to the streets in a joyful celebration to commemorate “International Whores Day” (June 2) in downtown Minneapolis, demanding decriminalization of sex work and increased workers protections.