we have a very checkered past and we should not be ashamed of that past. It should be that history, those facts that make us all stronger so that we don't repeat the same mistakes that we did in the past . Frederick Ingram, secretary Treasurer of the American Federation of Teachers joins the America's Workforce Union Podcast to discuss AFT's role in civil rights, challenges in public education and the importance of organizing.
there is something special about musicians playing live together over time, that even if your repertoire at that time is not necessarily. What you're going to do in the long run, you kind of create this like band synergy. On the Berg Report, Caleb Jerome Morales discusses the economic realities of independent music and the challenges of sustaining a creative career.
it was very important to understand that, you know, Australia doesn't just emerge out of nowhere, which is how I think we seem, we seem to see our history, that we just popped up an island in Asia and, you know, we're not racist, we're not, you know, and it's like, well, no, we're shaped by empire. On this week's episode of Stick Together host James Brennan speaks with author San Tpe about her book, black Convicts, how Slavery Shaped Australia.
when we started doing this, there were about 1.6 million. People in the platform economy at the time. By the time we actually got round to it and started to get into it, that number had increased to 6 million On the Organizing for a Change podcast, Martin and Simon are joined by Mick Ricks to get behind the headlines of a successful organizing campaign like that at Deliveroo. Looking at what tactics are needed to make such work successful, and what success itself looks like.
my very first project was turning pine trees into crude oil, and then that evolved to turning algae into crude oil. And then turning algae into other things like beads, fuels, fibers, and ultimately polymers Ryan Hunt, co-founder of Schoop and Black Swan Footwear talks with the manufacturing report about how his journey to a footwear factory in Meridian, Mississippi began with a bioengineering lab.
Most household workers believe that unless employers saw their job as professional and came to think of the work differently, little headway would be made in transforming the occupation. And in our final segment from The Labor Know Your Rights podcast, domestic technicians and their supporters created a movement to train and professionalize the industry. I'm Chris Garlock, and that's all ahead on this week's edition of the Labor Radio Podcast Weekly.
Our selection of highlights from some of the shows in the Labor Radio Podcast network. for a quick peek at other shows that aired on the network this week. Here's Harold with shows you should know. Thanks, Chris. Social media guy, Harold Phillips Here again, folks, and I've mentioned in the past how much I love the diversity of all the different shows we have in the Labor Radio Podcast network.
Sometimes that diversity means that shows are gonna talk about different topics, but sometimes that diversity stems from the fact that shows are very specific to one union or one industry. Now, you might not think there's any reason to pay attention to that if you're not a member of that union or a member of that industry.
But I'll tell you one of the things you learn when you listen to some of these shows is that we are all workers, and no matter what industry we're a part of, often we're all fighting for the same thing. Let me give you some examples. In this week's shows you should know. For the week of February 23rd, the FedEx Alpa Master Executive Counsel released two fly by night podcasts over the past week.
First Alpa General counsel, Marcus Migliori explains the challenges pilots face in trying to file status quo lawsuits due to the court's interpretation of the railway Labor Act. FedEx's use of Section four point a 0.2 C of pilot's contract and the negative impact that has on pilot's, schedules, and pay and more. Then Kevin Biggins provides details on the upcoming implementation of Telehealth as a permanent benefit for pilots.
The transition from Express Scripts to OptumRx as the new pharmacy benefit manager, the pilot retirement savings plan, and more. Alan released three classes of mail podcasts over the past week. First, he talks with Carlton Pinto, Brian Gutierrez and Terry Vega about challenging an incumbent president who has been a branch officer in NALC branch, 36 for 30 years, and what it's like to carry mail and live in one of the most expensive cities in America.
Then he has an unscripted chat with Michael Zaley. Finally. Michael and he give their reactions to NALC President Brian Renfro Zoom meeting with the next generation carriers and talk about the threat of privatization. Nelly Caraballo discusses her early challenges on the job that ended with her stepping up in her local union and in her community, and eventually joining the Steel Workers Organization of Active Retirees or SOAR on Solidarity Works.
Dion Mays, treasurer of the Electrical Workers Minority Caucus talks about his career path and his experience with the EWMC on say What Operating Engineers. Local three Business Agent Army Morgan talks about how he got involved in the construction trades and helping members in the largest construction trades local in North America on breaking ground. And Michelle does a deep dive into the history of the a Ffl, CIO, Clayton and Mark.
