DOCSLIB.ORG

Twentieth Century Radicalism in Minnesota Oral History Project

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
Twentieth Century Radicalism in Minnesota Oral History Project r 20th CENTURY MINNESOTA RADICALISM Interview: Jim Thombli~son, 1972 Interviewer: Alan Bruce AB: To start, Jim could we just start getting some basic information first, now, what's your middle initial. JT: C. AB: James C. Thomblinson, t-h-o-m-b ... JT: L-i-s-o-n. AB: S-o-n. And you're living right now at 812Minnesota 117th St. NE ... JT: Avenue. in AB: Avenue. In Blaine, and you say you've lived here about oh about 15 years. Society JT: Well I retired 15 years ago, I cameProject here 14 years ago. AB: And how old are you now,Radicalism Jim? JT: I'm 80 on the 11th of March.History AB: Well, as I understand it, wellHistorical as I know, we've known one Century another for a good many Oralyears. You came originally from Canada. Now what part of Canada? JT: Well I was born in eastern Canada in Renfoo County and I Minnesota went upTwentieth to northern Ontario around New and Hariberi and Cobalt and I came from there to Winnipeg. I couldn't tell you the years, but I came from Winnipeg down here in 1923. AB: Were your, were your folks immigrants to Canada? JT: No, my grandparents came from Ireland. AB: They came from Ireland. JT: On windjammers. II .. 1 AS: On windjammers. JT: Yeah. AS: Is that right. JT: Not my parents, my grandparents. AS: Yes. Well, when you were raised in eastern Renfoo County and when you started your work experience, where did you go? JT: Well I guess I worked on some farms there in Renfoo County. AS: Is that in Ontario? JT: Yes, and then I went to, don't put that thingMinnesota on, I went up to Newliskad and Haleyberg and Cobalt and Iin worked in the lumber woods there and I worked in the mines for a few weeks and they had an explosion and I quit. Then I went out west on a harvest Society Project AS: You were about how old atRadicalism that time? JT: About 17. And I worked in the lumber woods for three winters up there, the French RiverHistory Historicaland Grand Dieu, then I came down to Winnipeg andCentury I worked at odd jobs there, I worked Oral carpenter work and I delivered for Eatons store and I'd drove a bakery wagon for a while. AS: Do you remember aboutMinnesota what year that was? JT: ThatTwentieth was, well 1909 or 1910 I went up and worked in the lumber woods up there and then I drove a bakery wagon, the delivery at Eatons, I was there three years and drove this bakery wagon and we would get in $25 a week and three percent commission on, three percent commission on wholesale and six percent on, no three percent on retail and six percent on 2 .. wholesale and then one morning they informed us that they had cut the wage sto $15 a week and cut the price of bread so I quit and I came down here. AB: Well now that was about the beginning of World War I wasn't it? JT: Oh no. AB: No? JT: World War I was over in ... AB: '14 in started. Minnesota JT: Yeah, Canada went in on the 14th of August,in 1914, and everything closed down and they started the men into enlistment, that was a sort of conscription we had. Society AB: Well this reduction in your bakeryProject driving job then, reduction in pay, was that partRadicalism of this whole deal, forcing people into the army? JT: No, that wouldn't be then,History thatHistorical was after, well I guess it was too. Century Oral AB: Did you have a union when you were in Winnipeg? JT: Well I was in the IWW when I was working the lumber woods and then I was in the MinnesotaOBU in Winnipeg. AB: What'sTwentieth that? JT: One Big Union. That took in the, that was 1919, after _____ , they, at first the metal trades went out on strike and they couldn't get a settlement and one after another the different unions went out on a sympathetic strike and the employers just closed down and the internationals came in and 3 they took the charters off the wall in an awful lot of the unions and we were bringing in the unorganized and bringing them into the union, into the labor temple so fast they couldn't sign them up, they had no unions for them. Well you bring in brothers that were bottling coca-cola and all that, there was no place to put them unless they put them in with the bartenders ... AB: And this was in Winnipeg. JT: Yes . Well we , I was in the Teamsters then, I was in and of course we lost out. the Teamsters, done before the Minnesota And then I worked for the county there forin a few months, I hauled coal one winter and then I got the job in the bakery driving bread wagon and I worked there til I came down here. Society AB: What year was it that you came downProject to Minnesota? JT: 1923. Radicalism AB: Why did you come to Minnesota, J i m. JT: Because I was blacklistedHistory in HistoricalWinnipeg. AB: And for what reasonCentury were you blacklisted. Oral JT: Because I was a former union man. AB: I see. JT: Not only me, everybody,Minnesota practically everybody else . The printers,Twentieth a lot of them came to Minneapolis and St. Paul and Chicago and they got work there. AB: But now that was after the war, after the World War I . JT: Yes . AB: Did you serve in World War I? JT: Just 10 days . 