LABOR CALENDAR; click here for latest listings
Union City Radio: 7:15am daily
WPFW-FM 89.3 FM; click here to hear today's report
"The Sound of Democracy: A Global Noise Barrage for Myanmar": Thu, February 11, 12:30pm – 1:30pm
Embassy of Myanmar, 2300 S St NW, Washington, DC 20008
Union City Radio: Your Rights at Work: Thu, February 11, 1pm – 2pm
WPFW 89.3 FM or listen online
NoVA Labor Committee on the Environment: Thu, February 11, 3:30pm – 5:00pm
Arlington Dems Labor Caucus: Thu, February 11, 6pm – 8pm
The Sound of Democracy: A Global Noise Barrage for Myanmar
The Myanmar trade union movement is taking a leading role in protest and strike actions against the military coup that took place there on February 1. “The Sound of Democracy: A Global Noise Barrage for Myanmar" -- a socially-distanced action -- will start at 12:30 today at the Embassy of Myanmar (see Calendar) as activists join a global day of protest to support workers, unions, students and democracy activists who oppose the coup. “Over a million have marched in Myanmar to take their peaceful demand for democracy to the streets since February 6th,” reports Brian Finnegan is Global Worker Rights Coordinator at the AFL-CIO's International Department. You can also tune in to Your Rights At Work on WPFW 89.3FM at 1p for a live report.
CSA’s News You Can Use: Free tax help
Families earning less than $56,000 may qualify to get tax returns prepared by IRS-certified volunteers through the Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA) program. "These volunteers are also trained to make sure families who qualify get the Earned Income Tax Credit, "which puts more money in the pockets of qualified families," says Community Services Agency Executive Director Sonte DuCote. Click here for more information about the VITA program. The United Way National Capital Area is a partner of the Community Services Agency to advance its mission to improve the lives of workers.
Labor Quote: Mary Harris “Mother” Jones
"I would fight God Almighty Himself if He didn't play square with me."
Today's Labor History
This week’s Labor History Today podcast: Remembering John Sweeney and Anne Feeney
We lost two giants of the labor movement this week, former AFL-CIO president John Sweeney and labor folksinger and activist Anne Feeney; on today’s show we remember them both. Plus: Strike at Cripple Creek.
Last week’s show: What’s the matter with labor history?
500 Japanese and 200 Mexican laborers unite to fight the labor contractor responsible for hiring at the American Beet Sugar Co. in Oxnard, Calif. They ultimately win higher wages and the right to shop at stores not owned by the company - 1903
Fifteen thousand rubber workers strike in Akron, Ohio, protesting speed-up - 1913
Mary Harris “Mother” Jones is arrested while leading a protest of conditions in West Virginia mines. She was 83 years old at the time - 1913
The Seattle General Strike ends after six days. Some 65,000 workers struck for higher pay after two years of World War I wage controls - 1919
“White Shirt Day” at UAW-represented GM plants. Union members are encouraged to wear white shirts, marking the anniversary of the 1937 sitdown strike that gave the union bargaining rights at the automaker. The mission: send a message that “blue collar” workers deserve the same respect as their management counterparts. One of the day’s traditional rules: Don’t get your shirt any dirtier than the boss gets his. The 44-day strike was won in 1937 but the tradition didn’t begin until 1948, at the suggestion of Local 598 member Bert Christenson - 1948
Some 1,300 sanitation workers begin what is to become a 64-day strike in Memphis, ultimately win union recognition and wage increases. The April 4 assassination in Memphis of Martin Luther King Jr., who had been taking an active role in mass meetings and street actions, brought pressure on the city to settle the strike - 1968
Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker announces he will call out the National Guard, if necessary, to deal with any "unrest" among state employees in the wake of his decision take unilaterally end nearly all collective bargaining rights for the workers - 2011
- David Prosten
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