Left politics and labor / Labor Notes
Labor Notes
Movement documentsWorker powerLabor actionactive
The archive's reading. The archive reads Labor Notes as an organ independent of the union executives it criticizes, of the kind #1725 finds holding critique: a publication, a network and a conference through which a rank-and-file position keeps being stated and can be taken up later. In its own terms it exists to 'put the movement back in the labor movement' and promotes 'unions that are run by their members'.
| Kind | a media and organizing project: monthly magazine, website, books, conferences and workshops, and a network of rank-and-file members, local union leaders and labor activists |
|---|---|
| Operator | Labor Notes; the site footer names the Labor Education and Research Project as copyright holder |
| Unit of record | an article in the magazine or on the website; also a book or pamphlet, a conference, a Troublemakers School |
| What it records | union and workplace struggles from the side of union activists and rank-and-file members: organizing tactics, contract campaigns, strikes, fights over union democracy, and workers' struggles abroad, since 1979 |
| Whose record it keeps | the voice of union activists and rank-and-file members, including their critique of union leaderships |
| Who holds it | Labor Notes as an independent publication, supported by subscriptions, book sales and tax-deductible donations; reprints welcome with credit to author and Labor Notes |
| The losing side | kept as its sources show: an independent publication that states it is 'free to include the voices who say we could be doing better', whose about page criticizes union leaders ('doing a poor job of navigating us through the crisis'), and whose current stories report members contesting their own locals ('Members Alarmed by End-Run around Democracy at Buffalo Health Care Local'; 'UFCW Members Protect Local Election After Sham Merger Attempt'). Whether it keeps the record of positions after they lose is not shown in the saved pages |
| Method | reporting and writing by staff and contributing writers (writer guidelines, unread); books and pamphlets; biennial national conferences; Troublemakers Schools organized with local unions and community groups |
| Coverage | geography: United States mainly, with workers' struggles abroad; about a tenth of conference attendees from other countries; period: 1979 to the present |
| Count | value: not stated as a count of articles or issues; it states tens of thousands of strategy manuals sold and hundreds of monthly donors; as_of: 2026-10-31 |
| Holdings | the monthly magazine Labor Notes (subscription $30 for 11 issues); articles online; books and pamphlets including A Troublemaker's Handbook 2, Democracy Is Power, Secrets of a Successful Organizer and How to Jump-Start Your Union; Robert M. Schwartz's Work Rights Press books; a national conference every two years; a podcast and the Troublemakers Blog; an Archives link in the footer (unread) |
| Stated limits | none stated in the saved pages |
| Data access | articles free online; magazine by subscription; books in the store; an archives section (unread) |
| Licence | not stated as a licence; the reprint policy asks credit to the author and Labor Notes and, online, a link to the original story |
| Lifecycle | state: active; detail: publishing since 1979; stories dated to 29 October 2026 on the home page; the about page still announces the June 12-14, 2026 Chicago conference as 'next', so that page is not current; the footer copyright reads 2005-2023 |
| Founded | 1979 |
What its record can settle
- how union activists and rank-and-file members describe a named campaign, strike or fight over union democracy
- what tactics and strategies the rank-and-file current around Labor Notes recommends
What it cannot settle
- counts of strikes, members or campaigns
- the account given by the union leaderships it criticizes, except as its stories report them
- what became of a dissenting position after it lost (not shown in the saved pages)
Kept apart
- NOT a union: a media and organizing project and network
- NOT a neutral record of labor: it states a position for member-run unions and against business-as-usual leadership
- NOT a strike dataset
Evidence
- self_description (the resource's own statement):
Labor Notes is a media and organizing project that has been the voice of union activists who want to put the movement back in the labor movement since 1979.
https://labornotes.org/about · read 2026-10-31 · http 200 · sha256 321d1dc3289118f7… - what_we_promote (the resource's own statement):
Through our magazine, website, books, conferences, and workshops, we promote organizing, aggressive strategies to take on employers, labor-community solidarity, and unions that are run by their members.
https://labornotes.org/about · read 2026-10-31 · http 200 · sha256 321d1dc3289118f7… - network (the resource's own statement):
Labor Notes is also a network of rank-and-file members, local union leaders, and labor activists who know the labor movement is worth fighting for.
https://labornotes.org/about · read 2026-10-31 · http 200 · sha256 321d1dc3289118f7… - critique_leaders (the resource's own statement):
For the most part, our leaders are doing a poor job of navigating us through the crisis.
https://labornotes.org/about · read 2026-10-31 · http 200 · sha256 321d1dc3289118f7… - critique_unions (the resource's own statement):
Some can’t get beyond business-as-usual; others see the need to organize by the millions, but don't believe that workers themselves need to have a say in their unions.
