Building Solidarity in Grassroots Social Movements: A Case Study of Transit Riders and Workers

• In Event: 20881 - Section on Labor and Labor Movements Roundtables
  In Refereed Roundtable (60 minute): Table 7: The Materiality of Labor

Abstract

How can labor unions and grassroots social movements build solidarity to advance a just transition? Public transportation is one such employment sector with the potential to leverage labor and community power to advance social, environmental, and economic justice. By expanding and improving transit service, we promote the common good, lower greenhouse gas emissions, and ensure the protection of union jobs. However, austerity is a key elite strategy that obfuscates connections between working conditions and the provision of public goods. Despite the potential for common ground, in its application, austerity policies, such as fare enforcement, service cuts, and routine disinvestment, serve as wedges between union workers and community members. This paper examines the role of labor-community partnerships in shaping the organizational field by analyzing alliance-building efforts between community organizers in Pittsburghers for Public Transit (PPT) and members of the Amalgamated Transit Union (ATU) Local 85, which represents transit operators and workers in Pittsburgh. Specifically, I assess PPT’s “Worker Fellowship” program, designed to encourage ATU member activism within PPT and foster participation in a member-led workshop. Through this case study, I document key strategies, practices, opportunities, and challenges in building worker-rider solidarity, which have important implications for movement-building practice and strategy. Iterating on social movement and organizational sociology literature, I argue building relationships and trust is a key mediating process in strengthening partnerships between transit workers and transit riders. I find that PPT strategically leveraged connections to retired transit workers to extend partnerships between community organizers and union members to build worker participation in PPT’s campaigns to secure statewide funding for public transportation. Retirees served as bridgebuilders, with rich histories of collective action, helped consolidate the organizational field and present a united labor-community position. I conclude by discussing the broader implications for labor-community partnerships in key transitional sectors like public transportation.

Author

• Connor M. Chapman, University of Pittsburgh