“Striketober” of 2021 was Small Fries Compared to What’s About to Happen
The largest US strike wave in over 50 years might have already begun
In 2021, the US experienced strikes by roughly 250,000 workers in the midst of the pandemic and the economic hardship that came along with it. As the courses of several strikes converged in October of that year, it was popularly dubbed “striketober.”
Since then, economic hardship has only gotten worse for most of us, and the militant spirit among workers has continued to increase. Now, we are likely on the threshold of a strike wave that will be over twice the size of striketober.
Why Care?
Why does this matter to you if you’re not one of those preparing to strike?
Because waves of workplace direct action can cascade, like a few stray rocks becoming a landslide. This may already be what we are witnessing. When bosses are then forced to make concessions, those too can have a cascading effect within and across industries that benefits more workers.
In other words, victory for the workers in these strikes could be very good news for lots of us. However, it would be bad news for people who derive profit from workers being paid less (employers and investors).
