David Van Dusen (16:39)

Always a pleasure to be here, Professor. Thanks for having me.

Richard Wolff (16:43)

Today, I want you to talk to us about an event that I learned about taking place on Saturday, April 26, pretty much all day in Burlington, Vermont, at the one community center there, and it's called Becoming Strike Ready in the Green Mountains. You're gathering together folks from the state of Vermont, of course, perhaps even from some other places. And you're talking not just although of course it's important about building the unions and obviously the urgency of that now as much or more than ever. But what caught my attention is, of course, the timing, your choice of timing, and the timing that history is imposing on all of us, namely, that we are in a country undergoing very serious problems and a very how shall I put it politely, dramatic leadership taking us God knows where. And so I noted right away that among your speakers are those talking about the rise of fascism and challenges facing the labor movement. I dare say what you are doing, and please correct me if I'm wrong, is what we might call a rising movement of resistance, people who are not going to simply watch, fearful, worried, anxious, as so many of us are These days, almost with each day's headlines, but people who are prepared to do something. So in introducing you and asking you questions, I want you please to speak as much as you can. You are of course, an individual, but as part of the committee that I understand has organized this event and that includes several unions whose names I want now to read out. The University of Vermont Staff United, a local of the American Federation of Teachers, AFSCME, state, county and municipal employees unions, Local 1674 and Local 3977. And finally, United Food and Commercial Workers, another important union in this country, Local 1459. So let's begin. Tell me about the event on the 26th and what you hope to accomplish with it.

David Van Dusen (19:21)

We are facing a crisis in this country. The American people in general are under attack and unions in particular are under attack. I don't have to tell you that the Trump administration recently is seeking to eliminate the collective bargaining rights of close to 1 million federal workers. 1 million. He has essentially ended FMCs, the Federal Mediation services that unions rely on, and dismantled, taking steps to dismantle the National Labor Relations Board. We are under attack. And this is just the start. Unions need to be an active player in the resistance to this neo fascist move of our federal government. We need to be prepared to take action, to have solidarity and to do whatever it takes to emerge from the other side of this stronger in victorious. On April 26, we are all coming together here in Vermont for an entire day of training. We are going to have top notch trainers come in to talk about how to build shop floor power, how to organize a union if you're not in a union, how to build shop floor power, how to bargain to win, and how to conduct a strike and how to win with a strike. Let's be very clear. We don't know what comes next here in the United States of America. We don't know how far these attacks will go. Our true power is in our labor, our solidarity in our labor. We as a labor movement need to know how to strike. We need to understand that we have the power when we choose to throw down the tools. We need to understand that we need to be united as a movement in an attack on one is an attack on all. Our conference, our emergency conference on April 26, which is open to all, free to everybody, all workers. This will be a first step in getting prepared for these serious challenges to come. It is only a step, but it is a first step.

Richard Wolff (21:18)

It absolutely is. And that's part of why I asked you to come and join Us. Tell me. I know people will wonder, as I do. My hat is off to you. But why is Vermont, the first state that I'm aware of, to do this? And if this requires you to pat yourself on the back for a moment, do it.

David Van Dusen (21:45)

No, I want to be very clear that we need to be having strike trainings. We need to be having serious grassroots rank and file trainings all around the country, in every corner of the country. In Vermont alone is not good enough. This needs to spread everywhere. We need the national AFL CIO to step up, put it into gear, and be unafraid of itself, be unafraid of its power. We need Liz Schuller to realize that while we do need to take court action, while we do need to make statements, statements alone, proclamations alone, will never win in the face of a rising fascism. We need to be bold, we need to be united, and we need to do whatever it takes to win. I'll point out that in 2022, the Vermont AFL CIO brought a resolution to the National AFL CIO Convention stating very clearly that the crisis to democracy that we saw in 2020, 2021, was not over, and we needed to prepare then for a potential general strike after the next election. The national AFL CIO and Liz Shuler buried that resolution, would not allow it to come to the shop floor. We spoke up, myself and Sister Liz Medina. The UAW spoke up from the floor to talk about how that is insane, how we need to take action, how we need to be prepared to fight, and how we can't just rely on elections in the Democratic Party and the courts to save us. Liz Shuler did not agree then, but I invite her, and I invite the national AFL CIO leadership to agree now. We just saw a million workers in the federal government essentially lose their legal right to have a union. At what point, at what point does this mean we have to take action? At what point do we need to step outside the box of what has been done in the past? What point do we need to recognize that we're in a historic moment and we need to be prepared for any eventuality if we're not only going to preserve the labor movement in America, but if we're going to preserve democracy?

Richard Wolff (23:40)

Do you envision coming out of this conference on the 26th? Some specific actions that the folks in Vermont will undertake that will be as important a model as having the conference in the first place?