Chat with Cincinnati Labor Council Secretary Treasurer, Brian Griffin, and more on Boiling Point. And of course, you know where to find links to all these shows and over 200 more. That's at Labor radio network.org. And if you wanna be notified when the latest episode of these shows or other labor radio shows and podcasts hit, be sure to follow us on Blue Sky and Facebook and Instagram and Twitter for now at labor radio net. In times like these, it's important to remember that we are all workers.
And we're all fighting for the same thing, so we gotta fight together. Back to you, Chris. Thanks, Harold. Here's the show. Now, back to America's Workforce, here's Ed Flash Ferens. And don't forget, you can check us out on Facebook or follow us on X. Formerly known as Twitter, that would be AWFUnionPodcast, AWFUnionPodcast. All through the month of February, February being black history month. We've been profiling some black leaders and I'll tell you, we got a gem on line number one right now.
Had him on the show before and I said, man, we got to get this guy back more because I like what he's doing on behalf of the American federation of teachers. And joining us right now is fed Ingram, who is the secretary treasure. The A FT aft DO org is the, uh, national website. Fredric, welcome back to America's Workforce. How's my brother doing? I'll tell you, it's, it's been a rough, rough time here, but how are you doing? It has, I'm holding up flash. Thank you so much for having me.
Again, it's always an honor and a privilege, uh, privilege to be here with you, uh, to kind of speak truth to power. So, um, I, but I've been fine. There you go. Good. Let's talk, let's get right into it and talk about Black History Month. Especially the role of the AFT. And I know it goes back Brown versus board of education, public education, so important, still important. And you know, there's been so many attacks and you know that all too well from your time in Florida.
I want to talk about that as well, but the importance of black history month. Let's start right there. Go ahead. Yeah. Well, listen, the importance of Black History Month is critical to this country. Uh, it is one of those things that, uh, I am ultra proud of because I'm African American, obviously. But, uh, in a broader sense, it is the diversity in which makes us strong, right?
And so, uh, I'm always proud to work for the AFT because of our long history, uh, in, uh, African American history and civil rights movement. Uh, you mentioned the Brown versus Board of Education. We wrote, uh, you know, an amicus brief, uh, to Brown versus Board of Education. We had a very good relationship with Dr. Martin Luther King and Bayard Rustin. In fact, we helped finance, uh, you know, vehicles for the March on Washington. And many people don't know the history of ALT.
We kicked out locals, uh, in, uh, the sixties, uh, in the fifties that would not integrate, uh, their locals, which is why we don't have. Uh, a lot of density in the South because as a union, we didn't recover from that. But if you would not, uh, agree to integrate your union, we, we actually kicked you out in the, in the fifties and the sixties. we are speaking with, uh, Fedrick Ingram, who is the secretary treasurer of the American federation of teachers, aft.
org in honor of black history month here. It seems like they're trying to, uh, Eliminate black history in a number of schools. Look what the Santas did in Florida. Kind of like editing out certain parts. Can you, uh, can you get into that? And I don't know if that, again, the power of unions, very vocal on this issue, yourself included on this whole thing, where do we stand on that? That, and it seems like. The president of the United States wants to go in the same direction, right?
Yes. Unfortunate that we continue this, uh, this antic about, uh, what's history and what's not listen, uh, we live in the greatest country in America, in the world, uh, America is the place where. Everybody wants to be, uh, but we have a very checkered past and we should not be ashamed of that past. It should be that history, those facts that make us all stronger so that we don't repeat the same mistakes that we did in the past.
Uh, listen, as educators, we want our students to be as educated as they Possibly can, and then grow up to make the proper decisions given the education that they have. And so if we're not teaching them parts of our history, then we're not giving them the whole truth about themselves so that we can make those better decisions in their future. And so we will continue to fight that. We're not going to make this an issue that is going to isolate people. We want all of our histories to be included.
