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General Strike

What Would A General Strike In The US Actually Look Like?

April 11, 2025 Jeremy Brecher, Waging Nonviolence. , , ,
Something is in the air: A perception that American democracy and livable conditions for working people may only be saved by the kind of large-scale nonviolent direct action variously called “general strikes,” “political strikes,” or, as I will refer to all of them, “social strikes.” Calls for mass disruptive action are coming from unlikely places, like Anthony Romero, executive director of the ACLU, an organization normally associated with legal action through the courts. When Romero was asked in a recent interview what would happen if the Trump administration systematically defied court orders, he replied, “Then we’ve got to take to the streets in a different way. We’ve got to shut down this country.”

Strike Highlights Palestinian Frustrations With ‘Symbolic’ Protest

April 10, 2025 Qassam Muaddi, Mondoweiss. , , , ,
Palestinians across the West Bank observed a general strike on Monday protesting the renewed Israeli genocide in Gaza. The strike was observed in all West Bank cities and towns and joined by all civil society bodies. The Palestinian Teachers’ Union announced the halt of all classes, while the Palestinian Bar Association announced that all lawyers and judges were called to abstain from attending court hearings. The “national and Islamic forces,” the coalition of all Palestinian political parties, also called for the general strike. It was observed by all of Palestinian society in the West Bank, including businesses and public transportation.

Calls For Resignation Of Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol Grow

December 5, 2024 People's Dispatch. , , , , , , ,
Trade unions, political parties, and civil society organizations in South Korea have called for the resignation of President Yoon Suk Yeol following his attempt to impose martial law. Opposition parties, including the Democratic Party and the Rebuilding Korea Party, have sponsored a motion in the parliament to impeach Yoon. Thousands participated in a candlelight vigil on Wednesday to demand the same. The Korean Confederation of Trade Unions (KCTU), the largest trade union confederation in the country, announced that they will stage a general strike until President Yoon steps down.

General Strike Brings Greece To A Standstill

November 22, 2024 Ana Vračar, People's Dispatch. , , , ,
Greece was brought to a halt on Wednesday, November 20, as a 24-hour general strike brought workers from across sectors—including education, logistics, construction, public transportation, and health—to the streets of dozens of cities. The mass mobilization, which began early in the morning, followed a media strike on Tuesday that included both public and private outlets. The striking workers demanded the repeal of anti-worker laws, including measures that extended working hours, and called for wage restoration. Over the past decade, successive governments, most recently led by Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis, have implemented austerity policies under pressure from the European Union and international financial institutions.

Workers In Greece Mobilize Against Austerity

October 27, 2024 Ana Vračar, People's Dispatch. , , , , ,
Strikes swept through Greece in the week of October 21 as workers protested austerity measures imposed by Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis’ government. Workers demanded wage increases, strengthened collective agreements, and the reversal of public service reforms, especially in healthcare and education. Actions across sectors—including in hospitality, metalwork, transport, logistics, and education—built momentum for the November 20 general strike, anticipated to demonstrate the public’s frustration over deteriorating work and living conditions. Throughout the strikes, workers appealed to the community to support them.

The Call Is Out For Mass, Simultaneous Strikes In 4 Years

October 16, 2024 Sarah Lazare, Workday Magazine. , , , , , , ,
There is a credible call for a general strike in the United States in four years. The call first came from the United Auto Workers after its fall 2023 stand-up strike, in which the union took on the Big Three carmakers simultaneously in rolling, surprise work stoppages. All three contracts that emerged are slated to expire on the same day: May 1, 2028, International Workers’ Day. This is not the first time UAW has aligned the Big Three contracts, but what the union did next is remarkable. It put out a challenge to the US labor movement: “We invite unions around the country to align your contract expirations with our own so that together we can begin to flex our collective muscles,” UAW announced on October 29, 2023.

Spain Goes On General Strike Against Genocide In Gaza

September 30, 2024 John McAulay, Palestine Chronicle. , , , , ,
Something did not seem right at the Raval campus of Barcelona University on Friday, September 27. Early on a fresh morning, some thirty students and teachers lingered in the open air, outside the main building, seemingly unwilling to go inside. Classes were set to start soon, but they had no alternative but to stay where they were. “I don’t think we’ll be teaching today”, a professor mentioned to his colleagues. The reason? A dozen activists completely blocked the access, aided by two dumpsters and a plastic fence, and are not allowing anyone in. Dressed from head to toe in black to prevent being recognized, one of them hid their face behind a keffiyeh.

May Day 2028 Could Transform The Labor Movement And The World

May 1, 2024 Shawn Fain, In These Times. , , , , , ,
Members of the United Auto Workers courageously fought corporate greed at Ford, General Motors and Stellantis last fall during the historic six-week Stand-Up Strike. Because of their determination and commitment, we won record contracts with the Big Three automakers. After decades of falling behind, UAW autoworkers are finally moving forward again. We made a lot of ambitious demands at the bargaining table. One in particular may not have gotten the same attention as the reinstatement of cost-of-living adjustments or the reopening of the Stellantis assembly plant in Belvidere, Ill. — but it could also prove transformational: We aligned our contracts to expire at midnight on April 30, 2028.

