WHAT TO KNOW ABOUT A GENERAL STRIKE

To start… What is a General Strike? And have they happened before?

A general strike is broadly defined as stoppage of work by a substantial proportion of workers in a number of industries in an organized endeavour to achieve economic or political objectives. During the early years of the American Labor Movement General strikes were called almost once a decade. Further Reading

Who is calling for the current General Strike?

A number of grassroots groups, faith leaders and labor organizations have been calling for a show of solidarity in ICE Out Everywhere programs through various forms of economic action. Minneapolis Regional Labor Federation Press Release

What Are Some of the Ways I Can Participate?

Work stoppage, economic boycott, collective action, mutual aid. 

So a General Strike isn’t Only About Work Stoppage?

Correct. There are a number of ways to flex economic power in solidarity with the people of Minneapolis. A buying freeze or all-out-Fridays where you join grass roots organizations by making calls to private equity firms that prop up ICE through shadow investments, or supporting mutual aids that help immigrant families.  

If I decide to participate through work stoppage does the NLRA protect refusing to work in support of a broad national political/general strike? 

Broadly, no, the National Labor Relations Act does not provide employment protection for refusing work in support of a broad strike. 

What if I’m represented under a Collective Bargaining Agreement?

Still, likely no. The determination does not change whether it is a new unit, a unit with an expired CBA, a unit with a CBA that is silent on strikes, or a unit with an explicit no strikes clause.

 What if my co-workers and I call in sick? Can we be punished?

It depends heavily on the work stoppage clause in your unit's CBA. You could still be disciplined as a legal matter, if not a practical “you can’t fire all of us” model. Read closely your CBA provisions regarding sick time or sick leave. Yours may say that management cannot ask for a sick note until after you have called in sick X number of days in a row.

Ultimately, if you want to take action in solidarity with the people of Minneapolis, you have to organize collectively to keep staff protected, like by everyone calling out sick together and saying “you can't fire all of us” if management tries to discipline. Assess your risk tolerances individually and as a collective. (And we can help you!) 

I want to show solidarity in action. Is it now or never?

By all accounts, no. While there is an intentional de-centralization of leadership so that organizations and rapid responders can remain nimble, the calls for economic blackout and general strike appear to be part of a larger plan to develop these actions and systems for the broadest geographic coalition possible, more simply this is a pilot program for a larger national strike/economic blackout. Whether or not you and your co-workers decide to do a work stoppage on January 30th, now is a great time to have conversations as a collective about risk tolerances and materially effective action you can take together.