https://labornotes.org/about · read 2026-10-31 · http 200 · sha256 321d1dc3289118f7… - years (the resource's own statement):
With 45 years of movement building behind us
https://labornotes.org/about · read 2026-10-31 · http 200 · sha256 321d1dc3289118f7… - magazine (the resource's own statement):
Labor Notes is best known for our monthly magazine of the same name.
https://labornotes.org/about · read 2026-10-31 · http 200 · sha256 321d1dc3289118f7… - independent (the resource's own statement):
And as an independent publication, we’re free to include the voices who say we could be doing better—and tell how.
https://labornotes.org/about · read 2026-10-31 · http 200 · sha256 321d1dc3289118f7… - workers_view (the resource's own statement):
We report news about workers that the mainstream media doesn't find worth printing—from workers’ point of view.
https://labornotes.org/about · read 2026-10-31 · http 200 · sha256 321d1dc3289118f7… - abroad (the resource's own statement):
You'll read sometimes shocking stories of workers’ struggles abroad, and inspiring stories of solidarity.
https://labornotes.org/about · read 2026-10-31 · http 200 · sha256 321d1dc3289118f7… - online (the resource's own statement):
Articles are available online, along with subscription information .
https://labornotes.org/about · read 2026-10-31 · http 200 · sha256 321d1dc3289118f7… - books (the resource's own statement):
They include best-sellers like A Troublemaker's Handbook 2 and Democracy Is Power , as well as our newest books Secrets of a Successful Organizer and How to Jump-Start Your Union: Lessons from the Chicago Teachers .
https://labornotes.org/about · read 2026-10-31 · http 200 · sha256 321d1dc3289118f7… - manuals_sold (the resource's own statement):
Over the years we’ve sold tens of thousands of these strategy manuals
https://labornotes.org/about · read 2026-10-31 · http 200 · sha256 321d1dc3289118f7… - work_rights_press (the resource's own statement):
We are now also the publisher of Robert M. Schwartz’s Work Rights Press books
https://labornotes.org/about · read 2026-10-31 · http 200 · sha256 321d1dc3289118f7… - conference (the resource's own statement):
Every two years Labor Notes holds a national conference that attracts thousands of activists, about a tenth of them from other countries.
https://labornotes.org/about · read 2026-10-31 · http 200 · sha256 321d1dc3289118f7… - conference_next (the resource's own statement):
Our next conference is scheduled to take place from June 12-14, 2026, in Chicago, Illinois.
https://labornotes.org/about · read 2026-10-31 · http 200 · sha256 321d1dc3289118f7… - schools (the resource's own statement):
Labor Notes works with local unions and community groups to organize Troublemakers Schools
https://labornotes.org/about · read 2026-10-31 · http 200 · sha256 321d1dc3289118f7… - donors (the resource's own statement):
Hundreds of Labor Notes supporters have signed up as monthly donors.
https://labornotes.org/about · read 2026-10-31 · http 200 · sha256 321d1dc3289118f7… - donation (the resource's own statement):
Please help us out with a tax-deductible donation !
https://labornotes.org/about · read 2026-10-31 · http 200 · sha256 321d1dc3289118f7… - reprint (the resource's own statement):
We are always happy to see Labor Notes stories reprinted. We just ask that you credit both the author and Labor Notes, and if the reprint will be online, include a link to the original story on our site.
https://labornotes.org/about · read 2026-10-31 · http 200 · sha256 321d1dc3289118f7… - subscription (the resource's own statement):
Labor news from labor's point of view. $30 for 11 issues.
https://labornotes.org/about · read 2026-10-31 · http 200 · sha256 321d1dc3289118f7… - story_democracy (the resource's own statement):
Members Alarmed by End-Run around Democracy at Buffalo Health Care Local
https://labornotes.org/ · read 2026-10-31 · http 200 · sha256 ccc7ce712d6e262a… - story_democracy_date (the resource's own statement):
October 29, 2026 / Sarah Hughes
https://labornotes.org/ · read 2026-10-31 · http 200 · sha256 ccc7ce712d6e262a… - story_ufcw (the resource's own statement):
UFCW Members Protect Local Election After Sham Merger Attempt
https://labornotes.org/ · read 2026-10-31 · http 200 · sha256 ccc7ce712d6e262a… - story_strike (the resource's own statement):
State Workers Strike Across California
https://labornotes.org/ · read 2026-10-31 · http 200 · sha256 ccc7ce712d6e262a… - operator (the resource's own statement):
Labor Education and Research Project © 2005-2023.
https://labornotes.org/ · read 2026-10-31 · http 200 · sha256 ccc7ce712d6e262a…
Unchecked
the Archives section (footer link); the staff and board page; the writer guidelines; the articles themselves; the Resources and Podcast pages
Cite: Lee Sharks, ed. "Labor Notes." Mary Lee Labor meta-aggregator: left politics and labor, maryleelabor.org, compiled 2026-10-31. https://www.maryleelabor.org/aggregators/labor-notes