This week on The Labor Force Podcast, we cover a country in motion—from federal workers trapped in a shutdown to Jamaican farmworkers fighting for their rights, Houston hotel staff winning big, and healthcare and aerospace workers holding the line. We also look at Volkswagen’s union showdown, the rise of white-collar organizing, and Shawn Fain’s call for a unified working-class movement built on fair wages, healthcare, retirement, and time.

Topics Covered:

• Government Shutdown Fallout: Federal workers locked out, laid off, and fighting back as the shutdown grinds on.

• Houston Hilton Victory: Historic 40-day strike by UNITE HERE Local 23 wins major gains in Texas hospitality.

• Kaiser Permanente Strike: Tens of thousands of healthcare workers walk out for wages, staffing, and dignity.

• Boeing’s St. Louis Showdown: Strikers face replacement workers and silence from the national media.

• Volkswagen’s “Final Offer”: Unionized Chattanooga workers weigh transparency vs. pressure tactics.

• Jamaican Apple Pickers’ Stand: Farmworkers in upstate New York fight for a suspended contract and real rights.

• White-Collar Union Wave: Tech, legal, and office workers redefine what collective bargaining looks like.

• Shawn Fain & the Future of Labor: How “wages, healthcare, retirement, and time” could unify a fractured working class.