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Changing Labor Markets Project

Overview

The American middle class has been under stress for decades.  In just the last several years, research has confirmed that intergenerational economic mobility is dramatically declining, income inequality is increasing with median wages stuck in decades of stagnation while the growth of GDP and the wages of at the top of the income scale accelerate, and the overall wealth of the American middle class is being eclipsed by another country for the first time.  The Changing Labor Markets Project of the LWP examines the root of this downward pressure on labor standards, including competition from lower paid workers overseas, changes in business models – the so-called fissuring of work relationships, the decline of union density and the impact of technological change.   In addition, the project explores why the mechanisms that historically have driven higher labor standards are failing, including the role of the labor movement, federal legislation and competition in the labor markets.  Finally, the Project undertakes activities designed to strive for solutions to the challenges posed by these changes.  

Additional Info? Bullets/Overview?

We can expand here as appropriate to fit the project activities + key content

  1. Engaging and learning from field leaders: What factors led to the emergence of independent educators’ movements and how can unions support those efforts? Looking ahead, what opportunities and challenges are emerging and how can unions and educators’ movements navigate them?
  2. Piloting efforts to collectively address the unmet needs of educators: How can organizers best engage, support, and connect educators? How will educators’ needs and priorities evolve?
  3. Understanding what works: What strategies and practices are most powerful in authentically engaging educators?
  4. Disseminating learnings: How can we share what we’ve learned to inform the future of worker organizations?