So that everybody has a voice in this democracy and everybody has a shot at this American dream. AFT Secretary Treasurer, Fed Ingram, joining us on our live line today, special edition here of America's Workforce as we salute black leaders like himself for Black History Month. You're listening to Malmborg Report, where we discuss the intersection of creativity, work, and the systems in which they are shaped. My guest today is a musician, a very prolific musician, Caleb Morales.
How are you doing today? I'm doing great, John. How are you? I'm doing well. I'm doing well. What's been going on in your musical life lately? Yeah, so I have been working on quite a few projects. I'm in two different bands down here in South Florida.
A country band under the tutelage of Gabriel Key, who's a really talented singer songwriter down here in the country music genre, and Neon Knights, a more collaborative project that's a collective of five really great musicians, and we do like pop music. Right now we're running the cover circuit, but we're trying to get into writing some of our own music. And that's all kind of while I'm still releasing two songs or a song every two weeks and I'm just trying to break into the sync game.
I have a cool story on that. Yes, I have a little bit of knowledge about that, but I'm curious to hear more. So, in terms of what you're doing right now, it seems like you're playing a lot live. How many shows a week are you doing? It's usually one to two per weekend. This past month, January has been really heavy. I had seven gigs and February looks a little more normal with about four, maybe five gigs on the, on the agenda.
So I try typically to have one show per week to have, you know, some funds coming in that helps with the production and engineering of the songs. But I try to leave one day every weekend so that I can specifically dedicate it to recording. The months where I'm doing two or three shows in a weekend really leaves very little time for recording Which is really what I love to do. Yeah, that is the balance of being a live act is, you know Definitely working on the originals and recording.
It's very interesting how you've got the five piece band Right now you are doing the cover scene because you know, that's definitely a in demand live opportunity But there is something special about musicians playing live together over time, that even if your repertoire at that time is not necessarily. What you're going to do in the long run, you kind of create this like band synergy. Yeah, and a sound. Um, you know, it's, it's interesting.
I've written so many songs, especially over the last couple of years, and our guitarist and the band we call Beyond Knights, Jared, posed to the, the group chat the other day, Hey, um, you know, we haven't talked about this since Caleb has joined the band. I'm the most recent member, but I'd really like to write some songs together. And it started.
Piquing my interest and I started thinking about well I've got a bunch of different songs and some of them really fit the sound the sound that we've developed on stage It's really interesting because you know, I've I've struggled for so many years to find my sound as an individual singer songwriter But with the band because it's the sum of all your parts It comes a lot more naturally and I've found that really to be a beautiful kind of sense of feeling out and discovery that
Happens a lot more naturally and a lot less deliberately than, you know, carving out your own sound or your own brand the way that, you know, as solo artists, we're often pushed to do in this day and age. Thanks for listening to Malmborg Report. Hey, this is Carmen Rodriguez from El Cafecito. El at Lala. We are proud to be part of the Labor Radio podcast network with more than 200 Labor radio shows and podcasts from across the country and around the world.
The Labor Radio Podcast Network where working people speaks. Find [email protected]. Welcome to Stick Together, the only national radio show that focuses on workers rights, union news and social justice issues. This show was produced on the lands of the Kulin Nation, and we pay our respects to their elders past and present, and recognise the ongoing impacts of colonisation. Stick Together is produced with the support of the Community Broadcasting Foundation in 3CR Studios, Melbourne.
In her book, Black Convicts, How Slavery Shaped Australia, Santilla Chinangiappe uncovers a long history of African Australians traced back to at least 15 convicts who were on board the first fleet that invaded the continent. Santilla talks to us about the legacy of this history. On today's show, I'm lucky enough to be joined in the studio by filmmaker, historian, and author of a great book called Black Convicts, How Slavery Shaped Australia, Santilla Chingaipe.
Thanks so much for coming in the show. Thanks so much for having me, James. I begin with slavery and the slave trade because I wanted to zoom out to kind of see how, how does Australia end up being colonized? What is empire doing that leads to it, um, expanding, um, its territory and colonizing, um, uh, various territories. And it kept pointing back to sugar because Britain became incredibly wealthy because of sugar. And those profits enabled Britain to expand its empire.
So there's that economic, um, reason that leads to, uh, this, this continent being colonized.
