Labor Strikes Are Now A Thing Of The Past

As Matt Bruenig has discovered, working people aren't going on strike nearly as much as they used to forty years ago – despite the fact that they've suffered through 30 years of flattening wages and watching their jobs be shipped overseas. Forty years ago, there was an average of nearly 300 work stoppages, involving more than 1,000 workers, every single year. But in 2009, that number dropped all the way down to five. Just five major work stoppages a year. On the flip side, lockouts are on the rise. Lockouts occur when management locks workers out of the job – and they now represent a record percentage of works stoppages around the nation. This is a result of less democracy in the workplace, stemming from Conservatives busting up unions since the time of Reagan. And when unions decline, so too, does the middle class' share of national income. The Billionaire Class has absolutely neutered organized labor. That's why it's so important to support and nurture those few labor strikes we've seen recently – from the Wal-Mart workers, to the fast food workers in New York City, to the Chicago Teachers Union. When working people get organized and get active – progressive change follows.