by Maximillian Alvarez | Mar 4, 2026 | Economy, Economy and Inequality, labor, Podcast, Politics and Movements: US, Teamsters, Unions, Working People
As general president of the union, Sean O’Brien has operated with a “Teamsters vs. Everybody” mentality, especially when it comes to dealing with President Donald Trump and embracing the MAGA right. But now, 14 months into the second Trump administration, the labor movement and the entire working class—Teamsters members included—is under attack. In this episode of Working People, we speak with veteran Teamsters Richard Hooker Jr. and John Palmer, who are running to oust O’Brien from leadership in the upcoming union election.
Guests:
Richard Hooker Jr. has dedicated 26 years to the Teamsters, spending 20 of those years at UPS and the last six in leadership roles. He is the Secretary-Treasurer and Principal Officer of Teamsters Local 623 in Philadelphia, and he is now running on the Fearless Slate to unseat Sean O’Brien as a candidate for general president of the International Brotherhood of Teamsters.
John Palmer has 38 years of experience in the Teamsters and is currently serving as a vice president at large of the International Brotherhood of Teamsters. He is running on the Fearless Slate as a candidate to be the union’s general secretary-treasurer.
Additional links/info:
Teamsters Fearless Slate website
Hank Kennedy, Current Affairs, “Sean O’Brien sold labor to Trump, and got nothing”
Michael Sainato, The Guardian, “Labor activist takes on Teamsters leader allying with Trump: ‘He doesn’t represent the workers’”
Joe Allen, CounterPunch, “Why are the Teamsters endorsing Greg Abbott?”
Peter Eavis, The New York Times, “UPS says it is cutting up to 30,000 jobs”
Maximillian Alvarez, TRNN, “Everybody hates Sean”
Maximillian Alvarez, TRNN, “We asked 8 different Teamsters what they thought of Sean O’Brien’s speech—their responses may surprise you”
Featured Music:
Jules Taylor, Working People Theme Song
Credits:
Audio Post-Production:
by Sonali Kolhatkar | Feb 27, 2026 | California, Hawaii, health care, labor, New York, News, Nurses, Nurses Union, Strikes, Unions
Historic nurses’ strikes on both coasts of the United States took place simultaneously within the first two months of 2026, demonstrating the power of collective bargaining and solidarity in a common struggle against monied interests. New York City’s largest nurses strike ever, numbering at about 15,000 striking nurses at its peak, culminated in agreements for workers at three private…
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by Maximillian Alvarez | Feb 18, 2026 | Economy, Economy and Inequality, labor, Podcast, Politics and Movements: US, Unions, Working People
On Nov. 24, 2025, in a major and hardwon victory, Newspaper Guild of Pittsburgh members finally returned to work at the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette after more than three years on strike. Then, on Jan. 7, 2026, workers were notified that Block Communications Inc.—the company that owns the Post-Gazette as well as the Toledo Blade, the Buckeye Sports Network, and a number of TV stations in Ohio and Kentucky—said that it will be ceasing operations at the Post-Gazette on May 3 of this year. We speak with Steve Mellon, a veteran photographer and writer who was on strike for over three years at the Post-Gazette, about how workers are processing this devastating news, and about their push to launch a new news source by and for working people.
Additional links/info:
Pittsburgh Alliance for People-Empowered Reporting (PAPER) website
Newspaper Guild of Pittsburgh website, Facebook page, and Instagram
Newspaper Guild of Pittsburgh “Pittsburgh Post-Gazette owners couldn’t bust the union, so they shut down the paper”
Maximillian Alvarez, Working People / TRNN, “The longest-running strike in the US is over—and the workers won”
Kris B. Mamula, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, “Post-Gazette to publish final edition and cease operations on May 3”
Featured Music:
Jules Taylor, Working People Theme Song
Credits:
Audio Post-Production: Jules Taylor
Transcript
The following is a rushed transcript and may contain errors. A proofread version will be made available as soon as possible.Maximillian Alvarez:
I got work to do. All right. Welcome everyone to Working People, a podcast about the lives, jobs, dreams, and struggles of the working class today. Working People is a proud member of the Labor Radio Podcast Network and is brought to you in partnership within these Times Magazine and the Real News
by Maximillian Alvarez | Feb 13, 2026 | Economy, Economy and Inequality, labor, Podcast, Politics and Movements: US, Unions, Working People
The longest-running nurses strike in New York City history has come to an end—for some. Nurses at NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital, however, overwhelmingly voted this week to reject a tentative agreement and to stay on strike until their demands for safer staffing and more job security are met. In this unscheduled strike update episode, TRNN Editor-in-Chief Maximillian Alvarez speaks with Beth Loudin, a neonatal nurse and member of the executive committee of the New York State Nurses Association at NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital.