But then even in thinking about sugar, you're sort of, it was sort of like, okay, what, what was the What led to sugar being this massive cash crop for Britain and you begin to, and then that then led me to sort of looking at the origins of slavery and the transatlantic slave trade, but then also what emerged because how do you start trafficking, kidnapping, holding Africans in inhumane conditions, subjecting them to some of the worst conditions, um, one of the worst crimes
against humanity, uh, in modern history and exploiting their labor for profit, you know, so cheap labor, you don't have to, you're not paying people, you're not paying these laborers, um, but you are. You are using them to fuel the engine of empire. You are using them to be able to grow this cash crop that is heavily in demand, that is reaping massive profits. Um, And that needs laborers, laborers working in very, very harsh conditions to be able to generate sugar at that scale, right?
And in order to hold these people in that condition, in order to keep people working, um, in these inhumane conditions, you have to arrive at a point where you go, well, we can't quite see them as human beings. We have to see them as something else, right? And so this is when modern racism starts to emerge. And racism has always existed historically, right?
But this idea of, you know, discriminating people based on skin color starts to become a theme around the period of, in which Africans are being enslaved. And what then Lays the foundation for what we've now inherited as modern racism is the institutionalization of racism. Prior to that point, racism is not legislated. You know, but they're the slave laws that I write about in the book that emerge out of Barbados because Barbados was Britain's first not just convict.
Um, um, settlement, but also, uh, it's for a slave colony. So it becomes a very useful case study in understanding what then happens here. Hundreds, a few hundred years later. And so these so called slave laws, which emerged towards the end of the 17th century for the first time introduced language that makes distinction between black and white. Um, and so for me, it was, it was very important to zoom out and say, how do we understand how racism ends up on this continent?
How do we understand how first peoples are treated? Because once you understand what empire is doing everywhere else, because Whether it's in Barbados, whether it's in Virginia, whether it's in other colonies in the West Indies, what the British do is that they arrive, they claim that there's no one there, which they end up doing here as well, many years later.
And if they do find Indigenous people there, they displace, dispossess and carry out acts of genocide, um, and then import labour, right? And we, and we see that model being repeated within every Um, territory that they colonize. And ultimately, um, it comes as no surprise that similar things happen here.
And so it was very important to understand that, you know, Australia doesn't just emerge out of nowhere, which is how I think we seem, we seem to see our history, that we just popped up an island in Asia and, you know, we're not racist, we're not, you know, and it's like, well, no, we're shaped by empire. So thanks so much for coming on and, and sharing, um, some of the stories and, and yeah, I wish that we could chat longer. Thank you so much, James. This has been such a delight.
Hey, this is Judy Ansel from the Heartland Labor Forum. We're a radio that talks back to the boss, and we're proud to be part of the Labor Radio Podcast network. With more than 200 Labor radio shows and podcasts from across the country and around the world. The Labor Radio Podcast Network. We're working people speak. Find [email protected]. Hello and welcome to Organizing for a Change, the podcast for Union builders with me, Simon Ser. I'm me Martin Smith, and we are very.
Pleased indeed to welcome to today's show, our special guest, Mick Ricks. Thank you very much. Delighted to be here. Well, thank you very much for traveling up from the West country to to, to join us, because today it won't surprise you. Given, given the cast listeners that you have before you to, to know that we're gonna be talking about union building in the platform economy, and of course, make.
Because of your track record with the GMB, you are way ahead of the curve, still are ahead of the curve in terms of thinking and action. O on on this subject. Uh, so we're gonna mind you for your experiences, but Martin, perhaps the, the place to start is why is this an issue? What is the issue?
Well, uh, the issue is a, a phrase myself and Mick to, uh, coined, um, five or six years ago that the issue of the platform economy and the, the way that they operate and the way that they deal with their workforce is not just limited to the likes of Uber and delivery in every, um, um, bolt. It's actually spreading into the wider economy in all sorts of logistics employers.
And we take the view now that what we term the Uberization of the labor market is now affecting maybe up to a third of the workforce in terms of self-employed. A, a bogus self-employment, fixed term contracts, precarious work of all sorts of ways, managed by app. So it's an issue for unions strategically and union builders strategically way beyond the issue of those particular companies that myself, Mick, and others have been focused on. when we started doing this, there were about 1.6 million.
