“People are lazy.”
“No one wants to go back to work.”
“Businesses can’t find workers.”
There are lots of bogus theories swirling around that attempt to explain the behavior of workers in the U.S. right now. In a year marked by a deadly virus, widespread strikes, and spontaneous low-wage worker walkouts, many workers are unwilling or unable to return to the low-paying, precarious jobs they had before the pandemic. Some have characterized this as a “labor shortage,” but what’s really going on here? Has the balance of power shifted in workers’ favor, and could this be a historic moment for the labor movement?
To help us make sense of it all, EWOC is hosting a political education panel on Tuesday, October 19 at 8 p.m. EST / 5 p.m. PST titled, “Help Wanted: What Does the ‘Labor Shortage’ Mean for Working People?” We’ll hear from three amazing voices in the labor movement: Hadas Thier, activist, journalist, and author of A People’s Guide to Capitalism: An Introduction to Marxist Economics; Emilio Enriquez, organizer with the Restaurant Organizing Project; and Rebecca Garelli, teacher and organizer with Arizona Educators United (AEU). Join us in exploring the real reasons why labor is reacting so forcefully at this particular moment. Anyone can sign up to attend this free online event.