Additional links/info:
New York State Nurses Association website, Facebook page, Bluesky page, and Instagram
Claudia Irizarry Aponte & Ben Fractenberg, The City, “NewYork-Presbyterian nurses reject contract by overwhelming margin”
Luis Feliz Leon, Sarah Hughes, & Danielle Smith, Labor Notes, “Fifteen thousand New York City nurses strike”
Featured Music:
Jules Taylor, Working People Theme Song
Credits:
Audio Post-Production: Jules Taylor
Transcript
The following is a rushed transcript and may contain errors. A proofread version will be made available as soon as possible.
Maximillian Alvarez:
Alright. Welcome everyone to Working People, a podcast about the lives, jobs, dreams, and struggles of the working class today. Working People is a proud member of the Labor Radio Podcast Network and is brought to you in partnership within these Times Magazine and the Real News Network. This show is produced by Jules Taylor and made possible by the support of listeners like you. My name is Maximillian Alvarez and I know that you guys may have just listened to our latest episode with healthcare workers on strike at Kaiser Permanente over on the West Coast, but we’ve got another urgent strike update episode for y’all today on another critical healthcare worker strike that was actually mentioned in that
by Maximillian Alvarez | Feb 13, 2026 | Economy, labor, Podcast, Politics and Movements: US, Unions, Working People
An estimated 31,000 health care workers in California and Hawaii walked off the job on Jan. 26 in their ongoing battle with healthcare giant Kaiser Permanente to address workers’ demands for safe staffing, more manageable workloads, and a livable wage. The United Nurses Associations of California/Union of Health Care Professionals (UNAC/UHCP) strike is now in its third week, and more than 3,000 pharmacy technicians, pharmacy assistants, and clinical laboratory professionals represented by the United Food and Commercial Workers. In this urgent strike update episode, we speak with a panel of UNAC/UHCP members who are all currently on strike at Kaiser Permanente.
Guests:
Sanayo Kondo is a physical therapist at Kaiser Permanente – Redwood City in Northern California, and she is also on the bargaining team for her UNAC/UHCP group.
Kadi Gonzalez is an outpatient Registered Nurse at Kaiser Permanente who works in OB/Gyn care and is on the board of directors for UNAC/UHCP.
Lucky Longoria is a Registered Nurse who works in pediatrics at Kaiser Permanente – Downey in Southern California and previously worked as a travel nurse.
Additional links/info:
United Nurses Associations of California / Union of Health Care Professionals website, Facebook page, and Instagram
UNAC/UHCP Press Release: “Massive Kaiser strike enters third week”
Kaiser Permanente, “Our statement on the UNAC/UHCP strike (Jan. 25, 2026)”
Featured Music:
Jules Taylor, Working People Theme Song
Credits:
Audio Post-Production: Jules Taylor
Transcript
The following is a rushed transcript and may contain errors. A proofread version will be made available as soon as possible.
Maximillian Alvarez:
Alright. Welcome everyone to Working People, a podcast about the lives, jobs, dreams, and struggles of the working class today. Working People is a proud member of the Labor Radio Podcast Network and
by Eddie Velazquez | Feb 10, 2026 | Hospitals, labor, New York City, News, Nurses Union, strike, Strikes, union contract, Unions
More than 10,000 union nurses at Montefiore and Mount Sinai Hospitals ended the longest and largest nurses strike in New York City on Monday after negotiating fair health care benefits, safe staffing groups, and improved workplace safety measures. The New York State Nurses Association (NYSNA), the union representing the nurses, announced that workers will vote on a series of tentative…
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