4 AS: Oh. JT: In the army. AS: Well you were blacklisted in Winnipeg as far as jobs were concerned ... JT: Yes. AS: And you lost your job with the bakery? JT: No, I didn't lose my job with the bakery, I just happened to get in their one time, it was, they wanted a driver right that morning and I got in. Minnesota AS: Well then did you quit of your own volition?in JT: Yes when they ... AS: Just quit ... Society JT: When they cut the wages. Project AS: Oh I see, when they cutRadicalism the wages from 25 to 15 a week. JT: Yeah. AS: And why did you come to HistoryMinnesota?Historical JT: I have no idea,Century I was well, I had an idea that I'd hobo from Oral here to Chicago but I got down and I met an old fellow, a Rumanian Jew by the name of Bloomingberg and he had, he was deported from WinnipegMinnesota and he had American citizenship papers but he hadTwentieth a business up in Winnipeg and he was deported time of the soldier's riots, so I happened to meet him on Hennepin Avenue and he had a furniture no he had shop, a barber shop and a restaurant and a pool room. AS: In Minneapolis? 5 JT: On Hennepin Avenue in Minneapolis. And I met him, I went into his restaurant and he asked me what I was doing, I said nothing. I worked 10 days for William Bross Boiler Factory and I quit cause it didn't look like a job for the winter and I already had ordered my lunch and my supper. He bawled me out for quitting, he said work was pretty scarce here. So he went on the phone, he called up four or five numbers and then he sent me over to eastside car barns, there was a man over there hiring. And I went over there, and went in, fellow was there,Minnesota Mr. Rumsey and he was hiring a fellow by the name of Joe Bidland.in Bidland had worked there previous to that, and quit, he came back looking for a job again. Ah, Mr. Rumsey he said if we hire, I want one man Society on bridge at night, he said if I hire Projectyou this time will you stay, he said yes. So I turnedRadicalism around to go out, and he asked me were you looking for work? And I said yes but I thought you only wanted one man. Oh he said IHistory wantedHistorical an oiler at night over in the car barns and heCentury talked to me and told me they were paying 40 Oral cents an hour and if you didn't lose any time you had one night every two weeks, if you didn't lose any time during the pay period you got paid forMinnesota that night off. And he talked to me and then heTwentieth told me to go to work. Well I didn't know where Nicollet station was, he punched the ticket and I went over there and I went to work that night. I was going to stay a couple of weeks but I never got money enough to get away. AS: What year was that now, Jim? JT: That was 1933. 6 AB: And that's when you started with the, what was it called? JT: Twin City Rapid Transit Company. AB: And that was when they were running the electric street cars. JT: Yes. AB: And they had the barns, the large southside barns at Nicollet and 31st. JT: There's one at Nicollet, yes, and there's one down on Lake Street, one on 1st Avenue, 1st Avenue NortheastMinnesota Minneapolis and one up at 26th and Washington. in AB: And you stayed there then how many years? JT: It must have been about 34 years.
Load more

Recommended publications
  • 1 Building Bridges: the Challenge of Organized
    BUILDING BRIDGES: THE CHALLENGE OF ORGANIZED LABOR IN COMMUNITIES OF COLOR Robin D. G. Kelley New York University [email protected] What roles can labor unions play in transforming our inner cities and promo ting policies that might improve the overall condition of working people of color? What happens when union organizers extend their reach beyond the workplace to the needs of working-class communities? What has been the historical role of unions in the larger struggles of people of color, particularly black workers? These are crucial questions in an age when production has become less pivotal to working-class life. Increasingly, we've witnessed the export of whole production processes as corporations moved outside the country in order to take advantage of cheaper labor, relatively lower taxes, and a deregulated, frequently antiunion environment. And the labor force itself has changed. The old images of the American workingclass as white men residing in sooty industrial suburbs and smokestack districts are increasingly rare. The new service-based economy has produced a working class increasingly concentrated in the healthcare professions, educational institutions, office building maintenance, food processing, food services and various retail establishments. 1 In the world of manufacturing, sweatshops are coming back, particularly in the garment industry and electronics assembling plants, and homework is growing. These unions are also more likely to be brown and female than they have been in the past. While white male membership dropped from 55.8% in 1986 to 49.7% in 1995, women now make up 37 percent of organized labor's membership -- a higher percentage than at any time in the U.S.
