Working People

Working People

Working People: A podcast by, for, and about the working class today (now in partnership with In These Times magazine and The Real News Network). Working People is a podcast about working-class lives in 21st-century America. In every episode, you'll hear interviews with workers from around the country, from all walks of life. We'll talk about their life stories, their jobs, politics, and families, their joys and hopes and frustrations. Overall, Working People aims to share and celebrate the diverse stories of working-class people, to remind ourselves that our stories matter, and to build a sense of shared struggle and solidarity between workers around the country.

  1. 2d ago

    Layoffs, long waits, obscene prices: Vermont healthcare workers and patients face historic crisis

    Frontline healthcare workers and the patients they serve are facing a major crisis at the University of Vermont Health network—the state's leading healthcare provider. "In June, UVM Health eliminated over 140 positions across its network, a third of which were union positions," Matt More reports at The Rake Vermont. "The cuts, which the hospital estimated will save $9.5 million, comes as the network faces a $300 million budget shortfall… Later that month, UVM Health handed down a speed-up order to its Medical Group, which includes outpatient clinics and more than 1,000 physicians, which practitioners say will result in briefer appointments with patients." How did Vermont's flagship health network end up in this crisis? How is it affecting healthcare workers and their patients? And what can be done to fix it? In this episode of Working People, we speak with Melissa Lavallee, secretary of UVMMC Support Staff United and VP of healthcare for AFT-Vermont; and Teagan Cook, lead outpatient chemotherapy scheduler at her hospital and a chief steward in UVMMC Support Staff United. Additional links/info: UVMMC Support Staff United website, Facebook page, and Instagram AFT-Vermont website, Facebook page, and Instagram Matt Moore, The Rake Vermont, "UVM Health's unions fight hospital cuts to protect their patients' healthcare and their working conditions" Town Meeting TV, "Put workers and patients first! - Solidarity town hall meeting with UVM Medical Center unions" Olivia Gieger, VT Digger, "UVM Health cuts 142 jobs — an estimated $9.5 million in staff positions" Featured Music: Jules Taylor, Working People Theme Song Credits: Audio Post-Production: Jules Taylor

  2. 5d ago

    Oil giant BP locks out workers at its last unionized refinery in US

    For the last five months, oil giant British Petroleum (BP) has locked 800 workers out of their jobs at a crude oil refinery in Whiting, Indiana. The facility, located on the southwestern shore of Lake Michigan, is BP's last unionized oil refinery in the United States. BP says it is pursuing "modernized job structures, training, and upskilling," but workers and their union—United Steelworkers Local 7-1—say that the company has not bargained in good faith, that its contract proposals pose blatant existential threats to workers' jobs, pay, and collective bargaining rights, and that the company is illegally trying to crush the union out of existence with the lockout. In this episode of Working People, we speak with three locked out workers at the BP oil refinery in Whiting: Eric Schultz, president of USW Local 7-1; Leno Miller, assistant griever for USW Local 7-1; Tim Powell, a 19-year member of USW Local 7-1, and a volunteer for the lockout assistance committee. Additional links/info: USW Local 7-1 Official Lockout Update/Support Page USW Local 7-1 Facebook page and Instagram Sarah Lazare, Workday Magazine / The American Prospect, "Locked out refinery workers say BP is trying to 'starve us,' crush union" Maximillian Alvarez, Working People / TRNN, "I survived the rig explosion that caused the Deepwater Horizon oil spill. This is what I saw" Featured Music: Jules Taylor, Working People Theme Song Credits: Audio Post-Production: Jules Taylor

  3. Aug 5

    Railroad jobs have "gotten worse" since Biden and Congress blocked workers from striking