Argentine Unions Call Another General Strike For May 9

April 15, 2024 ARG Medios, People's Dispatch. , , ,
The General Confederation of Labor (CGT) has called for general strike on Thursday May 9. The general strike is the second since Milei took office in December 2023. The measure taken by the CGT is a response to a meeting held a few days prior at the Casa Rosada, during the first official meeting with government officials. In response to their apathy in light of the dire economic, social and political context, the union called for a new measure of force to be unleashed as soon as possible. In the same way as during the first general strike in January, the CGT is calling for a large mobilization, and will be accompanied by other unions, such as the Argentine Workers’ Central Union, and the Argentine Workers’ Central Union (Autonomous).

Argentinian Working People Fight Milei Government With A General Strike

February 28, 2024 Clara Marticorena and Julia Soul, Labor Notes. , , ,
More than 1.5 million people took part in a general strike in Argentina on January 24 against a new president and his aggressive anti-union “reforms.” Self-described “liberal-libertarian” Javier Milei, who won the November 22 presidential elections, is an economist who became popular as a panelist on a TV show. He advocated for ending the “privileges” of the “casta”—defined as corrupt politicians and social and union leaders taking advantage of “good people.” With a new party, Freedom Advances (La Libertad Avanza), Milei won the votes of a range of people, from working-class people disappointed and angry with the incumbent Peronist government to the middle and ruling classes opposed to state intervention in the economy and income distribution.

‘The Country Is Not For Sale’: General Strike In Argentina Against Milei

January 25, 2024 Orinoco Tribune. , , ,
Thousands of people marched this Wednesday in Argentina to join the national strike called by the main unions in repudiation of the policies implemented by President Javier Milei. “The country is not for sale,” “No to the adjustment,” and “No to the labor reform,” were some of the main slogans of the demonstration that filled the Plaza del Congreso in the city of Buenos Aires. Hundreds of thousands of demonstrators took part in the massive general strike against Milei and his “libertarian” policies. Milei took office on December 10. Some outlets, such as Left Voice and Progressive International, reported that over a million demonstrators took to the streets.

Milei Threatens Argentina’s Public Sector Workers

January 22, 2024 Ana Perdigón, Orinoco Tribune. , , , ,
The president of Argentina, Javier Milei, lashed out at Argentina’s public sector workers, threatening to deduct their salary if they join the upcoming national strike that was called by the General Confederation of Workers (CGT) for January 24. In a statement to the press, presidential spokesperson Manuel Adorni announced that the government made the decision to deduct the working day from public sector workers who go on strike. “The salary is a consideration and whoever does not work, it is reasonable that he/she does not get paid,” Adorni said. He further stated that in his opinion there is no reason for the strike. He even described as “childish” the reasons given by the groups of workers for adopting the measure in protest.

Argentina’s Largest Trade Union Announces General Strike

January 1, 2024 Orinoco Tribune. , , , , ,
The General Confederation of Labor (CGT), Argentina’s largest labor union, has called for a general strike and a march to the Congress on January 24, 2024 to protest against President Javier Milei’s Decree of Necessity and Urgency and the “Omnibus Bill” that grants absolute powers to the far-right president to govern for two years bypassing the Congress. On Thursday, December 28, the CGT, which is the common platform for the largest labor unions of Argentina, announced the general strike against Milei’s neoliberal policies which “intend to drown the country in economic and political instability.”

A General Strike In 2028 Is A Uniquely Plausible Dream

November 12, 2023 Hamilton Nolan, In These Times. , , , ,
The labor movement is a capricious friend — it hands out heartbreak as much as it hands out joy. But every once in a while, it is able to wave a triumphant flag and give us all a glimmer of what its potential could truly be. The recently concluded UAW strike offered just such a moment. It wasn’t just the contract agreements themselves, which were a material success, but also the union’s public call for movement-wide coordination to build the possibility of mass action around the May 1, 2028 expiration of the next auto contracts. ​“We invite unions around the country to align your contract expirations with our own so that together we can begin to flex our collective muscles,” the UAW declared on October 29.

This Is How The Next Great American General Strike Happens

September 1, 2023 Joe Maniscalco, Work-Bites. , , ,
The next great general strike to captivate the United States will not be organized — it’ll be organic. And it could be the most transformative general strike this country has ever seen. Right now, the head of the Transport Workers Union of America is threatening to shut down the second-largest commuter railroad in the nation; striking SAG-AFTRA and WGA members want to break up Hollywood; and militants within the UAW are still keen on bringing the Big Three automakers to their knees. Add to that mix, increasingly-fed up Starbucks baristas and Amazon warehouse workers unable to organize or get a union contract.
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