[ Well-planned strikes are not only a unions most potent weapon,
but also the publics best chance of forcing substantive policy changes
to improve working conditions, living conditions, and the health of
the planet.] [[link removed]]

STRIKE SUPPORT: WHAT IS IT AND HOW YOU CAN HELP STRIKING WORKERS  
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Jacqui Germain
September 29, 2021
TeenVogue [[link removed]]

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_ Well-planned strikes are not only a union's most potent weapon, but
also the public's best chance of forcing substantive policy changes to
improve working conditions, living conditions, and the health of the
planet. _

Jeff Kowalsky // TeenVogue,

 

There have been nine major strikes in nine different states so far in
2021, according [[link removed]] to the U.S. Bureau of
Labor Statistics (BLS). The federal agency defines “major strikes”
as work stoppages that involve at least 1,000 workers, which means
that their 2021 data excludes notable strikes like the 19-day strike
of hundreds of Frito-Lay workers
[[link removed]] in
Topeka, Kansas in July and the now-longest-running nurses’ strike
[[link removed]] in
Massachusetts history
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entering its sixth month. With such a high employee threshold, it
doesn’t seem very odd that the U.S. averaged
[[link removed]] 15.4
major strikes per year between 2010 and 2019.

But starting in 1947, when the agency began collecting this data, the
number of major strikes in the U.S. was in the triple digits every
single year
[[link removed]].
For decades, it was entirely commonplace for there to be hundreds of
organized labor strikes annually with more than 1,000 workers. That
streak lasted until 1982.

To understand what changed and the role strike support plays in
today’s labor movement, it’s important to look back at one key
point in labor history: the 1981 PATCO strike.

That year, almost 13,000 federally employed members of the
Professional Air Traffic Controllers Organization (PATCO) went on
strike for higher pay and a shortened workweek. President Ronald
Reagan demanded employees return to work in 48 hours. When more than
11,000 workers refused, Reagan responded with a decisive,
unprecedented blow by firing them all en masse
[[link removed]].

“The president of the United States showed all of the corporate
class that you can replace all these workers when they go on strike
and literally fire them,” says Jane McAlevey, organizer, author, and
senior policy fellow at UC Berkeley’s Institute for Research on
Labor and Employment. “So that's, I would say, the beginning of open
season on workers.”

Though fallout from the PATCO strike isn’t the only reason
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the drastic decline in union membership and work stoppages, the event
was a demoralizing blow for organized labor, sanctioned by the highest
levels of the U.S. government. By 1982, the number of major strikes
dropped below 100 for the first time since the BLS began counting them
more than 30 years before.

Still, McAlevey maintains that well-planned strikes are not only a
union's most potent weapon, but also the public's best chance of
forcing substantive policy changes to improve working conditions,
living conditions, and the health of the planet. And making sure
communities and other allies understand key tactics to support
striking workers is a big part of that strategy.

“It's going to take workers walking off the job in very serious
numbers to create the kind of crisis that forces the capitalist class,
the corporate elite in this country, to the table,” argues McAlevey.
“And that's not going to happen by workers isolated alone on picket
lines. It's going to happen when the whole community begins to rise up
and support them, broadly.”

Below are five ways you can support striking workers:

1. Support the strike, _out loud_ and _in public_

Because of how much is at stake for many workers and how few legal
protections most of them have, McAlevey says strikes can be really
scary to participate in. When the public actively and enthusiastically
validates workers during a strike, it can provide a huge morale boost.

In addition to tweets and hashtags, McAlevey adds that writing op-eds
in your local paper and calling into radio stations in support of the
strike can help promote a strong pro-worker narrative. Wearing a
button in support of a strike whenever you head out to run errands or
getting a group of local teachers or faith leaders to sign a letter of
support also helps demonstrate that the community stands with striking
workers.

