Labor History Today

Who “Oppenheimer” left out

The summer blockbuster “Oppenheimer” generated a lot of interest in the history of how nuclear weapons were developed in the United States, but the film leaves out an important part of this history: the sacrifice made by tens of thousands of workers in the production of our country’s nuclear weapons arsenal.Excerpted from the Heartland Labor Forum radio show.To learn more about eligibility for benefits from the Energy Employees Occupational Illness Compensation Program Act or to start a claim, click here or call toll-free 866-888-3322. On this week’s Labor History in Two: The 1948 Donora Smog.  
Questions, comments, or suggestions are welcome, and to find out how you can be a part of Labor History Today, email us at LaborHistoryToday@gmail.com
Labor History Today is produced by the Labor Heritage Foundation and the Kalmanovitz Initiative for Labor and the Working Poor.
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The Triangle Fire: A new memorial, and ”Scenes from a Prosecution”

A talk with the writer, producer and director of Triangle: Scenes from a Prosecution, a new one-act dramatization of the criminal trial of the owners of the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory following the 1911 fire that took 146 lives in New York City. Plus, music and poetry by Bev Grant and Joe Glazer.The new Triangle Fire Memorial was unveiled and dedicated on October 11.On this week’s Labor History in Two: the year was 1983. That was the day that musician Merle Travis died.
Questions, comments, or suggestions are welcome, and to find out how you can be a part of Labor History Today, email us at LaborHistoryToday@gmail.com
Labor History Today is produced by Union City Radio and the Kalmanovitz Initiative for Labor and the Working Poor.
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Weapons of the Boss

In 1953 the International Longshore and Warehouse Union (ILWU) established a set of ten guiding principles at its’ tenth biennial convention in San Francisco. This manifesto represents a fascinating historical document, a snapshot in time but also a roadmap, a statement of aspiration calling upon union members to look beyond internal conflicts derived from factionalism, prejudice, even tradition.On today’s show, drawn from The Docker Podcast, Zack Pattin (ILWU Local 23) and Myka Dubay (ILWU Local 5 and ILWU International Executive Board) discuss their workshop at this year’s Young Workers Conference, “Weapons of the Boss: Racism and Anti-Trans Discrimination” and Zack walks us through the origins and context of the ILWU’s Ten Guiding Principles.
On this week’s Labor History in Two: Labor’s Magna Carta.
Music: The Workers Song Community Project | The Longest Johns
Questions, comments, or suggestions are welcome, and to find out how you can be a part of Labor History Today, email us at LaborHistoryToday@gmail.com
Labor History Today is produced by the Labor Heritage Foundation and the Kalmanovitz Initiative for Labor and the Working Poor.
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Voices of Guinness (Encore)

In 2005 the Guinness Brewery at Park Royal, West London closed after seven decades of production. Tim Strangleman spent the last six months of the Brewery’s life working with a photographer to record in words and picture the site before it closed. Subsequent research revealed an incredibly rich story of corporate cultural change and the transformation of work and the workplace. Drawing on material from his 2019 book, Voices of Guinness: An Oral History of the Park Royal Brewery, Strangleman, Professor of Sociology, in the School of Social Policy, Sociology and Social Research, University of Kent, Canterbury, reflects on what that story tells us about work meaning, identity and organizational life in the second decade of the twenty-first century. Our show is excerpted from Strangleman’s Zoom presentation at the October 5 edition of Our Daily Work/Our Daily Lives, the lecture series sponsored by the Michigan Traditional Arts Program and the Labor Education Program at Michigan State University. To get on the ODW/ODL email list email John Beck at mailto:beckj@msu.eduClick here for photos of the Park Royal Guinness Brewery.   And, on Labor History in 2:00, the year was 1940; that was the day that the federally mandated 40-hour work week went into effect for U.S. workers.Produced by Chris Garlock. To contribute a labor history item, email laborhistorytoday@gmail.com
Labor History Today is produced by the Metro Washington Council’s Union City Radio and the Kalmanovitz Initiative for Labor and the Working Poor at Georgetown University.Original airdate October 24, 2021.
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“The Port of Missing Men” (Encore)

