These are some noteworthy labor headlines we read this week.

Weekly Labor Reads:


TOP STORY

How Trump's EEOC is attacking DEI and emphasizing white people


The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) was created out of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 to address entrenched employment discrimination against Black Americans. In the decades since, the EEOC has expanded its initiatives to enforce fair workplace standards and protect against discrimination for the most vulnerable workers. But now, the Trump-appointed head of the commission, Adrea Lucas, has turned a new focus to alleged discrimination against white workers. In 2024, the EEOC began investigating Nike to see whether they disadvantage white people in their hiring practices. The agency also made a Planned Parenthood affiliate pay $500,000 to settle charges of harassment and discrimination against white people. Late last year, Lucas made a direct appeal to white men to come forward if they believe they've been disadvantaged due to their sex or race. This can be understood as part of the Trump administration's broad effort to undermine “DEI” and programs meant to serve marginalized groups. 


NPR

Andrea Hsu

NEW RESEARCH


UCLA study finds California Latinos are working more, earning less


Los Angeles Times

Nicole Macias Garibay and Carlos De Loera

COLLECTIVE ACTION


“No Kings” Organizers & Indivisible Pivot to May Day General Strike


PayDay Report

Mike Elk

L.A. LABOR NEWS


LA County unions pledge support for possible LAUSD strike as teachers push for new deal


ABC 7

Leo Stallworth

UNION POLITICS


A House of Labor Divided


The American Prospect

Harold Meyerson

IRLE NEWS

MEMORY WORK


Power from the Past: Inspiring organizing in the present and future


UCLA IRLE

FARMWORKERS


California is expanding support for farmworkers through the Rural Strategic Engagement Program


CA Labor & Workforce Development Agency

Mentions UCLA Labor Center

POWER FROM THE PAST!

The Memory Work Research Initiative (MWRI) engages community partners, activists, scholars and students in a thoughtful process of collecting, preserving and sharing the rich history of organizing in Southern California. The MWRI strives to establish collaborative modes of remembrance grounded in the IRLE’s commitment to advancing quality education and employment for all. 

"Mop Man" Street Theater, 1992


The Justice for Janitors campaign of the 1980s-2000s frequently used street theater to enliven their demonstrations and dramatize their cause. Among their most recognizable characters was a luchador named Mop Man, who in comics and performances defended janitors against abuses by the boss. Pictured here: Mop Man featured in a street theater performance at the headquarters of the Toyota Corp. in Torrance during Justice for Janitors’ campaign against ABM (American Building Maintenance) in 1992. Learn more about Justice for Janitors on the Memory Work website

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UCLA's Institute for Research on Labor and Employment (IRLE) advances labor research and education for workplace justice. Through the work of its units – the UCLA Labor Center, the Human Resources Roundtable, the Labor Occupational Safety and Health program (LOSH) and its academic program, UCLA Labor Studies – the Institute forms wide-ranging research and agendas that carry UCLA into the Los Angeles community and beyond.

 
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