“I'm telling you right now that every single time you honk, beep —
and much more importantly, start writing letters to the editor, frame
the narrative, have signs saying the community stands with you —
that's going to matter, right?” says McAlevey. “Is it workers
standing alone or workers with their community?”

2. Grab some markers and poster board and visit the picket line

Like any other protest, picket lines are open to those directly
impacted and their allies, unless stated otherwise. They aren’t
exclusive to employees, so feel free to make a few signs, text some
friends, and walk the picket line
[[link removed]] in
support.

Visiting a picket line also allows the community to get more details
on what workers need and how allies can provide support. Do they need
bottled water to keep marching in the summer heat? Maybe some hand
warmers for a wintertime strike? Could they use snacks? Portable phone
chargers? It can make a huge difference to have those needs met. Plus,
getting involved is a great way to meet members of your own community
with whom you might not otherwise interact. Remember, workers don’t
exist in a silo. They’re just as much a part of our communities as
anyone else, and joining a picket line could be the first step to
strengthening those bonds.

3. Make a strike support solidarity club with friends

Whether there’s a strike happening in your own city or several
states away, getting a few friends together to plan ways to support is
a great option. It could be something as easy as making a Google Doc
or starting a group text thread to coordinate supplies and rides.
Working together can make sure each tactic feels bite-size and
manageable, and doing things with other people — especially if
it’s your first time supporting a strike — can feel much less
intimidating.

“Map it out. There's this talk show, there's this morning talk show
on this local station, there's this radio station, there's this local
TV station. Let's map out who's going to call into each one of
them?” McAlevey offers. “Make a calendar online, make a plan.
Who's going to go there on Thursday night? Who's going to get down on
Friday? Who’s going to get out on Saturday. Who's going to take what
food down?”

4. Donate to strike support funds

Strike support funds, also called economic hardship funds, are
probably one of the most easily recognizable ways to support a union
from afar. According to McAlevey, whether it’s a shorter strike or
one that continues for months, those funds will be depleted. The money
is crucial for allowing striking workers to take care of their
families, but if their employer decides to remove their health
benefits during the strike — which McAlevey says sometimes happens
— that fund might need to cover medical expenses too.

“What the employers do very quickly in long strikes — I've
experienced it and it is super intense — is that like, day 30, they
cut your health benefits,” McAlevey explains. “People are going to
need money to pay their bills, feed the kids, and maybe, depending on
how abusive the employer is, have a healthcare fund in case someone's
getting sick. We're in a pandemic last I looked, so the need for
financial support is serious.”

5. Push elected leaders to support the strike through public
statements and policy

Though President Joe Biden shared public support
[[link removed]] for Amazon
workers’ high-profile union drive in Bessemer, Alabama, McAlevey
describes it as “too little, too late.” No politician at the
federal level has yet commented on the more than 1,000 coal miners in
Alabama
[[link removed]] who,
like the nurses in Massachusetts, are entering the sixth month of
their strike.

“For people who are being called the most pro-labor administration
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is not acceptable that there have not been super-direct
interventions,” says McAlevey. “Every smart politician knows how
to put their thumb on the scale and help advance a cause. And we are
not seeing that yet.”

Pushing elected officials to take a public stance on workers’ rights
and share messages of support for specific strikes as they’re
happening both encourage striking workers and helps shore up public
support for pro-labor policy measures. And according to McAlevey,
we’ll need both to build enough worker power to improve people’s
lives and save the planet.

WANT MORE FROM _TEEN VOGUE_? CHECK THIS OUT: WHAT A LABOR UNION IS
AND HOW IT WORKS
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_This story is published as part of_ Teen Vogue’_s 2021_ _Economic
Security Project fellowship_
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_[Jacqui Germain is the 2021 Economic Security Project fellow at Teen
Vogue. Jacqui is a St. Louis-based journalist, trained organizer, and
poet, whose work has appeared in outlets including The Nation, The
Guardian, The Atlantic, Elle, The New Inquiry, and Vice.]_

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