This week, labor history takes a deep dive into "True Crime" territory. Billy Gohl was called "The Ghoul of Grays Harbor" in the early 20th Century when he was accused of being the murderer who dumped several bodies into the canals around Aberdeen in Washington State. Was he one of America's first serial killers? Or was he just another in a long line of labor activists framed by the bosses? Find out when Working to Live in Southwest Washington podcast hosts Shannon and Harold talk with Aaron Goings, author of “The Port of Missing Men: Billy Gohl, Labor & Brutal Times in the Pacific Northwest”.On Labor History in 2:00: the year was 1918. That was the day machinist John Connolly was fired from General Electric’s sprawling River Works in West Lynn, Massachusetts.
Originally aired 7/10/2022. Got a questions, comments or suggestions welcome, and to find out how you can be a part of Labor History Today, email us at LaborHistoryToday@gmail.com
Labor History Today is produced by Union City Radio and the Kalmanovitz Initiative for Labor and the Working Poor. Hosted and produced by Chris Garlock. 
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The labor “Parade” that flopped (Encore)

Two years before the pro-labor musical revue “Pins & Needles” became a big Broadway hit in 1937, “Parade”, another musical featuring pro-labor songs flopped after just 40 performances and the Theatre Guild -- which did so well with “Pins & Needles” just a few years later -- lost $100,000 dollars.  In today’s edition of Labor History Today, we bring you the fascinating prelude to the success of “Pins & Needles”, starting with workers social clubs in Europe and in the United States, and the Worker’s Theatre Movement. Michigan State University College of Music Professor Maria Cristina Fava’s talk, originally given in October 2012, was part of the "Our Daily Work/Our Daily Lives" Brown Bag series sponsored by the Michigan State University School of Human Resources and Labor Relations and the MSU Museum. The series is organized by MSU professor John Beck. For Fava’s in-depth discussion of “Pins & Needles”, check out this edition of Labor History Today.
This week’s show originally aired on Nov. 30, 2022. Questions, comments, or suggestions are welcome, and to find out how you can be a part of Labor History Today, email us at LaborHistoryToday@gmail.com
Labor History Today is produced by the Labor Heritage Foundation and the Kalmanovitz Initiative for Labor and the Working Poor.
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The Irish Immigrant Miners’ Memorial (Encore)

Irish immigrants, who toiled in the silver mines of Leadville, Colorado, in the late 1800s are largely forgotten. Many died penniless, buried in paupers’ graves.  But now a Colorado professor has dug up their stories and their struggles. The Heartland Labor Forum brings us a report on the Irish Immigrant Miners’ Memorial.*** Then, Remember our Struggle with Ariana Blockmon, who covers the 1916 Springfield (MO) Streetcar Strike. ***UPDATE: On Sept. 16th, 2023, at 10:00 am, the Leadville Irish Memorial will be unveiled in Leadville's Evergreen Cemetery. Details here.
On this week’s Labor History in Two: Rufino Contreras (1979).
Questions, comments or suggestions welcome, and to find out how you can be a part of Labor History Today, email us at LaborHistoryToday@gmail.com
Labor History Today is produced by Union City Radio and the Kalmanovitz Initiative for Labor and the Working Poor.
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This week's music: Working Man by The Dubliners; Sprinkle Coal Dust On My Grave by Orville J. Jenks (UMWA); Working Man by The Men Of The Deeps.

Colorado’s lost strike song

The story of how a popular labor song was lost, and then found. From The Labor Exchange, Colorado's only labor focused radio show, airing on KGNU Community Radio, Mondays at 6:00 PM Mountain Time.Questions, comments, and suggestions welcome, and to find out how you can be a part of Labor History Today, email us at LaborHistoryToday@gmail.com
Labor History Today is produced by Union City Radio and the Kalmanovitz Initiative for Labor and the Working Poor.
#LaborRadioPod #History #WorkingClass #ClassStruggle @GeorgetownKILWP #LaborHistory @UMDMLA @ILLaborHistory @AFLCIO @StrikeHistory #LaborHistory @wrkclasshistory