    [Show full text]
  • A Labour History of Irish Film and Television Drama Production 1958-2016
    A Labour History of Irish Film and Television Drama Production 1958-2016 Denis Murphy, B.A. (Hons), M.A. (Hons) This thesis is submitted for the award of PhD January 2017 School of Communications Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences Dublin City University Supervisor: Dr. Roddy Flynn I hereby certify that this material, which I now submit for assessment on the programme of study leading to the award of PhD, is entirely my own work, and that I have exercised reasonable care to ensure that the work is original, and does not to the best of my knowledge breach any law of copyright, and has not been taken from the work of others save and to the extent that such work has been cited and acknowledged within the text of my work. Signed: ___________________________________ (Candidate) ID No.: 81407637 Date: _______________ 2 Table of Contents Introduction ....................................................................................................................................... 12 The research problem ................................................................................................................................. 14 Local history, local Hollywood? ............................................................................................................... 16 Methodology and data sources ................................................................................................................ 18 Outline of chapters .......................................................................................................................................
    [Show full text]
  • ALHI Calendar 2003.Pdf
    ATA President, Larry Booi convenes a special session of the Annual Representative Assembly on the steps of the legislature in May 2001 Sunday Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday Saturday December 2002 February 2003 1905 Conference of Industrial 123456 7 1 Unionists in Chicago leads to the formation of the Industrial 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 234567 8 Workers of the World (IWW) 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 29 30 31 23 24 25 26 27 28 1234 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 1929 Martin Luther King born 1915 IWW Poet Ralph Chaplain writes Solidarity Forever 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 1962 Alberta New Democrats founding provincial convention 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 1850 Samuel Gompers born 1737 Thomas Paine born 26 27 28 29 30 31 ATA President, Larry Booi convenes a special session of the Annual Representative Assembly on the steps of the legislature in May 2001 Sunday Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday Saturday December 2002 February 2003 1905 Conference of Industrial 123456 7 1 Unionists in Chicago leads to the formation of the Industrial 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 234567 8 Workers of the World (IWW) 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 29 30 31 23 24 25 26 27 28 1234 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 1929 Martin Luther King born 1915 IWW Poet Ralph Chaplain writes Solidarity Forever 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 1962 Alberta New Democrats founding provincial convention 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 1850 Samuel Gompers born 1737 Thomas Paine born 26 27 28 29 30 31 Amalgamated Transit Union Local 583 strike
    [Show full text]
  • The History of Unions in the US Class 1: Origins
    The History of Unions in the US Class 2: 1900-1945 Jim Dunphy [email protected] 1 Overture I Dreamed I Saw Joe Hill: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v= T2UF8yw89yE 2 The IWW – Wobblies • Founded in Chicago in 1905, out of a group of socialists, anarchists and radical trade union members • Among its founding members were Bill Haywood and Joe Hill. (more about both later!) 3 The IWW – Wobblies Goal was one big union of all workers rather than small unions dedicated to a particular craft 4 Wobblies • Membership was open to all – blacks, women, etc. • Many members were immigrants, particularly Finns (more about the most famous Finn, Joe Hill, later) • Also had a strong social justice orientation, in addition to labor 5 Wobblies • Split in leadership between those who favored political action, working with socialists. • The other faction, led by Big Bill Haywood, favored direct action, such as strikes. 6 Wobblies • The IWW was involved in conflicts with most other labor organizations, to include the AFL, UMW, and many others. • They opposed US entry into WWI, and were persecuted, along with many other opponents of the war. • The Palmer Raids, immediately after WWI, attacking radical organizations, further weakened the IWW 7 Wobblies • By the 1930’s membership, which had once been over 25,000, had decreased significantly • The IWW still exists today – they took part in the Wisconsin protests, but have little direct influence • They still serve as an inspiration to union members looking to unite all working people in “One Big Union.” 8 Joe Hill • After Bill Haywood, the most famous Wobbly was Joe Hill • Born Joel Haaglund, he was one of the many Finn immigrants in the IWW.
