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labor

‘Living like Vampires’: ICE Surge Fractures Daily Life in Deep South Texas

"It's gotten that bad: People don't want to register their children to school. They don't want to do groceries. They don't even want to stop by the store for their morning coffee."

by Gaige Davila

Keep Reading

An Ode to Austin’s Unsung Proletariat

by Irene Vázquez

‘La Causa’ Continues in South Texas

by Rebecca Flores, Juanita Valdez-Cox, and Jim Harrington

As Contract Negotiations Drag On, Texas Starbucks Workers Have Learned the Power of Organizing

by Josephine Lee

Amid concerns of the spread of COVID-19, a worker restocks products at a grocery store in Dallas, Wednesday, April 29, 2020. (AP Photo/LM Otero) May 01, 2020

Will Grocery Workers Still Be ‘Heroes’ When COVID-19 Subsides?

In Texas, grocery employees labor for low wages and few benefits. Now they’re part of a nationwide struggle in which workers are fighting for their lives.

by Gus Bova

Apr 22, 2020

State Employees Criticize Texas’ Uneven Approach to Worker Safety Amid COVID-19

A slow, patchwork response to COVID-19 has jeopardized worker safety for some of Texas’ lowest-paid public employees.

by Gus Bova

In this Feb. 20, 2019, photo a worker carries interior doors to install in a just completed new home in north Dallas. On Wednesday, March 13, the Commerce Department reports on U.S. construction spending in January. (AP Photo/LM Otero) Apr 03, 2020

Construction Workers Labor on, Vulnerable and ‘Essential’

While white collar professionals work remotely, and laid-off service workers seek unemployment, construction laborers are still reporting to job sites.

by Gus Bova

Mar 17, 2020

The COVID-19 Crisis Points the Way Toward a Better Texas

Once the virus passes, there's no reason to let the powerful return peacefully to business as usual.

by Gus Bova

paid sick leave Mar 10, 2020

With Paid Leave Policies, Texas Cities Tried to Prepare for Coronavirus

Too many Texas workers can’t stay home when they’re sick. Two years ago, a movement tried to change that.

by Gus Bova

A Bouchard boat crosses Cape Cod Canal. Mar 05, 2020

Off the Texas Gulf Coast, Tugboat Crews Are Stuck on Their Boats Without Pay

Bouchard Transportation, a massive shipping firm, hasn’t paid docking fees or worker salaries, leading to a rare quandary in U.S. waters.

by Christopher Collins

Five striking workers outside the ASARCO copper refinery in Amarillo. From left to right: Thaland Roberts, Pat Montaño, Zack Roberts, Jerry Andrews, Tannen Andrews. Feb 19, 2020

In Amarillo, Copper Workers’ Strike Enters Fourth Month with No End in Sight

Laborers in the Republican-dominated Texas Panhandle find themselves in a protracted fight with one of the world’s largest copper producers.

by Gus Bova

Nov 22, 2019

‘Almost Akin to a Political Coup’: Houston Teachers Fight Back Against State Takeover of HISD

In a last-ditch effort to stop a state takeover of Texas’ largest school district, the Houston teachers union is suing the state for disenfranchising voters of color.

by Justin Miller

"Poet on a Mountaintop," Shen Zhoe Oct 10, 2019

Short Story Contest Finalist: ‘The Prize’

In this dreamlike tale, a struggling poet sabotages the contest he’s judging.

by Adam Soto

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