People in the platform economy at the time. By the time we actually got round to it and started to get into it, that number had increased to 6 million. So whilst people were shouting boycott on the sidelines, we just knew that wasn't an tenable, uh, tenable situation because actually working people were going into these jobs. They weren't listening to bat boycott. Because they wanted to earn a living. They wanted to make some money, and they needed, it wasn't, it wasn't a desire, it was a need.
It's a necessity. Yeah. It was a necessity to them. So at the end of the day, you either do something about it or you just keep shouting from the sidelines. And I wasn't just prepared to shout from the sidelines anymore. So I mean, how, what was the process like?
Talk us through if you, if, if, if you would, the, the, the process by which that c kernel of concern, that that view that he was a missed opportunity, A best missed opportunity at worst, absolute self-sabotage by not going out and organizing these sectors. How were you able to take. That view and mobilize support around it and eventually achieve a change of approach from from the union? Well, I think there were a number of things. Without really too much finesse.
I just knocked on somebody's door and I said, I want you to listen to me. And while you are arguing about this, we're losing 10,000 members here. We're losing 5,000 members here 'cause these industries are contracted. But look at these that are mushroomed. And the thing was, it wasn't because in some respects, they were joining the likes of the IWGB or one or two other smaller organizations that set up. We found out. By doing the analysis, by talking to people.
Quite a number of people had organized themselves into their own communities around this as well. And that was a big focal point. And I, and I basically, I, I, you know, I was trying to sell, tell some of the leadership at the time, you know, they actually don't need us. They're getting on and doing it themselves, but actually.
Coupled with our resources and our thinking and our industrial analysis and the politics that we have, actually, if we joined forces, this could be a real force for good and let's see how, how we can take it forward. So basically it was trying to persuade people that had the resources, that had the purse strings. So we looked at, you know. How can we build a map? How can we build a map and how can we use that map for different sectors?
And, and you, and you and, and it's, and it's quite difficult in some respects because mapping a workplace where you've got a fixed industrial base, I. It is, you know, it's not that hard to do that, but actually doing it where most of the people are mobile workers and they're not in an office, they're not going to anywhere else. You know, you've got to think, well, which stands are they on? Which industrial estates are they hiding, waiting to get a job?
If there were a, a, a private hire driver, or quite a number of other people, we also found out. The, when you go through this analysis, there are actually lots of other trade unionists come in contact with these people as well. So actually we started to mine information through there Mick, thank you so much. Oh, you're welcome. For joining us, being so candid. Thank you. And entertaining as well. Thanks here and, uh, and Martin. Uh, and I will see you next time on Organizing for a Change.
Bye for now. Goodbye. This is Elise Bryant from the Labor Heritage Power Hour. We're proud to be part of the Labor Radio podcast network with more than 200 Labor radio shows and podcasts from across the country and around the world. The Labor Radio Podcast Network where working people speak. Find [email protected]. I'm Scott Paul, president of the Alliance for American Manufacturing, and this is the Manufacturing Report. So, I have to confess something to you.
I've been on a unsuccessful quest for a stylish pair of black athletic footwear with white soles. You know, you see them all over the place that are made in America. And I literally haven't been able to find one. Until I found this awesome website of a company that's making these shoes in Mississippi. But I tell you what, that's not even the most interesting part of the story. The most interesting part of the story is that they're made out of algae. Yeah. I said the same thing.
How is that possible? Well, to break it all down, I'm lucky to have on the manufacturing report, Ryan Hunt. He's the co founder. Of a company that first invested in uses for algae related to biofuels, then established a footwear provider called Shloop that has worked with Adidas and other companies. And now they've also launched their own retail brand called Black Swan. Uh, I'm excited to hear Ryan's journey from algae to footwear in Mississippi, and I hope you are too.
Hey, Ryan, welcome to the Manufacturing Report podcast. Hello, Scott. Thank you for having me. Of course. I'm really excited to share the story of Schlup. With our listeners and I know, I know there's a lot to tell, but I want to start by getting to know you. And so before you came to sloop with your co founder, Ryan, what, you know, what was your journey? Really for me in college, I was studying physics and bioengineering. I've been really fascinated with sustainability with renewable energy.