    [Show full text]
  • Proquest Dissertations
    1762 The Response of the Toronto Daily Press to the Winnipeg General Strike by Michael Guy Dupuis A thesis presented to the History Department of the University of Ottawa in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts. r ^ ~rd. \ er&ity o* ; H.G, Dupuis, Ottawa, 1973. UMI Number: EC55684 INFORMATION TO USERS The quality of this reproduction is dependent upon the quality of the copy submitted. Broken or indistinct print, colored or poor quality illustrations and photographs, print bleed-through, substandard margins, and improper alignment can adversely affect reproduction. In the unlikely event that the author did not send a complete manuscript and there are missing pages, these will be noted. Also, if unauthorized copyright material had to be removed, a note will indicate the deletion. UMI® UMI Microform EC55684 Copyright 2011 by ProQuest LLC All rights reserved. This microform edition is protected against unauthorized copying under Title 17, United States Code. ProQuest LLC 789 East Eisenhower Parkway P.O. Box 1346 Ann Arbor, Ml 48106-1346 Space does not permit me to name all those who have helped me in the production of this thesis but there are several who deserve personal mention. Graham Spry inspired me to undertake work on the Winnipeg general strike. As well, in the course of several taped interviews, he generously offered his own memories of that most exciting and historic event. Two well-known Western journalists, George Ferguson and J. S. Woodward, not only bolstered my own evaluation of the press coverage of the strike but tirelessly contributed personal insights into most of the principal newspaper personalities involved in the reporting of the walkout.
    [Show full text]
  • The Hand That Will Rule the World #1 Political Cartoon Published on June 30, 1917 in Solidarity, a Newspaper That Supports Organized Labour
    The Hand That Will Rule The World #1 Political cartoon published on June 30, 1917 in Solidarity, a newspaper that supports organized labour. Winnipeg general strike Chaplin, Ralph. ‘The Hand That Will Rule the World – One Big Union’, Solidarity, June 30, 1917. http://www.laborarts.org/collections/item.cfm?itemid=410 (Accessed July 20, 2011). the critical thinking consortium The diary of Robert Maxwell #2 Dennistoun Excerpt from the May 7, 1919 entry in the diary of Robert Winnipeg Dennistoun, a lawyer and judge in Winnipeg during the Strike. general strike Comments in brackets are not part of the original document. They have been added to assist the reader with difficult words. Bolchivism [sic] and Labour Conditions in Western Can. [Canada] are disturb- ing. The Printers Union are demanding all that the Free Press can earn saying they will own the paper and will allow nothing for capital. The Wpg. [Winnipeg] St [Street] Ry. [Railway] Em- ployees are saying the same thing and putting another strike forward contrary to agreement. A labor Candidate in Calgary has announced he is out against the policies of the late Mr. Jesus Christ. Karl Marcx (sic) is now the prophet who speaks wisdom. Good steady workmen say that rank revolution is being talked openly at their meeting. Many dis- approve but dare not say so. “Robert Maxwell Dennistoun diary entry dated 7 May 1919, excerpt,” Archives of Manitoba, MG14 B24, Robert Maxwell Dennistoun Family, Box 1. the critical thinking consortium The diary of Robert Maxwell #3 Dennistoun Excerpt from the May 7, 1919 entry in the diary of Robert Winnipeg Dennistoun, a lawyer and judge in Winnipeg during the Strike.
    [Show full text]
  • Free PDF Copy
    Women of the World CUPE vs CUPE: Struggle Chinese workers need Day laborers fight for Unite : International over concessions, pension solidarity and win their rights Women’s Day 3 5 7 9 IndustrialOFFICI A L N EWSP A P E R O F THE INDUSTRI WorkerA L W O R K E R S O F T H E W O RLD April 2007 #1694 Vol. 104 No. 4 $1.00 / 75p Amersino reinstates two in NYC warehouse Third worker plans appeal, IWW warehouse workers keep fighting By Diane Krauthamer to discuss the situation. Twenty workers signed IWW membership cards, after In a legal battle that has lasted for which they marched on the warehouse more than a year, two fired union work- to inform Wang that they had joined ers are finally returning to the job with the union and demand that he comply thousands of dollars in back wages. with minimum wage and overtime laws On February 27, 2007, the National and reinstate Lopez and Pulidos. Wang Labor Relations Board (NLRB) ordered refused, and a picket followed that same that warehouse owner Henry Wang, morning. Within 45 minutes of the of Brooklyn-based Amersino Market- picket being set up, Wang capitulated ing Group, reinstate Manuel Lopez and and agreed to all of the union’s demands. Juan Antonio Rodriguez, pay full back During the week of their demand for rec- wages, and cease and desist all illegal ognition, the workers waged two more measures against the union. Wang fired brief work stoppages in order to combat five workers for organizing with the the company’s attacks and harassment.
