BARRIERS TO WORKER ORGANIZING

If you have 90 minutes…

• Supplies needed are:  

• Butcher paper, markers, tape
• Handout #1 (Workers' Stories)
• Handout #2 (Worker Fact Sheet)
• Handout #3 (Issues, Demands and Tactics), four corners signs (facilitator creates four signs to put in each corner of the room: strongly disagree, somewhat disagree, somewhat agree, strongly agree)
• Tool box (if you have one; or draw one and cut out of paper to put in center of room)

• Introductory questions:

• Raise your hand if you are currently working or have ever worked in a job?
• Where have you worked? What was it like? What were some of the challenges and difficulties you faced on the job?  (Have a few people share their stories; note the commonalities of workers' experiences)

• Story:  Take turns reading story aloud as group (facilitator selects which one most appropriate from handout #1; instruct that everyone should be listening to the story imagining that you are Marla/Jorge/Marlin because at the end of the story, she/he is forced to make a tough decision.)  Or you can write your own stories based on local leaders/campaigns.

•  Ask each group to explain why they feel the way they do.

• Discussion questions:

• Who created this situation? Who benefits? How?
• Why is Marla/Jorge/Marlin forced to make the decision she/he does?
• What other options does Marla/Jorge/Marlin have? If none, why doesn't she have any better options?  (Note, if folks suggest she/he should just quit, point out challenges:  Who in the room right now is currently looking for a job?  How easy is it to find a good, well-paying job with benefits?  What are conditions like overall in this job industry?  Emphasize that conditions in low-wage or service jobs are similar across the board.  And that workers face intimidation, harassment, and the choice to come together in all different types of jobs regardless of industry or pay-scale.)
• Why does Marla/Jorge/Marlin have to work so much?
• Is this a situation that a lot of workers have to face? Why is that?
• What kinds of jobs are available to us? Why?

• Have leaders read handout #2 (Worker Fact Sheet) and discuss reactions in four corners groups.

• Divide into small groups of 3-5 people each.  Explain that each group will compete against the others for points.
• Each group will pretend it is Marla/Jorge/Marlin and has to:

• Write up the issues at work
• Come up with specific demands for each issue
• Chose tactics to get what you want

• Depending on level of exposure in your group, may need to quickly post key terms and brainstorm definitions; you can ask leaders for examples of each term from their experience:

• Issues: The Problem
• Demands: What you want
• Target or Decision Maker:  Person with the power to give you what you want.
• Tactics: Tools: the things you do to get what you want.

• Target or Decision Maker is the boss, which will be played by facilitator(s).  Each group has to present its issues, demands, strategy and tactics to the boss at the front of the room and will get points according to their strategy for dealing with the situation.

• Group can choose from list of tactics to win their demands, and following tools (facilitator should post, write up where everyone can see)

• Quit/find another worksite
• Steal
• Goof off at work or on site
• Come late, leave early, take long breaks
• Sabotage the machinery or equipment
• Be rude to customers or public
• Cuss out and yell at the boss
• Work slow down/work to rule
• Petition
• Send a delegation
• Wear buttons/t-shirts/stickers
• Strike
• Work and walk (leaflet outside the business after and before your shift)
• Wild card-what would you do?

• Give groups 10 minutes to work on their presentation and choose their strategy. Each team should present to the boss. The "boss" should act intimidating and uncaring and very anti-union.  Participants should have to stand up in front of the boss and present their plans
• The objective of this exercise is for participants to understand the purpose of organizing and collective action.  Criteria for assigning points (on any numerical score you choose):

• High points for any collective action where participants work together and approach the boss as a group.
• High points for reasonable demands and use of multiple tactics
• High points for using a series of tactics that involve a large number of workers and escalate over time.
• High points for also involving customers or the public
• Low points for individual actions like quitting or only addressing the issues of one worker.
• Low points for unreasonable demands or demands that don't address the issue.
• Low points for individual or illegal actions (like arson, stealing, etc).
• Low points for sole reliance on legal action or the media.

• Discussion tips - Participants tend to bring up tactics that involve legal actions like lawsuits or that rely on media exposure.  The following are some talking points:
  

• Media:  Ask the last time anyone read a story about workers. Ask who owns the mainstream media. Make sure they understand that the majority of our media outlets are owned by a few large corporations. Corporate media tend not to want to publicize stories about workers because they are big employers themselves.
• Legal:  Ask if anyone has been in a lawsuit and how long it took. Explain that the legal process can be very long and expensive. Additionally, many of the problems workers have, like bad schedules or uniforms, are not illegal, just unfair or unjust.
  

• Total up the points and proclaim the winner.  Prizes are great, too.  Pose the following questions to the group:

• How did it feel to make demands on the boss?
• What made groups successful?
• What demands got met? Which didn't and why?
• What strategies and tactics were most successful? Why?
• What is the difference between actions like goofing off and others like delegations to the boss?
• Why is working together, or collective action, the most successful?
• How does this affect the boss?

• Summarize points the group made and add the following points:

• Businesses exist to maximize profit and minimize costs. The biggest cost to business is labor.
• Therefore business tries to squeeze the most work and profit out of workers while paying the least possible.
• Labor law exists to protect workers, but often it is weak or doesn't fully cover newer industries like restaurants and agriculture or undocumented workers.
• Most workplace improvements were won by workers organized in unions or social movements. Examples:

• Eight-hour day and the weekend
• Minimum wage and breaks
• Health and unemployment insurance, workers compensation
• Health and safety protections

• Workers can shift the relations of power to improve their conditions through organizing and collective action.

• Conclusion and Closing Discussion

• SAY: What did folks learn from Marla/Jorge/Marlin?
• SAY: "All the actions you took today for Marla/Jorge/Marlin and their co-workers can add up to much bigger improvements overtime, when we work together for better treatment and conditions for all workers in our communities.  It shows how we're all in it together, right?"
• SAY: "BUT that's easier said than done. Workers' often face severe intimidation when trying to come together to improve their working conditions and put their whole livelihoods on the line.  Combined, these small fights have benefitted us all and give us the safety and protection we all enjoy today as workers in this country, as we saw earlier in the history of worker organizing.  But there is a deep need for stronger, more balanced labor laws in this country that affect the lives of people like Marla/Jorge/Marlin and YOU and ALL OF US everyday.