Solidarity Works

More than a hundred years ago, an immigrant worker named Joe Hill was traveling across the United States, working wherever he could find a job and writing songs along the way. He had a particular talent for taking what workers already knew—low wages, bad bosses, broken promises, company towns—and turning it into songs people could sing together.

Then, in 1915, the state of Utah executed Joe Hill for murder.

In today's episode, we break down the life, death, and legacy of the early 20th-century Swedish immigrant and songwriter who still has something to say to working people today.

Music in today's episode is by: Jonny Miller Jr. ("Joe Hill"), Vlad Annenkov ("Whispering Trails"), Sean Ferree ("The Third Act"), and Pete Seeger ("The Preacher and the Slave").

More than 2,000 feet beneath the surface in southeastern New Mexico is the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant, or WIPP — a facility designed to safely dispose of certain radioactive waste deep underground. For two USW members, it's been home for decades.

Dora Ledbetter has worked at WIPP since 2008, while Dora Lopez has been there since 1998. Together, they've spent nearly three decades at the site, learning the job, looking out for their coworkers, and building a life in a workplace where safety is an entire culture.

Today, we're talking about what it's really like to work 2,150 feet underground, what nearly three decades at WIPP can teach you about safety and solidarity, and why these two Steelworkers are still looking toward the future.

Heat is the leading cause of weather-related workplace deaths—and it's preventable. Yet workers still don't have a federal heat safety standard.

In this episode of Solidarity Works, USW Health, Safety and Environment Director Steve Sallman explains what's at stake, why the fight for heat protections matters, and what workers can do to protect themselves on the job.

Music in this episode is by BlueDot Sessions.

For years, workers were told they had to choose between good union jobs and a healthy planet.

Twenty years ago, the BlueGreen Alliance helped prove that wasn't true.

In the latest episode of Solidarity Works, we sit down with Executive Director Jason Walsh to discuss the Alliance's origins, its evolution over two decades, and why labor and environmental advocates must continue working together to build a clean economy that creates and sustains good union jobs.

Listen now and learn why the fight for workers and the fight for a sustainable future are the same fight.

Music in this episode is by Blue Dot Sessions.

In 1941, a young priest in Spain helped spark a movement that would transform worker ownership forever. Today, that spirit is crossing the Atlantic.

In our latest episode, we explore the emerging "Union Co-op" model—a powerful hybrid that combines the democratic ownership of a cooperative with the protective strength of a union.

We speak with Ellen Vera, Director of Co-Op Cincy, about the "how-to" of worker ownership: how to transition an existing business, how to start a new venture from scratch, and the common mistakes to avoid. We also talk with Rob Witherall of the United Steelworkers about how the USW is partnering with cooperatives to provide essential benefits like healthcare and ensure that the wealth of our communities stays in the hands of the workers.

Join us as we discuss why the future of the American labor movement might just be owned by the people who do the work.

Music in this episode is by: Makaih Beats and Ethos

Every day, millions of workers around the world go to work knowing their job is hard. But no one should go to work knowing it might slowly take their breath away.

Across the United States and Canada, USW members are on the front lines of the fight against silica dust exposure, pushing for stronger protections, enforcement of safety rules, and justice for workers who've already been harmed.

We're talking with several activists who know this fight firsthand: Marshal Cummings, a USW safety leader working in the mining industry in Wyoming, and Sean Staddon, a compensation officer and member of USW Local 6500 in Sudbury, Canada.

Their stories highlight why this fight is global and why the labor movement must keep pushing.

Music in today's episode is by Ketsa.

From the Twin Cities to Georgia, ICE enforcement has hit working-class communities hard. In the latest episode of Solidarity Works, two labor leaders—Minnesota USW staff representative Justin Recla and USW Civil and Human Rights Director Alex Perkins—share how they've responded, what tools are available to every local, and why this fight belongs to all of us.

Music in today's episode by Ketsa and Lobo Loco.

Pete Seeger treated music as a communal act—a circle, not a spotlight.

In our newest episode, we explore how Pete braided together labor organizing, civil rights, environmental justice, and peace through song. From congressional blacklisting to union halls and river clean-ups, his legacy isn't frozen in time—it's instructional.

Thank you to the Seeger family for sharing Pete's music with us for this episode.

Other music by: Tolset Music and Black Trend Music.

Artificial intelligence is changing how we work, how we communicate, and how we live — but who's making sure workers aren't left behind?

In the latest episode of Solidarity Works, we sit down with Ed Wytkind, Interim Executive Director of the AFL-CIO Technology Institute, to talk about the federation's new Workers First Initiative on AI.

The initiative lays out a bold plan to make sure technology serves people — not the other way around — by putting worker voices at the center of innovation, bargaining, and public policy.

From protecting jobs and privacy to creating new opportunities for skill building and organizing, we explore what a fair and democratic AI future could look like when labor leads the way.

To learn more about the Workers First Initiative on AI, visit aflciotechinstitute.org.

Music in today's episode is by Ketsa.

In 1909, a 23-year-old immigrant named Clara Lemlich stood up in New York's Cooper Union and said, "I have no more patience for talk—I move that we go on a general strike."

The next morning, 20,000 garment workers—mostly young immigrant women—walked off the job.

Their courage changed labor history forever.

Tune into our latest episode to hear how their fight reshaped workers' rights for generations.

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Music from today's episode is by: Tar Sahno and Semion Krivenko-Adamo

Sources:

Jewish Women's Archive, "Uprising of 20,000 (1909)."

Global Nonviolent Action Database (Swarthmore College), "Triangle Shirtwaist Factory women strike, win better wages and hours, New York, 1909."

AFL-CIO, "Triangle Shirtwaist Fire."

PBS American Experience, "Clara Lemlich and the Uprising of the 20,000."