From fast food workers striking for protective gear and hazard pay to care workers mobilizing for paid sick days and unemployment benefits, COVID-19 has shone a light on the precariousness of our workforce and the vulnerability of those deemed essential.
This Labor Day saw the launch of powerful campaigns—on the streets and online—to uplift the millions of essential workers of color, support the unemployed, and further workers’ rights. Dramatic new advances in digital organizing are mobilizing people on a scale we have not seen before. Is the pandemic fueling the rebirth of labor organizing?
This conversation explored the current state of play around, and Open Society’s new efforts to advance, workers’ rights and racial justice.
Speakers
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Thomas Perriello
Moderator
Until July 2023, Tom Perriello was executive director of Open Society-U.S.
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Ai-jen Poo
Speaker
Ai-jen Poo is co-founder and executive director of the National Domestic Workers Alliance.
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Ken Rigmaiden
Speaker
Ken Rigmaiden is general president of the International Union of Painters and Allied Trades.
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