    In 2022, the United States nearly experienced its first national railroad strike in decades, until then-President Joe Biden, along with Democrats and Republicans in Congress, stepped in to block a strike before it could begin. Rail labor unions were forced to accept contracts that did not substantively address long-brewing crises in the freight rail industry that have had disastrous consequences for frontline workers, trackside communities like East Palestine, Ohio, the passenger rail system, and the US supply chain writ large. In this episode of Working People, we speak with returning guest "Jay," a veteran train dispatcher who's been in the industry for 22 years, about what has changed—and what hasn't—for rank-and-file railroad workers on the job over the last four years.  Additional links/info:  Maximillian Alvarez, Working People / TRNN, "Ask a railroad worker: How did railroad jobs get so bad?"" Maximillian Alvarez, Working People / TRNN, "Freight workers explain why a national railroad strike is looming" Maximillian Alvarez, Working People / TRNN, "Railroad workers speak out after Congress and Biden block rail strike" Mike L, TRNN, "A carman's perspective on the East Palestine derailment and the railroad industry as a whole" Maximillian Alvarez, TRNN, "US freight workers say it's time to nationalize the railroads" Featured Music:  Jules Taylor, Working People Theme Song Credits:  Audio Post-Production: Jules Taylor

  4. Jul 30

    Corporate profiteers destroyed journalism. Worker-owned media can save it.

    When workers at the historic Pittsburgh Post-Gazette newspaper hit the picket line in October of 2022, they had no idea that they would be on strike for over three years—or that the strike would end with new owners taking over the paper and most strikers losing their jobs. But now, a new chapter is being written in their epic story. This week, workers and community supporters launched the Pittsburgh Progress, "a cooperative news organization, owned and democratically run by its workers and members… dedicated to looking out for, and telling the stories of, the working-class people who form the heart and soul of our diverse communities." In this episode of Working People, we discuss the birth of the Pittsburgh Progress, and what it means for working people in and beyond Pittsburgh, with Steve Mellon and Natalie Duleba, both former strikers at the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette and both founding worker-members of the newly launched Pittsburgh Progress. Additional links/info: Pittsburgh Progress website, Facebook page, Bluesky page, and Instagram Steve Mellon, Pittsburgh Progress, "This new media cooperative invites the community to join us on our journey of creation" Maximillian Alvarez, Working People / TRNN, "The longest-running strike in the US is over—and the workers won" Maximillian Alvarez, Working People / TRNN, "They won their strike fair and square. Now their rich bosses are closing up shop" Maximillian Alvarez, Working People / TRNN, "Venetoulis Institute 'saves' the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette by purging union members who went on strike" Featured Music: Jules Taylor, Working People Theme Song Credits: Audio Post-Production: Jules Taylor

  5. Jul 15

    Data centers are not a "red state" or "blue state" problem; they're a working-class problem

    In so-called "red states" and "blue states" around the US, from rural areas to urban centers, the explosion of new data center projects is impacting residents in poor, working-class, and middle-class communities alike. In this episode of Working People, we speak with a diverse panel of residents fighting new and proposed data center projects in Texas and Maryland about what it means for you and your community when one of these loud, polluting, energy- and water-guzzling behemoths comes to your town—and how to fight back. Panelists include: Cheryl Shadden, a registered nurse anesthetist who lives right next to the site of a Marathon bitcoin mine in Granbury, Texas; Karen Pearson, a licensed professional counselor and a resident of Granbury who also lives right next to the Marathon bitcoin mine; Dr. Shannon Wolf, Precinct Chair in Hood County, who lives three miles from the Marathon bitcoin mine; Craig Jackson, a resident of Granbury who lives 300 feet from the site of a new proposed data center, and who is also a plaintiff in a current lawsuit residents have filed against the city of Granbury; Micaiah Lloyd, a grassroots organizer and resident of Charles County, Maryland, who lives near the site of a proposed data center; Hillary Gonzalez, an eco-poet, author, founder of Sacred Parks & Waterways, and a resident of Baltimore, Maryland, who lives right next to the site of Johns Hopkins University's future Data Science and Artificial Intelligence complex. Additional links/info: Protect Hood County website and Facebook page Sacred Parks & Waterways website and Instagram Viral MS Now clip featuring Cheryl Shadden of Granbury, Texas Maximillian Alvarez, Working People / TRNN, "A bitcoin mine in Texas is 'killing us slowly,' local residents say" Maximillian Alvarez, Working People / TRNN, "'Like being tortured': Texas residents living next to bitcoin mine are getting sick and being ignored" Maximillian Alvarez, Working People / TRNN, "Toxic Avengers: America's poisoned and abandoned communities must stand together or die" Christine Condon, Maryland Matters, "Data center frustrations cause upheaval in county primary elections" Emmanuel Rivas Valenzuela, KERA News, "Granbury residents sue city over data center plan, allege Texas Open Meetings Act violations" Featured Music: Jules Taylor, Working People Theme Song Credits: Audio Post-Production: Jules Taylor

  6. Jul 6

    Train crashes destroyed their towns. Will yours be next?

