Striketober: US Labor Activism Compares Favorably to Recent Large Scale French Strikes

Halfway through October, labor activism in the United States reached a fever pitch. Across the country, workers in a wide variety of industries are authorizing strikes at record numbers.[1] Meanwhile employers who were already facing a labor shortage struggle to find replacements, emboldening striking workers.[2] Put simply, American organized labor is seeing a historic surge of activity.

            In order to understand the uniqueness, and potential for success, of the US labor movement right now, it is useful to contrast the current flurry of activity with France, a peer nation’s, recent widespread labor protests. In 2019, France saw significant labor stoppages in response to President Emmanuel Macron’s proposed pension reforms.[3] The strikes were the biggest show of force by France’s formidable labor movement in decades.[4]

            At the time, such widespread labor activity was outside the realm of possibility in the US. Many outside the country watched French unions flex their muscles in envy. US media reported that “powerful” French unions have “paralyzed” the country and brought essential services to a “grinding halt.”[5] From across the Atlantic, it was hard to imagine a similar reality in America, where both union membership and influence has consistently declined since the 1950s.

            However, when the Covid-19 pandemic upended our lives, it brought along fundamental changes to the US’s economic reality and set the stage for the once unlikely boom in labor activism occurring now. What’s more is that current conditions put the ongoing strikes across the United States in the position to actually be more successful than the 2019 French pension strikes. Several key distinctions indicate that US workers, in addition to having righteous grievances, are responding and leveraging to favorable market trends that put them in a position to exert maximum pressure on employers.

            First, different types of workers are going on strike. In France, it was primarily public employees (in particular the national rail system and the Paris underground and bus network) who went on strike.[6] Alternatively, the US is seeing widespread strikes across a variety of private-sector industries; nurses, factory workers and auto workers make up just some of the strikers right now.[7]

            Additionally, the factors spurring the activity are different. French workers went on strike to demonstrate political opposition to President Macron’s pension reform proposal.[8] US workers have seethed in opposition to many political and economic realities for decades, but no one policy is motivating the action. Rather, several factors have combined to encourage labor activity: (1) the labor shortage has put employers in a more vulnerable position and increased worker confidence[9], (2) essential workers realized their irreplaceability during the pandemic[10], (3) the pandemic brought about a general reevaluation of priorities to the American workforce.[11] “We’ve never had the deck stacked in our advantage the way it is now," Chris Laursen, one of 10,000 striking John Deere workers told the New York Times.[12] In short, due to a unique confluence of factors, all the US labor movement needed was a spark in order to catch on like wildfire.

            Finally, it is important to note the role government plays in any labor movement. In France, workers were protesting against the government.[13] In the US, unprecedented support from Washington is yet another factor encouraging workers to demand more and cease work.[14] A Biden appointed National Labor Relations Board[15], an ally in the White House and Democrats controlling both houses of Congress, further increases union leverage at the bargaining table. President Biden has vowed to be “the most pro-union president in American History”[16] and union workers heard him loud and clear. Much of the success of a strike depends on the confidence the striking workers have in the outcome. Government support is an important factor contributing to the success of labor movements.

            Just a few years ago, some were wondering whether the US labor movement was dead.[17] However, the only thing certain in life is change. With powerful allies in Washington and consistent economic trends finally on their side, American workers are ready to leverage their power to demand better conditions and fairer wages.

Caroline Hymes is a staff member of Fordham International Law Journal Volume XLV.

This is a student blog post and in no way represents the views of the Fordham International Law Journal.
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[1] See Ian Kullgren, Brian Eckhouse, & Deena Shanker, U.S. Labor Unions are Having a Moment, Bloomberg (Oct. 15, 2021), https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2021-10-15/u-s-labor-unions-are-having-a-moment.

[2] See Id.

[3] See Noemie Bisserbe, French Protesters Turn Up Pressure on Macron Over Pensions, Wall Street J. (Dec. 17, 2019), https://www.wsj.com/articles/french-protesters-turn-up-pressure-on-macron-over-pensions-11576585939.

[4] See Silvia Amaro, France Hit by Nationwide Strike as Workers Protest Over Pension Reforms, CNBC (Dec. 5, 2019), https://www.cnbc.com/2019/12/05/france-strike-public-workers-protest-against-macron-pension-reform.html.

[5] See Bisserbe, supra, note 2; Jacob Hamburger, The Fury in France, N.Y. Times (Dec. 10, 2019), https://www.nytimes.com/2019/12/10/opinion/france-strike-macron.html; Strikes Against Macron’s Pension Plans Shut Down Much of France, N.Y. Times (Dec. 5, 2019). https://www.nytimes.com/2019/12/05/world/europe/france-strike-pensions.html.

[6] See Cole Stangler, These Pension Strikes May Be Historic, but French Unions are Weaker than they Seem, The Guardian (Jan. 28, 2020), https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2020/jan/28/french-unions-strikes-emmanuel-macron-pension-reforms.

[7] See Courtenay Brown, New Wave of Strikes Will Test Worker Power, Axios (Oct. 16, 2021), https://www.axios.com/new-wave-of-strikes-worker-power-07f5df47-8825-4e76-a951-c8812d686d94.html.

[8] See Strikes Against Macron’s Pension Plans Shut Down Much of France, supra note 5.

[9] See Kullgren, Eckhouse & Shanker, supra note 1.

[10]See Id.

[11] See Juliana Kaplan & Andy Kiersz, Welcome to #Striketober, Business Insider (Oct. 16, 2021), https://www.businessinsider.com/what-is-striketober-kelloggs-john-deere-iatse-strike-labor-2021-10.

[12] See Noam Scheiber, John Deere Workers Strike in Contract Dispute, N.Y. Times (Oct. 14, 2021), www.nytimes.com/2021/10/14/business/economy/john-deere-strike.amp.html.

[13] See Bisserbe, supra note 3.

[14] See Brown, supra note 7.

[15] See Ronald Taylor & Teresa Biviano, The Pro-Labor Shift Has Arrived: NLRB General Counsel's New Agenda Signals Significant Changes Coming to Labor Law, Venable LLP (Sept. 10, 2021), https://www.venable.com/insights/publications/2021/09/the-pro-labor-shift-has-arrived-nlrb-general; Francine Esposito, Rachel A. Gonzalez, & Laura H. Schuman, Out With The Old, In With The New: President Biden Shakes Up Federal Labor Law, Day Pitney LLP (Mar. 3, 2021), https://www.daypitney.com/insights/publications/2021/03/03-out-with-the-old-biden-federal-labor-law.

[16] See Abigail Johnson Hass, Biden Promises To Be ‘The Most Pro-Union President’—And Union Members In Congress Are Optimistic, CNBC (Dec. 2, 2020), https://www.cnbc.com/2020/12/01/biden-promises-to-be-the-most-pro-union-president-and-rep.html.

[17] See Kullgren, Eckhouse and Shanker, supra, note 1.