    [Show full text]
  • One Big Union
    ONE BIG UNION A PARTIAL INVENTORY OF THEIR RECORD S I N THE LIBRARY OF THE UNIVERSITY OF BRITISH COLUMBI A SPECIAL COLLECTIONS DIVISION British Columbia Archival Information Network Display Page 1 of 1 Help Feedback Home BCAUL => Results => Item Display - British Columbia Archival Union List (BCAUL) *Access the previous result entry "`Access the next result entry Provenance: One Big Union Title : One Big Union fonds Dates : 1920 Physical desc . : 1 cm of textual records Bio/Admin In 1919 delegates from most union locals in western Canada met at the Western Labou r History: Congress in Calgary and resolved to conduct a referendum among Canadian members t o determine if they would be willing to join a revolutionary industrial union to be called the On e Big Union . By the end of 1919, a membership of 41,150 was reported in the 101 local units o f the OBU which included large parts of the mine, transportation and logging labour force i n western Canada. Although by 1923 the union was reduced to approximately 5,000, it serve d as a pioneering effort for future attempts at industrial unionism . The OBU eventually becam e regional affiliate of the Canadian Labour Congress . Scope/Content: The fonds consists of reports of the proceedings of the first semi-annual convention of th e OBU at Winnipeg in January (1920) and the second held at Port Arthur in September (1920) . Also included are the results of voting in the OBU locals throughout Canada and brochures o n the goals of the organization . Title source : Title based on the contents of the fonds .
    [Show full text]
  • 2005 ALHI Calendar
    Centenary Edition Alberta Labour History Institute Alberta Labour History2005 Centennials 2005 Industrial Workers of the Plumbers and Pipefitters Sheet Metal Workers Local 8 World (IWW) —the Wobblies Union 496 (Belated) Originally, the Amalgamated Sheet Metal Workers International The romantic and colourful union, the Industrial Workers of the Plumbers and Pipefitters ocal nion 96 was chartered in 19 Alliance Local 254, a trade union based in Calgary, was founded World (IWW), was founded in Chicago in 1905 to organize in Calgary, Alberta. As the economy of southern Alberta became on February 28, 1905. By April 17, 1907, the Edmonton all workers regardless of nationality, craft, sex or race into one increasingly industrialized, the Local Union assumed jurisdiction branch, Local 371, was formed and on November 1, 1934, Local powerful class-aware union. The IWW pioneered innovative over plumbers, pipefitters, steamfitters, sprinkler fitters, pipeline 371 was re-chartered to become Local 271, Edmonton. On July organizing techniques such as wobbly songs and poetry and welders, instrument mechanics and non-destructive testing , 19, the nion officially changed its name to Sheet Metal successfully conducted strikes in many industries. The IWW was technicians working in building construction and maintenance, Workers International Association at their convention in established by activists Mother Jones, Big Bill Haywood, Eugene pipelines, refineries, gas plants, and other industrial installations. Montreal, Canada. V. Debs and others. Members included Elizabeth Gurley Flynn, ocal nion 96 was the first local union in western Canada to Helen Keller and wobbly poet and songwriter Joe Hill. establish its own pension and health and welfare plans.
