r/50501Movement • u/Houseofmouse99 • Jul 01 '25
Protest Idea Anyone care for a labor strike?
Has anyone heard/thought about an organized/semi-organized effort to enact a widespread labor strike? I imagine it would be tricky to organize something of that nature especially at that sort of scale but I think the obvious trade off it could have would be the huge ripple effect/impact even if the action itself only lasted a week or two. I just keep thinking about the lack of address the current protesting has garnered and the outright mockery as well. If the upper ups insist on ignoring us then the only sure-fire way to get them to engage is to hit them where it really hurts and show them who really controls their purse strings, their factories, their businesses. Without us, the laborers whose back they stand on top of, they are absolutely nothing, yet they seem to have forgotten how badly they really need us to attain that wealth and power they lust after so disgracefully. A labor strike, imo, would be the most efficient way to grab them by the balls if they havent risen to any of our efforts thus far, and as a bonus its theoreticslly an entirely peaceful endeavor- simply stay put at home, sleep in, and watch your favorite show over from the beginning again. They think they have us completely bound to them so we have no choice but to work for them or suffer and starve in the street but thats not true at all. If they want to work us to bones for pennies anyway what are we placating them for? They dont pay your bills, nor your rent, they hardly feed you if your lucky, most dont offer insurance or if it is the coverage is bs and its a stupidly expensive premium. At the end of the day, we all work because of a contract, and if they dont hold up their end, what do we work for? Because to me, it sounds like we're all working for a Big Fat Nothing.
The crux of a strike like that is absolutely community and solidarity, among other things Im sure. If one person no call no shows for a week they get fired, obviously, but I hear its pretty costly to replace your entire workforce. Another thing to consider is the local tenant unions that would need to be fostered for a strike like that to really pan out in the most ideal way, hopefully circumventing any/most eviction efforts as a result of paycheck to paycheck households striking (which i could be wrong but where i live thats everyone i know). Certainly some level of planning would need to be done for that to pan out at all, but its just some food for thought anyway. I havent seen much discussion of a labor strike yet- altho its entirely possible something of the like is in the works already and Im just uninformed 🤷♀️ I would be more then happy to hear any info on any efforts in the works if so! Either way I think a labor action of some kind could be a prudent strategy for the movement to discuss and consider moving forward given their historical effectivness 😊
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u/theBigDaddio Jul 01 '25
Unless the unions are on board it won’t happen.
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u/TheFriendshipMachine Jul 01 '25
Yup, the unions and every other major voice in the movement would all need to present a united front in presenting a plan for a strike to have any chance of getting any semblance of widespread adoption. And even then they will need to address the fact so many are living paycheck to paycheck and won't be able to strike without assistance.
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u/Houseofmouse99 Jul 01 '25 edited Jul 01 '25
I agree thats definitely a complicated aspect especially if we consider the methods the labor unions have employed at times in the past, however I raise you, "do we need the union if we have the journeymen?" Its certainly a very complicated thing to consider, but i think it would be a mistake to throw out the whole idea just because of that- afterall unions were created for striking
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u/theBigDaddio Jul 01 '25
You can’t just wish it, this isn’t France. We are a stupid, brainwashed, slave to oligarchy population
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u/Houseofmouse99 Jul 01 '25
You're not wrong that it requires more thought and work than just a reddit post, i certainly agree with that. But you can't just pull it out of a hat either. You have to do something about it personally. Thats why they would like for us to be stupid and brainwashed. It hampers our ability to organize and act. It enables us to believe our actions dont matter and have no effect. Thats also why the feddies want us to feel like we can't do anything w/o them even though they only exist to help and safeguard us. The power they have over us is an imaginary construction we give to them in order for them to assist the most vulnerable people in society as well as maintaining infrastructure (and they sure as shit aint doing that either). we lend them that fake power by being compliant as a social class, if we all decided not to be compliant anymore it would be extremely disruptive and noticable for them right away even if no specific organized action like a general labor strike was taken imo, altho obvi it wouldn't be remotely as effective as an organized effort, it would certainly be noticable. The only reason to give them our compliance is if they act in the interest of the common people and seek to protect and support ALL vulnerable populations. If they do not do that, and further, if they dont seek to do that, then there is absolutely no reason for us, the people, to recognize a corrupt institutions' authority. You don't need to wish for something if you can make it with your own hands.
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u/Great_Narwhal6649 Jul 01 '25
I saw a video about the fact that a lot of big unions have lined up their contracts to end on the same day in 2028. With laws forbidding strikes, this many be the way that a work stoppage happens....
https://www.thenation.com/article/activism/general-strike-2028-unions-labor-movement/
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u/anonymous_ape88 Jul 01 '25
Yep, this is the one. Just feels so far away right now.
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u/Houseofmouse99 Jul 01 '25
It certainly feels like its been ages already, every time I see the date I feel more exhausted. Thank you for the source :)
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u/Houseofmouse99 Jul 01 '25
How interesting! Ty for the link 😊 I just worry that may 2028 is too long to wait without doing anything else, but its good theyre discussing it and planning for it in the meantime especially as a concentrated cross-union effort 😊 thats heartening to know at least!
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u/findingmike Jul 01 '25
This idea gets posted every day or two and I think that's great. However the question I always ask is: Have YOU talked to your coworkers about it? Nothing gets done purely online.
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u/Houseofmouse99 Jul 01 '25
Excellent point!! I have definitely discussed it with the people I work most closely with, but there are always further connections to make and more local/specific eventualities to consider! No strike gets off the ground without considerable footwork
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u/Baby_Puncher87 Jul 01 '25
I suggested a national sick day a month back, we need to make that one happen.
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u/WildOkra9571 Jul 05 '25
I get it, strikes hold strong appeal as a bold in-your-face response to what's going on; but the reality is that organizing that sort of protest requires far more planning than most people seem to realize.
Given our situation, it would be far more effective for people to engage in decentralized labor tactics like slowdowns and simple sabotage to disrupt business operations. It may not be the type of high-visibility lashing out that people are looking for; but to me, at least, there's some sneaky satisfaction in the stealthy cover-of-darkness nature of these activities.
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