Union City Radio for Thursday, May 25

Labor scholars and activists from across the country are convening in DC June 8 and 9 at the 2017 Labor Research and Action Network national conference to share new ideas and lessons learned, and to connect around research and campaign work.
Plenaries will focus on "Building Worker Power Under a Trump Administration" and "Messaging to Win."
The conference will be held at Howard University; details on our website at dclabor.org

On today's labor calendar,
Hear the shocking story of "A millionaire, a hotel maid and an arrest for sex abuse" when our guest on today’s edition of “Your Rights at Work” is John Boardman of the DC hotel workers union, Unite Here Local 25; 1p here on WPFW.
Then tonight at 8, catch a screening of “Revolution: New Art For A New World” at the Old Greenbelt Theatre in Greenbelt, Maryland. This bold and exciting feature documentary encapsulates a momentous period in the history of Russia and the Russian Avant-Garde.
Details on our website at dclabor.org, click on LaborFest

Here’s today's labor history:
On this date in 1805, striking shoemakers in Philadelphia were arrested and charged with criminal conspiracy for violating an English common law that barred workers from organizing to increase their wages.
In 1932, thousands of unemployed World War I veterans arrived in Washington to demand early payment of a bonus they desperately needed to survive the Great Depression. They built a shantytown near the U.S. Capitol but were burned out by U.S. troops after two months.
In 1936, the notorious 11-month Remington Rand strike began. The strike spawned the "Mohawk Valley formula," described by investigators as a corporate plan to discredit union leaders, frighten the public with the threat of violence, and employ thugs to beat up strikers. The National Labor Relations Board called it "a battle plan for industrial war."
And on this date in 1962, the AFL-CIO began what was to become an unsuccessful campaign for a 35-hour workweek, with the goal of reducing unemployment. Earlier tries by organized labor for 32- or 35-hour weeks also failed.

Today’s labor quote is by writer James Baldwin
“Fires can’t be made with dead embers, nor can enthusiasm be stirred by spiritless men. Enthusiasm in our daily work lightens effort and turns even labor into pleasant tasks.”

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