With the strike by nearly 40,000 Verizon workers now in its fifth week, frustrated strikers and their supporters are increasing the pressure by staging a national day of action. Thousands are expected to hit area picket lines today as Verizon holds its shareholders meeting, demonstrating that support for the month-long strike is stronger than ever. The main local picket-line will be at the Verizon Wireless store at 13th and F Streets at 4 pm this afternoon, but you can get the complete list of picket locations in DC and Maryland at dclabor.org
Also on today’s labor calendar: At noon, Saru Jayaraman, co-founder of Restaurant Opportunities Centers United, discusses her new book “Forked" at the AFL-CIO. The book offers an insider's view of the best and worst restaurants for worker pay and benefits, and with it, a new way of thinking about how and where we eat. Also at noon, there’s a WPA mural tour, a rare chance to see dozens of stunning New Deal murals depicting the country’s postal heritage. And at 6:30 tonight, catch Tula Connell’s talk about her new book “Conservative CounterRevolution” at the Takoma Busboys and Poets. The local labor writer and historian explores how the clash between political conservatives and champions of liberalism in 1950s Milwaukee shaped a city and helped redefine postwar American politics nationwide. All three events are part of the DC LaborFest and are FREE but you must register online at dclabor.org; click on LaborFest. Here’s today’s labor history: On this date in 1852, the National Typographical Union was founded in Cincinnati, Ohio. Renamed the International Typographical Union in 1869, when the ITU merged into the Communication Workers of America in 1986 it was the oldest existing union in the United States. In 1888, nineteen machinists working for the East Tennessee, Virginia, and Georgia Railroad gathered in a locomotive pit to decide what to do about a wage cut. They voted to form a union, which later became the International Association of Machinists. And in 1931, heavily armed deputies and other mine owner hirelings attacked striking miners in Harlan County, Kentucky, starting the Battle of Harlan County. On this date in 1934, John J. Sweeney was born in the Bronx. Sweeney was president of the Service Employees International Union from 1980 to 1995, and then was president of the AFL-CIO from 1995 to 2009. Today’s labor quote is by John Sweeney “In the ‘Nike Economy,’ there are no standards, no borders and no rules. Clearly, the global economy isn’t working for workers in China and Indonesia and Burma any more than it is for workers here in the United States.”
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