One family dinner a few decades ago, my brother and I made one of our usual smart aleck remarks about how it would be nice if our monthly allowance (or ‘pocket money’ as we called it in those days) were increased by our parents. My mother shot back with a quick, “Yes, and it wouldContinue reading “The Supposed ‘American Dignity Of Labor’”
Tag Archives: labor
Work Ain’t Working For Us (And Hasn’t Been)
‘Work’ is a four-letter word, variously used to describe an activity for which a bewildering array of pejorative adjectives have been deployed over the years. Slogans abound, on bumper sticker and office cubicle alike: we’re working for the weekend; thank God it’s Friday; a bad day fishing is better than a good day working; andContinue reading “Work Ain’t Working For Us (And Hasn’t Been)”
Demonizing Organized Labor And The Road To Fascism
The word ‘union’ occurs five times in Jedediah Purdy‘s Jacobin essay ‘How Trump Won.’ On the first two occasions, Purdy invokes unions as part of an analysis of the demographics of Trump voters: [U]nion voters abandoned the Democrats dramatically Clinton was much weaker than Obama with union-household voters: he won them 58–40, she only 51–43.Continue reading “Demonizing Organized Labor And The Road To Fascism”
On Voting ‘Yes’ On The CUNY Strike Authorization Vote
Yesterday, like many of my colleagues at the City University of New York I voted ‘Yes’ on our union’s strike authorization vote. (The voting period ends May 11th; at that time, the PSC-CUNY will be able to inform CUNY administration of the extent of faculty and staff support for a strike.) A strike is seriousContinue reading “On Voting ‘Yes’ On The CUNY Strike Authorization Vote”
I’m Scared, Therefore I Work
A few weeks ago, I got into an argument–offline, not online–about those two horsemen of the apocalypse that are destroying the American nation, rendering it financially insolvent, and turning the American Dream into the American Nightmare. I’m referring, of course, to unions and teacher tenure. At the heart of these fears is a very interestingContinue reading “I’m Scared, Therefore I Work”
A Tiny Pleasure: Heading Home On Time
Yesterday evening, I took the train to my wife’s place of work at Brooklyn’s MetroTech Center. I was going to drop off my baby daughter at her mother’s office, and then head to the gym to workout. It had been a tiring day as any day of infant daycare invariably is; my wife was going toContinue reading “A Tiny Pleasure: Heading Home On Time”
On Being Mistaken for a ‘Worker’
Variants of the following situation have, I think, occurred in many people’s lives here in the US. (I have been on both the giving and receiving end, so to speak.) You walk into a store (or perhaps a restaurant), perusing its offerings. You do not find what you need; you are confused; you need assistance.Continue reading “On Being Mistaken for a ‘Worker’”
Narrowing the American Dream to Exclude the American Worker
My sister-in-law works as a labor organizer for the American Federation of State, County, and Municipal Employees (AFSCME). I’m proud of the work she does and remain resolutely convinced that her efforts to facilitate the unionization of workers count among the most important contemporary attempts to reform the American workplace and reduce income inequality. ButContinue reading “Narrowing the American Dream to Exclude the American Worker”
Samir Chopra 