As the coronavirus pandemic derails the nation’s economy, workers bearing the brunt of the crisis are banding together in levels not seen in a generation, striking and holding sickouts at meat processing plants, fast-food restaurants and warehouses to demand better protection and safer working conditions.
For its part, organized labor, which has seen its ranks decline in the U.S. for years, is suddenly and visibly at the helm of a multifront battle — trying to preserve jobs amid the worst economic contraction in years, while defending workers deemed “essential” but being given inadequate protection as the virus spreads.
At the same time, many workers who may have never contemplated union membership or were ineligible have begun organizing to demand better treatment and safer working conditions, prompting strikes across the country.