The Boston Labor Conference took place at the North Atlantic States Regional Council of Carpenters (NASRCC) headquarters in Dorchester, MA, on March 30th. The event was part of the nationwide Labor Spring 2024 and had a wealth of presenters who brought to light the importance of worker solidarity that is central to unions and the cooperative business movement. The opening speakers were Steve Striffler from the Labor Resource Center at UMass Boston, and Chrissy Lynch, President of the Massachusetts AFL-CIO. Chrissy, in cooperative fashion, emphasized building consensus as much as possible with the 800 local unions that are part of the Massachusetts AFL-CIO. Chrissy also emphasized “being on the ground” in solidarity with those fighting for worker rights. This echoes a theme from last year’s worker power conference where Amazon union leader Chris Smalls said to “meet workers where they’re at.” 

But division is a tactic for control over any organized group. Chrissy brought up tactics for dividing labor with technology. Surveillance of workers is a growing problem, as is avoiding obligations by mis-classifying workers. Challenging too is organizing when there is no physical place of employment. Chrissy’s influence will grow at the state level as a member of Governor’s Healy’s AI Strategic Task Force for Massachusetts.

In the Session “Unions + Community = Power” communities shared impressive organizing results in New Bedford, Brookline, and Andover. On the front lines for defending students, education administration has developed a culture of professionalism and profit generation mentioned by Jessica Wender-Shudow that opposes the needs of schools and communities. Gino Canella from Emerson College presented on multi-union newspaper unionizing for the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.

The session “Common Good for the Common Good” revealed the overlap of worker-owned businesses and unions. Worker-owner Kevin O’Brien’s presentation integrated the history of the garment industry with Knights of Labor and that organization’s once far-reaching influence across America. Worx Printing where Kevin works in Worcester is a unionized worker-owned business. All of this session’s panelists made clear that social issues are labor issues. James Razsa described housing as a challenge for worker-owners at Democracy Brewing – also an urgent issue for James Cordero of the Boston Teachers Union. Solutions being fought for are rent control and foreclosure prevention.

James Razsa, also mentioned other necessities for workers at Democracy Brewing such as providing support to learn English. Politically, Lew Finfer described the realities of Massachusetts political leadership. Our state might not be the progressive national leader it is presumed to be. But political action is being taken by the Coalition for Worker Ownership and Power (COWOP). Sarah Assefa from COWOP was a panelist and promoted important legislative work that that coalition is working on to fund state programs for employee ownership.

Broad industrial topics were discussed in the session, “Industrial Policy and Labor Power.” These topics may sound removed from the average person, but when Sean Sweeney from Trade Unions for Energy Democracy emphasized how the profit motive defeats renewable energy progress, we all need to take notice. Likewise, labor practices for something as central to our lives as computer chip manufacturing was brought into the discussion with alarming clarity by Anibel Ferus-Comelo from the UC Berkeley Labor Center. Maddock Thomas from Brown University discussed the complicated ownership structures of railroads.

The final panel of the day included input from leaders in worker solidarity. Rakim Brooks, the President of Alliance for Justice, took a legal perspective and questioned who is being helped by the courts in America. Historian Lane Windham from Georgetown University emphasized the importance of universal social benefits.

There are varying approaches to raise up workers in Massachusetts and the US. We all need workers to succeed. If they don’t, then where is the wealth going? This blog has covered historical implementation of wealth distribution, two examples being: the generosity of an industrial leader, or a charter for the common good. Cooperatively owned businesses and unions are uniting people in service for a better society. Thanks to the Boston Labor Conference, worker-owners are even more united with union ideals.