    [Show full text]
  • Teamsters Amsters
    Teamsters http://www.enotes.com/topic/Teamsters Teamsters International Brotherhood of Teamsters Founded 1903 Members 1,402,878 (2008)[1] Country United States and Canada Change to Win Federation and Canadian Affiliation Labour Congress Key people James P. Hoffa, General President Office Washington, D.C. location Website www.teamsters.org The International Brotherhood of Teamsters (IBT) is a labor union in the United States and Canada. Formed in 1903 by the merger of several local and regional locals of teamsters, the union now represents a diverse membership of blue-collar and professional workers in both the public and private sectors. The union had approximately 1.4 million members in 2008.[1] Formerly known as the International Brotherhood of Teamsters, Chauffeurs, Warehousemen and Helpers of America, the IBT is a member of the Change to Win Federation and Canadian Labour Congress. Contents 1 History o 1.1 Early history o 1.2 Organizing and growth during the Great Depression o 1.3 World War II and the post-war period o 1.4 The influence of organized crime o 1.5 The rise, fall and disappearance of Jimmy Hoffa o 1.6 Decentralization, deregulation and drift o 1.7 Internal and external challenges o 1.8 Recent history 2 Political donations 3 Strikes 4 Organization o 4.1 General President o 4.2 Membership o 4.3 Divisions 5 See also 6 Notes 7 References 8 External links History Early history The American Federation of Labor (AFL) had helped form local unions of teamsters since 1887. In November 1898, the AFL organized the Team Drivers' International Union (TDIU).[2][3] In 1901, a group of Teamsters in Chicago, Illinois, broke from the TDIU and formed the Teamsters National Union.[2] The new union permitted only employees, teamster helpers, and owner-operators owning only a single team to join, unlike the TDIU (which permitted large employers to be members), and was more aggressive than the TDIU in advocating higher wages and shorter hours.[2] Claiming more than 28,000 members in 47 locals, its president, Albert Young, applied for membership in the AFL.
    [Show full text]
  • Indigenous Writers Rising 12
    WRITE THE MAGAZINE OF THE WRITERS’ UNION OF VOLUME 40 NUMBER 3 CANADA WINTER 2013 Idle No More: Indigenous Writers Rising 12 Writing the Family: Perils, Promises and Payoffs 17 Copyright Update: The Latest on Fair Dealing 21 WRITE Support the new Write! Take advantage of amazing advertising opportunities! Members: Get 25% off all ads. Reach 2000+ proven readers. Ask us about our small press discounts. For more information, or to book an ad today, email [email protected]. write From the Chair By Merilyn Simonds According to the Mayan calendar, as I write this the world is supposed to be ending in a few days, which tempts me to ignore deadlines. But the thought of you reading this, safely ensconced in 2013, keeps my fingers on the keyboard, eager to tell you about the last few very busy months. • Edmonton writers suggested we do something dramatic to get First, we have a new Executive Director. The Executive of the government’s attention during our AGM in Ottawa in May, National Council formed a search committee, together with “to show the population that writers are thoughtful, reflective Siobhan O’Connor, TWUC’s Associate Director, and former Chair imaginative people, deeply concerned about our world.” Alan Cumyn. We had an excellent field of candidates from which • Saskatoon writers said writers should connect directly with to choose, and from among those we unanimously selected John teachers because many do not support their administration’s Degen, a man of great experience and skill, who took the reins view of copyright licensing. firmly in hand on November 26.
    [Show full text]
  • Work to Rule: Organizing the One Big Union at Starbucks
    OFFICIAL NEWSPAPER oF THE INDUSTRIAL WORKERS OF THE WORLD INDUSTRIALJuly/August 2014 #1766 Vol. 111 No. 5 $2/ £2/ €2 WORKER History Of The IWW Kentucky GMB The Disunited Food & France: The Long In Grand Rapids, Officially Chartered! Commercial Workers Strike At La Poste Michigan 3 5 8 11 Work To Rule: Organizing The One Big Union At Starbucks By FW Sarah she endured at home, the rape that re- sulted in the birth of her son, bullying at The Match That Started the Fire the hands of other girls at school and the Weekends are notoriously crazy for a death of her best friend. Anna has been a Starbucks barista. These are the days when Starbucks barista for the last three years. people have time to vent their frustrations She likes the job because her co-workers from the previous workweek on some are nice and show her respect. She knows unsuspecting worker. Customers come in almost every customer who comes into our with their screaming children, busloads of high-volume store and sometimes even tourists struggle to understand why a small decorates his or her cup with hand-drawn drink would be called “tall” and the stores pictures. Anna’s ability to work is often themselves are almost always understaffed hampered by chronic health issues. I have to handle the demand. It is therefore fit- worked shifts where she leaves the floor to ting that it was a Sunday when an event cough up blood. The intensity of the work triggered Starbucks baristas to engage in we do when we are understaffed, amplified a clever power play to make work condi- by other environmental factors that come tions better.
    [Show full text]