David Van Dusen (24:01)

Well, I was out in the streets on Saturday with thousands and thousands of Vermonters, as many unions work. We had 10,000 Vermonters, many union members here in our capital, Montpelier alone, which has a population of only 7,800 10,000 were out in the streets, and we had thousands more in Burlington and dozens of communities all around. We need to go beyond resolutions. We need to go beyond making strong statements, and we need to be able to take direct action to defend ourselves, defend our labor movement. I can't say that anything. I can't say that there's going to be decisions at this conference that are going to lead to next steps. But I can say that dozens and dozens and dozens of union leaders and UNCON file members from all across Vermont are going to emerge from this with a better understanding of how to build power with their coworkers and how that power can stretch beyond the shop floor to the community, to the politics at large. And that will make us stronger for it. Now, following up from this conference, we need to have more discussions and more action oriented planning for what we're going to do publicly to push back against this rising far right in the United States. This battle is winnable, but it's only winnable if we act now and if we're unafraid of our own power.

Richard Wolff (25:19)

Sean Fain of the United Auto Workers achieved some fame months ago, not just with the strike that they operated successfully, but with his idea of having union contracts all expire on the last day of April in 2028, I believe is the year. So that in effect, there might be a structural way to have something approaching a general strike. Do you imagine the capability of the American labor movement to do such a thing? And would it be only then, or could it be sooner? Given the speed with which Trump is attempting to move anybody was to tell.

David Van Dusen (26:08)

You that they saw the fall of the Eastern Bloc, the Warsaw Pact, the Soviet Union coming. When it did come, odds are they're playing Monday morning quarterback here. That was something that we did not see coming. We as a people here in the United States today, I can't tell you what's going to come tomorrow. I believe the objective situation is going to drive events, and they could drive events much faster than perhaps we are seeing right now. As far as Shawn Fain's move to have the contracts end on the Same day, May Day, 2028, I believe that's a huge step in the right direction. We need to get into the consciousness of the American worker to show that things like coordinated strikes, withholding our labor on a mass and political scale is possible. Of course, France and countries all across the world do this to great effect. And it's part of their labor culture here in the United States. That labor culture has been paved over for many generations. So fame stepping up and say this or Sarah Nelson from the Flight Attendants also saying that perhaps now is a time where we must be talking about general strike is a great first step in raising that consciousness here in Vermont. The Vermont AFL CIO has also likewise called for all of our Vermont affiliates to try to end their contracts to coincide with Faint's call for 2028. So that's a work in progress. Whether or not strike action on political front happens before that is a question that's yet to be answered. But certainly anybody that's not considering that, anybody that's not looking at that is not being true to what our needs are right now in labor today.

Richard Wolff (27:46)

Do you envision or are there already alliances between the labor movement, that is labor unions already constituted and friendly, let's call them friendly social movement groups in the larger community? Because if we look back in the 1930s and so on, collaboration and cooperation between them was a very crucial part of what the labor movement and they together achieved then.

David Van Dusen (28:16)

Here in Vermont we've worked very hard over the last five plus years to develop those relationships. We have good relationships with migrant justice representing undocumented workers here on the dairy farms here in Vermont. A number of our locals will be going out and supporting their picket lines against Hannaford supermarket of their Milk with Dignity campaign on May Day of this year. We have worked in the past with 350 Vermont and environmental organizations. Absolutely that is something we need to do. And here in Vermont we've been doing it on the national scale. That needs to happen more. If labor does not break out of its silos, we won't have the critical power we need to push back and win. We are only 12.5 million members of the national AFLCO. Across the country country there are tens and tens of millions of more workers. We need to grow the labor movement, but we need to grow those relationships with community groups as we do. And with farmers, I might add. They are struggling too during these times. So we have a long way to go. But that needs to be of a serious strategic concern at every level.

Richard Wolff (29:19)

In the few seconds we have left. Can you tell us where. Anyone interested in your event on the 26th where they could go to learn.

David Van Dusen (29:28)

More, please do an Internet search for the Green Mountain Central Labor Council AFL cio. You'll find a sign up sheet there. It is free to everybody, free childcare. And we want to see you there if you're union or non union, we'll teach you how to form a union. And together we're going to build the power we need to prevail.

Richard Wolff (29:47)

All right, David, Perfect. That's what we wanted. We wanted to show the world that this is happening and to show the rest of the United States at least one possible way forward. Following the folks in Vermont, thank you very, very much for your time and for all the work that you are doing.

David Van Dusen (30:07)

Solidarity.

Richard Wolff (30:09)

And to all of you, as I say at the end of each program, I look forward to speaking with you again next week.