Dear rabble readers,
For as long as there have been humans, there has been labour.
As the world marched forward—particularly with the onset of the Industrial Revolution and the rise of capitalism—the nature of labour and the challenges it posed changed dramatically.
Today, as late-stage capitalism and various other forms of semi-fascist authoritarianism are turning the planet into a churned and toxic killing field, the challenges we face—from super exploitation, to genocide, to climate change disasters—are even more dire than before. Our need for pro-labour news coverage and analysis grows every day, especially with a multi-media chorus of lies and misdirection blaring so loudly we can hardly think.
And make no mistake. We need clear thought, accurate information and useful analysis more desperately than ever before. We must think and act as if our lives depend upon it, because they do.
As always in human history, the fight is to reduce exploitation and give workers more power. But it is also to end genocidal racism in all its forms and to rescue the planet and its intricate web of life from torrents of industrial vandalism and cascades of species extinction.
We have a lot of work to do and not much time left before it is too late.
But don’t just take my word for it. If you have any doubts about how dire the situation is for workers these days, I commend your attention to the International Trade Union Confederation’s 2025 Global Rights Index.
This survey of the state of workers’ rights around the globe is full of bad news. The Confederation says: “We are witnessing a coup against democracy: a concerted, sustained assault by state authorities and the corporate underminers of democracy on the rights and welfare of workers. Increasingly, this attack is orchestrated by far-right demagogues backed by billionaires who are determined to reshape the world in their own interests at the expense of ordinary working people.”
Meanwhile, the International Labour Organization in one of its most recent assessments notes that: “Despite widespread commitments to protect labour rights, violations like retaliation for organizing or restrictions on collective bargaining remain common. These are more than legal infractions – they are structural barriers to decent work, social justice, and inclusive economic growth.”
And in Canada, having won a Mark Carney victory, the Liberal regime is busy imposing an essentially conservative agenda, including power grabs that will, unless defeated, impose new restrictions on worker rights and organizing, especially in the zone of big resource extraction projects like oil sands and pipelines, thus threatening our rights as workers and the health of our environment with one swift rightward lunge.
We need to keep a sharp eye on all of this, and that is one of the many good reasons to read, donate to and promote rabble with the people you work with, your relatives and friends.
rabble’s excellent labour coverage includes:
- The RadioLabour Canadian edition
- The Courage My Friends podcast in collaboration with the Tommy Douglas Institute at George Brown College
- Original reporting from labour beat reporter Gabriela Calugay-Casuga and rabble editor Nick Seebruch and many others who provide a variety of progressive perspectives about what we confront and how we can contend with the ongoing “war on the workers.”
- From time to time, I chime in with my monthly labour columns and occasional pro-labour book reviews.
We have a lot to lose and the whole world to win.
Let’s join the fight together. Become a rabble rouser and support the labour reporting rabble has to offer in the year to come.
In solidarity,
Tom Sandborn
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Nick Seebruch, editor
