Heartland Labor Forum

KKFI 90.1 FM Kansas City Community Radio
  • 4.9 (9)
  • NEWS COMMENTARY
  • UPDATED WEEKLY
Heartland Labor Forum

The Heartland Labor Forum is Kansas City’s only program about the workplace. It’s radio that talks back to the boss! Whether you’re a union member or your workplace isn’t organized, Heartland Labor Forum (HLF) has stories for you, guaranteed to inspire, educate, or enrage you

  1. 5 DAYS AGO

    The Workers Strike Back Conference and Julie Greene on Who Built the Panama Canal and Trump's Bullying

    This week on the Heartland Labor Forum we’ll get a report from last weekend’s Workers Strike Back Conference organizing to win a $25 minimum wage and healthcare for all. Then, Trump wants the Panama Canal back claiming it’s our right. Really? We’ll talk to labor historian Julie Greene about the Panama Canal, who owns it, who built it at what cost and Trump’s fantasy. And Bill Clause returns with a commentary on the attack on government workers.

    1 hr

  2. FEB 18

    David Bacon on Domestic Workers Organizing and Nancy MacLean: Behind the Mask of Chivalry: The Making of the Second Ku Klux Klan

    Union organizer and photojournalist David Bacon joins us to discuss cross-border labor solidarity, the fight for immigrant and domestic workers’ rights, and how grassroots organizing is reshaping the future of labor movement. Then, we’ll talk to Nancy MacLean about her new book Behind the Mask of Chivalry on the rebirth of the Ku Klux Klan in 1915 to prepare for a war between the races. MacLean looks under their white sheets to reveal who these men really were. Our feature is Know Your Rights with Michael Amash.

    1 hr

  3. FEB 10

    Explaining Tariffs and How They Affect the Working Class and Hidden in Plain Sight: the $8.5 trillion in Untaxed Income of the Rich

    Have Trump’s tariffs got you confused?  How will they affect jobs and prices?   We’ll talk to trade expert Lori Wallach, of Rethink Trade. She’s a 30-year veteran of international and US Congressional trade battles.  Then, with yet another tax break for the rich on the table in Washington DC, we’ll talk with William Rice from Americans for Tax Fairness about the $8.5 trillion in untaxed wealth currently held by the country's ultrarich. Our feature is Labor Song of the Month with Mark Galus.

    1 hr

  4. FEB 4

    Freeman's Challenge; The Murder That Shook America’s Original Prison for Profit by Robin Bernstein and The KC Campaign to End Gender Violence in the Workplace

    In Auburn New York in 1840 William Freeman, an imprisoned Black teenager, demanded pay for forced labor, l leading to violence. We’ll talk to author Robin Bernstein about the first for-profit prison and a murder. Then last month Heartland Women in Trades, the Department of Labor Women’s Bureau and the Kansas City Human Rights Commission came together to advocate against gender-based violence in the workplace to make work safe for women in the trades. Our feature is Safety First with Mary Erio.

    1 hr

  5. JAN 30

    Nuggets of Gold: Processed Chicken and the American Diet by Patrick Dixon and The Life and Death of an American Worker by Alice Driver

    It’s all about chickens and those nuggets that are presumably made from them. We’ll talk to Patrick Dixon about his new book, Nuggets of Gold and then to Alice Driver who spent four years interviewing workers in chicken processing plants in the south and wrote The Life and Death of the American Worker about the consequences of employment of imprisoned people and undocumented immigrants under weak regulations. Ever wonder what’s in a Chicken McNugget? You’ll find out! Then, Christina Dismang has taken over our history feature, and tonight on Voices from Labor History she’ll feature three January strikes.

    1 hr

  6. JAN 21

    What's Responsible Bidder Language? and Are There Dire Days Ahead for Labor Under Trump?

    Kansas City building trades unions want area towns to pass Responsible Bidder Ordinances requiring public works contractors to provide good jobs with apprenticeship training and opportunities for continuous employment for the tradesmen and women who do the work. We’ll talk to union leaders about it. Then, will Donald Trump gut labor law enforcement? Will he be able to stop the current upsurge of organizing? Are there dire days ahead for labor? We’ll read the tea leaves and predict his actions. Our feature is Washington Window on Workers.

    1 hr

  7. JAN 16

    “The Union Changed My Life” UFCW's Laura Kelly and Union Leader Series: New KC Federation of Teachers President David Price

    We’ll have two remarkable union leaders. Laura Kelly (no it isn’t the governor of Kansas) from UFCW Local 655 where she’s assistant to the president. She says, “the union changed my life” and has a compelling story of how union and LGBTQ activism intersect. Then, David Price, a KCMO elementary school teacher just a couple of months ago, is now president of local 691 of the American Federation of Teachers replacing Jason Roberts. Meet him and Laura. Our feature is Know Your Rights with Michael Amash.

    1 hr

  8. JAN 8

    Public Transit Union Fights Service Cutbacks

    The union of bus drivers in Kansas City local 1287 of the Amalgamated Transit Union or ATU is bogged down in negotiations with the Area Transportation Authority or ATA amidst threatened and actual cuts to service and funding from Kansas City and suburbs. We’ll talk to Local 1287 president Nick Miller and former international vice president Javier Perez as well as former State Rep Richard Brown about the importance of maintaining a vital public transit system and its workforce. Our feature is Labor Song of the Month with Mark Galus.

    1 hr
See All (39)

Ratings & Reviews

4.9
out of 5
9 Ratings

About

The Heartland Labor Forum is Kansas City’s only program about the workplace. It’s radio that talks back to the boss! Whether you’re a union member or your workplace isn’t organized, Heartland Labor Forum (HLF) has stories for you, guaranteed to inspire, educate, or enrage you

Information

  • Creator
    KKFI 90.1 FM Kansas City Community Radio
  • Years Active
    2013 - 2025
  • Episodes
    39
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © KKFI 90.1 FM Kansas City Community Radio
  • Show Website
    Heartland Labor Forum

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