Dear John,

For far too long, bosses denied basic rights to working people on the job. In May 1886, workers in Chicago sought to address something we all consider fundamental today: an 8-hour workday. However, the momentum from the protests did not last. Tragedy struck as workers gathered in Haymarket Square to protest police violence against strikers. Someone hurled a bomb toward the police. The police responded by opening fire on the protesting workers. The courage, collective action, and power those workers showed embody May Day's essence, a day that we continue to celebrate over 130 years later.

Flash forward to today, and we are seeing a generational moment for workers coming together to fight against injustices in the workplace. From New York City to the Deep South, workers are on the move and fighting to organize against the corporate behemoth that is Amazon. JFK8, a warehouse of over 8,000 workers in Staten Island, voted to form a union, and workers in another Staten Island facility are holding their first union election. In Bessemer, Alabama, Amazon workers recently voted in a union election which has come down to a paper-thin margin and continues to be too close to call. Starbucks workers from coast to coast are coming together at more than 200 locations, including Buffalo and Ithaca, where Jobs With Justice local coalitions mobilized the community in support of the unionizing workers.

Meanwhile, our Always Essential campaign continues to win big, most recently in Harris County, Texas, when we succeeded in adopting a first-of-its-kind essential worker taskforce composed entirely of frontline workers. We cannot understate the enormity of this victory, given that Harris County is the most populated county in Texas and the third-largest county in the United States.

We remain at a critical turning point, a once-in-a-several-generations opportunity to address the chronic undervaluing and insecurity of what have always been essential jobs. Our work is far from done, and this May Day, we are calling on you, alongside every one of us, to step up like never before to continue the incredible momentum this year and beyond.

Please support Jobs With Justice as we celebrate the legacy and spirit of May Day and join together to continue to fight for real, transformational change for working people in this country.

In Solidarity,

Smiley

Executive Director