And I also happen to have a love for aquariums and fish tanks. And in college, I had, uh, at the end of it, five different saltwater marine aquariums. And these fish tanks have eventually started having algae blooms in them. Clean the tanks up, and then a day later, they were back. And I just got really fascinated with how fast the algae could grow.
And so I did some research online and I found that the U. S. government had spent over 20 years researching algae as a, a biofuel alternative to gasoline. And so that kind of started my interest in sustainable materials and renewable energy. And so I ended up applying to grad school. Uh, at the University of Georgia to pursue a graduate degree in biorefining and biological engineering.
And so my very first project was turning pine trees into crude oil, and then that evolved to turning algae into crude oil. And then turning algae into other things like beads, fuels, fibers, and ultimately polymers. I'm Scott Paul. And until next time together, we can keep it made in America. Hello, I'm Dave, the host of Labor Know Your Rights Podcast. Come on in, grab a seat, and enjoy today's topic of Domestic Technicians and Their Supporters Created.
A movement to train and professionalize the industry by training both the domestic technician and the employers, demanding contracts that established wages, benefits, hours. Work duties and expectations of the work done. Mary McClendon, a household worker in Detroit, was one.
Of the foremost advocates of training and professionalization for domestic workers, McClinton founded and led the Household Workers Organization, HWO, in Detroit, which held its first meeting on September at the office of the Civil Rights Commission. McClinton was most active and passionate member and the force behind the organization. She was born on October 3, 1922, in Andalasia, a small town in Alabama, about an hour and a half south of Montgomery.
She was one of six children and graduated in 1944 from the Covington County Training High School. Both her mother, And grandmother, who was a slave, did domestic work. Like so many other black women, McQueenan began domestic work at a young age when she went to work with her mother. She moved to Detroit in 1955 to join her cousin, who was a doctor.
By the time she became involved in the domestic workers rights movement, Her husband, Benjamin McClendon, passed away and she was a single mother raising her son alone. HWO had no office, limited funds, and operated out of McClendon's home. In 1969, after nearly 40 years as a domestic worker, McClendon started working full time for the W. O. and within a couple of years it had about 150 mostly black and Latino members.
McClendon defined a household technician as a person with college level vocational training for employment in private households. She also counseled domestic workers. To set boundaries on what they would do. McClendon also made a point of educating employers. Most household workers believe that unless employers saw their job as professional and came to think of the work differently, little headway would be made in transforming the occupation. So employer training was part of their agenda.
In 1971, McClendon worked with the Grouse Points Human Relations Council, an organization that included many employers, to publish a pamphlet entitled You and Your Household Help that aimed to teach employers the art of finding good help and maintaining a good business relationship.
It suggested paying players 15 a day plus car fare and live in employees 75 a week with all meals, a pleasant private room and bath, and two days off a week, paid sick leave after three months of employment, paid vacations, overtime pay, paid national holidays, and social security. A clear definition of household responsibilities, regular breaks, a half hour lunch plus two, 15 minute breaks for an eight hour day, and two weeks termination notice should all be considered standard.
The employee should be referred to as housekeeper, not maid, as a woman, not a girl, and never should be referred to as part of the family. The master servant attitude is out of date. If you would like to contact us, we have various ways to do so in our show notes, along with contact information for the National League of Justice and Security Professionals. Thank you for listening. And that's a wrap for this week's edition of the Labor Radio Podcast Weekly.
A roundup of some of the programs aired over the last week on more than 200 Labor Radio and podcast shows. They're all part of the Labor Radio Podcast Network shows that focus on working people's issues and concerns. We've got links to all the network shows, labor Radio network.org. You can also find them, use the hashtag Labor Radio Pod on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram. Don't forget. Let us know what you think of the show. Drop us note [email protected].
You can be part of the network. You do not even need a microphone. Labor Radio Podcast Network T-shirts are available. They're union made. You'll find 'em in all sizes and to [email protected]. This podcast is recorded under a SAG after a collective bargaining agreement. The Labor Radio Podcast Weekly was edited this week by Captain Swing. I produced the show and our social media guru always and forever is Mr. Harold Phillips.
For the Labor Radio Podcast Weekly, this has been Chris Carlock. Stay active and stay tuned to your local Labor Radio podcast show. We will see you next week.