    10 years before the catastrophic train derailment and chemical disaster in East Palestine, Ohio, one of the deadliest rail disasters in North American history took place in the Canadian town of Lac-Mégantic, Quebec. On July 6, 2013, an unattended freight train that had been parked on the tracks overnight began to roll downhill and gather alarming speed as it careened towards the city center of Lac-Mégantic. The train, which was operated by Montreal, Maine, and Atlantic Railway and carrying over 2 million gallons of crude oil, derailed around 1:15 AM. The resulting explosions and fire killed 47 people and destroyed over 40 buildings, obliterating a large portion of the downtown area and prompting mass evacuations. In this special episode of Working People, we speak with a panel of survivors of the Lac-Mégantic rail disaster in Canada and the East Palestine rail disaster in the USA. Panelists include: Robert Bellefleur, a resident of Lac-Mégantic and spokesperson for the Lac-Mégantic Citizens' Coalition for Railroad Safety; Gilbert Carette, a resident of Lac-Mégantic and a member of the Lac-Mégantic Citizens' Coalition for Railroad Safety; Gilles Fluet, a resident of Lac-Mégantic who narrowly escaped the 2013 train crash and witnessed the derailment firsthand; Anne-Marie Saint-Cerny, award-winning writer, videographer, social and environmental justice activist, and author of Mégantic: A Deadly Mix of Oil, Rail, and Avarice; Jami Wallace, a displaced resident of East Palestine, Ohio, and founder of the Chemically Impacted Communities Coalition; Christina Siceloff, a Creek Ranger and resident of Beaver County, Pennsylvania, affected by the 2023 Norfolk Southern train derailment and chemical disaster. If you or members of your community are interested in attending or participating in TRNN's 2026 No More Sacrifice Zones conference, please contact us by emailing contact[at]therealnews[dot]com.   Additional links/info: Lac-Mégantic Citizens' Coalition for Railroad Safety website and Facebook page Chemically Impacted Communities Coalition (CICC) Facebook page Railroad Workers United website, Facebook page, and X page Anne-Marie Saint-Cerny, Talonbooks, Mégantic: A Deadly Mix of Oil, Rail, and Avarice Dimitri Lascaris, TRNN, "'Bomb Train': Oil Execs Try to Blame Workers for Tragic Accident" Maximillian Alvarez, TRNN, "America's toxic future looks like East Palestine, Ohio, today" Maximillian Alvarez, Working People / TRNN, "Toxic Avengers: America's poisoned and abandoned communities must stand together or die" Credits: Pre-Production: Maximillian Alvarez, Dr. Nicole Fabricant, Fritz Edler Studio Production: Maximillian Alvarez French-English Interpretation: Anne Lagacé Dowson Voice Acting: Ethan Cox, Daniel Lemieux Audio Post-Production: Jules Taylor, Alina Nehlich Music: Jules Taylor

  7. Jul 1

    Toxic Avengers: America's poisoned and abandoned communities must stand together or die

