The Voice of Oregon's Workers

On this episode of The Voice of Oregon’s Workers we talk with policy experts about Senate Bill 592, the Keep Oregon Workers Safe Act. This legislation is vitally important to improving workplace safety in Oregon, and as you’ll hear on the episode will increase penalties for employers who don’t address unsafe working conditions as well as provide other critical improvements to workplace safety regulations. Advocates from PCUN - Oregon’s farmworkers union, Oregon AFSCME, and the Ore...

On this month’s episode of The Voice of Oregon’s Workers we bring you a captivating panel discussion from the 2022 Oregon AFL-CIO convention titled The Clean Energy Future MUST Be Union Made. The panelists on this episode are Ranfis Villatoro from the Blue Green Alliance, Rick Levy, President of the Texas AFL-CIO, Carol Zabin from the UC Berkeley Labor Center and Micah Mitrosky from the IBEW. In Oregon and across the country, we recognize that the clean energy future is upon us and as u...

Join us on this month’s episode of The Voice of Oregon’s Workers as we talk local politics with Lane County Commissioner Laurie Trieger, candidate for County Commission Dawn Lesley, and head of the Lane County Central Labor Chapter Jeff McGillivray! Local politics, especially at the county level, has tremendous impacts on the lives of working people in Oregon. With the midterm elections just around the corner, it’s important that voters understand why voting all the way down the ballot ...

On this month’s episode of The Voice of Oregon’s Workers we talked with Melissa Busch, a registered nurse, union member, and candidate for the Oregon Senate in Senate District 16. Melissa is running to represent communities across the North Coast and the Lower Columbia River areas, including Scappoose, Astoria, Seaside, Tillamook and Warren where she lives with her family. She’s a graduate of the Oregon Labor Candidate School, a unique program which provides union members with the skill...

On this month’s episode of The Voice of Oregon’s Workers we sat down with Christina Stephenson, the Oregon Labor endorsed candidate for Oregon’s Labor Commissioner! A working mom and longtime advocate for workers’ rights, Christina Stephenson advanced to the general election in November following a successful campaign in the May 2022 primary election. She’ll need the support of Oregon’s Labor Movement and working people across the state to win her election, and that’s exactly wha...

Joining us for this month’s podcast is State Representative Dacia Grayber, a union firefighter who represents House District 35 and who was named the 2020-2021 Oregon AFL-CIO Freshman of the Year for her leadership and advocacy on behalf of Oregon’s workers in the legislature. Links to items discussed in this episode:Oregon Labor Candidate SchoolEmerge Oregon

On this month’s episode of The Voice of Oregon’s Workers we talk with the Oregon AFL-CIO Political and Legislative team about the 2022 Oregon Legislature. Learn about Oregon Labor’s priorities, how the upcoming election will impact the session, and what it takes for an idea to become a law in Oregon. The Oregon Labor Movement is ready to advocate for legislation that builds a fair and just economy for all workers in Oregon during the 2022 legislative session. We know that as the pa...

Television and video productions create the stories that we all love, from Hollywood blockbusters to runaway cult classic television shows. The wave of strikes and strike authorizations now known as Striketober was significantly propelled this month by IATSE members across the country and in Oregon demanding several on and off-set basics: Fair wages and rest breaks to name a few. While their contract was settled with a recent tentative agreement at the bargaining table, Striketobe...

After three weeks on the picket line, BCTGM Local 364 President Jesus Martinez remains committed and set to get a fair contract with his members at the Nabisco factory in Portland. With solidarity in actions held at Nabisco factories and distribution centers nationwide, as well as international actions, Local 364 is making Oregon Labor history by holding the line. Listen to learn how you can help support Local 364 and how this strike is inspiring the next generation of workers to...

Our latest podcast dives into two inspiring union organizing campaigns in Oregon:The Oregon Interpreters in Action, who voted yes to join Oregon AFSCME and were recognized by the State of Oregon on April 23 and the staff of our own Oregon State Legislature who voted yes to join IBEW Local 89 a month later on May 28 and soon made national headlines as the first state legislative staff union in the country. These wins are part of a wave in our country: Workers are gaining long overdu...