Is warehousing sexy? Short answer according Kevin Lawton: Yes! In this episode of the Transfix Take On, founder of The New Warehouse Podcast, Kevin Lawton takes on the State of Warehousing. Learn the sexiest new technologies that make warehouse operations the most efficient they’ve ever been, what a dock worker goes through especially in the heat o the summer, the growing conversation of sustainability in the space, and common misconceptions of warehouse workers.

Disclaimer: All views and opinions expressed in this podcast are those of the speakers and do not necessarily reflect the views or positions of Transfix, Inc. or any parent companies or affiliates or the companies with which the participants are affiliated, and may have been previously disseminated by them. The views and opinions expressed in this podcast are based upon information considered reliable, but neither Transfix, Inc. nor its affiliates, nor the companies with which such participants are affiliated, warrant its completeness or accuracy, and it should not be relied upon as such. All such views and opinions are subject to change.

The Transfix Take On: The State of Warehousing with Kevin Lawton

If you're not a patron you can get the full episode by visiting patreon.com/workstoppage and support us with $5 a month.

Episode 3 - Operation Underworld

Joe Ryan's two and a half decades of leadership of the International Longshoremen's Association could be most charitably described as "stable." His focus on labor peace at nearly any cost and his cozy relationship with the shipping companies, gangsters, and the federal government created a series of strange relationships as the country entered World War 2. Finding mobsters useful in keeping radical organizers off the docks, the federal government struck a deal with the same criminal forces they would later condemn union officials for working with. However, even with strongarm goons and redbaiting as his go-to tactics, Ryan could not totally keep a lid on post-war discontent by workers returning to find low wages and inhuman treatment while shipping bosses made millions. The Rank and File made their voice heard, by whatever means they could find.

Main sources for this series include: Reds or Rackets by Howard Kimeldorf, Strife on the Waterfront by Vernon Jensen, New York Longshoremen: Class and Power on the Docks by William Mello, and Mobsters, Unions, and Feds by James Jacobs. Clips from YouTube.

Join the discord: discord.gg/tDvmNzX 

Follow the pod at instagram.com/workstoppage, @WorkStoppagePod on Twitter,  John @facebookvillain, and Lina @solidaritybee

Overtime Episode 46 PREVIEW - Unions and The Mob: The ILA - Pt 3

We have another transit heavy episode this week. First we start with our headlines including Alaska Airlines Flight Attendants, East Coast Dockworkers, Maine DOT workers, and Italian transit workers. In our main stories we start with this week's strike by 60,000 healthcare workers at the University of California. Next, we discuss this past Friday's massive one day general strike by workers in all sectors across Greece. Attacks on trans folks have hit a fever pitch, we discuss how healthcare workers across the country are standing up for trans rights. The mass firing of federal workers continued this week, as did the early stages of a fightback. Finally, we discuss the continued efforts by workers at Delta, both on board and on the ground, to finally unionize.

Join the discord: discord.gg/tDvmNzX 

Follow the pod at instagram.com/workstoppage, @WorkStoppagePod on Twitter,  John @facebookvillain, and Lina @solidaritybee

More info on the show at http://workstoppagepod.com/

Ep 248 - General Strike Yes, Aimless Boycott No

Migrant Justice Petition: https://migrantjustice.net/node/556

Headlines this week from PetSmart, the Monterey Bay Aquarium, Wellesley College, Kroger,  and the Port of Casablanca. We discuss a piece this week from The American Prospect on the rampant abuse of independent contractor labels in the construction industry. Also this week, attacks on immigrant workers continued to escalate with 8 dairy workers arrested in Vermont. Trump's tariffs continue to wreak havoc on workers, with many manufacturers cutting, rather than increasing jobs. Finally, we check in with Starbucks Workers United, where workers have taken to direct action as the company continues to refuse to offer a fair contract after three years.

Join the discord: discord.gg/tDvmNzX 

Follow the pod at instagram.com/workstoppage, @WorkStoppagePod on Twitter,  John @facebookvillain, and Lina @solidaritybee

More info on the show at http://workstoppagepod.com/

Ep 256 - The Cows Don't Milk Themselves

Student Workers of Columbia Petition: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSffy00B2Ns3ssleCKD8JIPdyav9vIIjFeydhfj2w86K1NfwYA/viewform

Its another supersized episode as we try our best to catch up to the unending cascade of news in the labor world. We start with headlines from PetSmart, Airgas, Italian dock and textile workers, the WNBA, Amazon, Raven Software, and Hormel. For our main stories, this week we really focus in on the attacks on public workers, starting across the pond with the ruthless austerity facing doctors at the NHS. Next we discuss Trump's move to tear up union contracts at the VA and EPA. We also dive into the attempt to roll back reforms won through the working class struggle in the 1960s and 70s, removing crucial regulations. Finally, we dive into the specific assault on teachers, where it comes from, and whether it's really as "populist" as our media would like us to believe.

Join the discord: discord.gg/tDvmNzX 

Follow the pod at instagram.com/workstoppage, @WorkStoppagePod on Twitter,  John @facebookvillain, and Lina @solidaritybee

Ep 270 - They're Flooding the Zone

No Contract, No Coffee Pledge: https://starbucksworkersunited.controlshift.app/petitions/no-contract-no-coffee-pledge-to-act-in-solidarity-with-starbucks-workers-united

We're back at full strength as John returns this week, and it was a busy one! We start with headlines from Microsoft, Apple, Volkswagen, Aricell, RISE, Northwell Health, Oklahoma Public Schools, Spirit Airlines, and Starbucks. In a wild story from friend of the show Claudia Irizarry Aponte at The City, managers at Brooklyn Defender Services tried to bribe workers to replace the UAW with a company union. We've got an update on the continuing mobilization of Italian workers in solidarity with Palestine, as dockworkers from around Europe pledge efforts to coordinate. Teamsters at the University of Minnesota brilliantly used their leverage to win the first strike in their history. Canada Post workers are on strike once again, this time as the Liberal government launches attempts to gut postal service nationwide. Finally, in the spirit of many recent worker uprisings, we check in on the struggle in Ecuador, where Indigenous-led movements are fighting IMF austerity.

Join the discord: discord.gg/tDvmNzX 

Follow the pod at instagram.com/workstoppage, @WorkStoppagePod on Twitter,  John @facebookvillain, and Lina @solidaritybee

Ep 277 - Defend the Post

Welcome to the Transfix Take On, a show for the logistics and supply chain world where we switch gears into the hot topics of trucking. For more information, visit: www.transfix.io

New tracks tagged #dock workers