    From the explosion of AI data centers to the increasing number of toxic spills, explosions, and industrial disasters happening across the country, corporations and the government are turning the USA into one giant "sacrifice zone." In "red" states and "blue" states, in rural areas and urban areas, poor and working people are suffering the toxic effects of a crisis that has resulted from decades of deregulation, corporate-capture of government, and the protection of private profits over the lives and health of the public. No one is coming to save us, and nothing is going to change unless residents of different sacrifice zones and poisoned communities, workers and unions on the frontlines of the industries poisoning us, environmental justice groups, community and faith organizations, scientists, journalists, and all others who have a stake in this fight start coming together, working together, and fighting back together. In this special panel discussion, recorded at the 2026 Railroad Workers United convention in Chicago, Illinois, we speak with a panel of guests who are part of a new coalition that is doing just that. Panelists include: Jeff Kurtz, a retired locomotive engineer, union officer, and Railroad Workers United member who also served as a state representative in the Iowa House of Representatives; Jami Wallace, a displaced resident of East Palestine, Ohio, and founder of the Chemically Impacted Communities Coalition (CICC); Dr. Nicole Fabricant, a professor of anthropology at Towson University and scholar-activist who has been working with chemically impacted communities in South Baltimore, Maryland, for 15 years; Scott Smith, independent testing expert and founder of the Blue Shirt Justice League; and Lesley Pacey, Senior Environmental Officer at the Government Accountability Project. Additional links/info: Railroad Workers United website, Facebook page, and X page Chemically Impacted Communities Coalition (CICC) Facebook page Blue Shirt Justice League website and Facebook page Government Accountability Project website, Facebook page, X page, Bluesky page, and Instagram Coal-Free Curtis Bay Facebook page and Instagram South Baltimore Community Land Trust website, X page, Facebook page, and Instagram Nicole Fabricant, University of California Press, Fighting to Breathe: Race, Toxicity, and the Rise of Youth Activism in Baltimore Maximillian Alvarez, TRNN, "America's toxic future looks like East Palestine, Ohio, today" Maximillian Alvarez, Working People / TRNN, "'Let's unite!': Poisoned residents of America's sacrifice zones are banding together" Maximilian Alvarez, Working People / TRNN, "Corporations and the government are turning the USA into one giant 'sacrifice zone'" Featured Music: Jules Taylor, Working People Theme Song Credits: Audio Post-Production: Jules Taylor

  8. Jun 26

    UAW becomes first major union to divest from Israel

    At the 39th Constitutional Convention of the United Auto Workers (UAW) in Detroit, Michigan, union delegates debated and affirmed the aggressive direction the UAW has taken under current President Shawn Fain, supporting pushes to increase shop-floor militancy, support new organizing efforts, and take stronger stances on the political crises working people face today. Among the major developments to come out of the UAW Constitutional Convention was a historic vote to divest the union from Israel bonds, which provide financial support to Israel's government as it continues to wage a US-backed campaign of genocidal violence and ethnic cleansing against Palestinians. In this episode, we break down this historic vote and what it means for union members with a panel of rank-and-file workers and members of Unite All Workers for Democracy (UAWD), a left-wing caucus within the UAW.  Panelists include: Andrew Bergman, a worker at General Motors in Detroit, Michigan, a member of UAW Local 22, and co-chair of UAWD; Navruz Baum, a paralegal in New York, a member of UAW Local 2325, and a member of the UAWD Steering Committee; Margie Thornton, an attorney in Colorado, a member of UAW Local 2320, and a member of the UAWD Steering Committee; and Mike Davis, an auto parts worker in Ohio, a member of UAW Local 2021, and a member of UAWD Additional links/info:  Unite All Workers for Democracy (UAWD) website, member platform, and donation page Navruz Baum, Daily Struggle, "UAW divests from Israel bonds" Dan DiMaggio & Jane Slaughter, Labor Notes, "Auto worker delegates back union's fighting direction at UAW Convention" Shireen Akram-Boshar, Truthout, "United Auto Workers vote to divest from Israel in historic victory" Featured Music:  Jules Taylor, Working People Theme Song Credits:  Audio Post-Production: Jules Taylor

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4.9
out of 5
265 Ratings

About

Working People: A podcast by, for, and about the working class today (now in partnership with In These Times magazine and The Real News Network). Working People is a podcast about working-class lives in 21st-century America. In every episode, you'll hear interviews with workers from around the country, from all walks of life. We'll talk about their life stories, their jobs, politics, and families, their joys and hopes and frustrations. Overall, Working People aims to share and celebrate the diverse stories of working-class people, to remind ourselves that our stories matter, and to build a sense of shared struggle and solidarity between workers around the country.

Information

  • Creator
    Working People
  • Years Active
    2018 - 2026
  • Episodes
    397
  • Rating
    Explicit
  • Show Website
    Working People

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