New Seasons Labor Union confronts the boss at the “nicest grocery in Portland”
In August one of Portland’s newest independent unions approached me with a request: they wanted some signs for an upcoming strike. New Seasons Labor Union has organized workers at 11 stores across the Portland metro area, and their employer has consistently refused to bargain with them in good faith. The workers decided that they needed to send a message- and that message was a strike across all the unionized stores.
I took a basic design that the union had come up with and adjusted it for maximum boldness and visibility, and added a few visual flourishes at the workers’ request (some roses, for the Rose City). Then we organized an art party and I printed 400 of them on muslin sheeting, with help from a team from the union who tore fabric, hung and folded prints, and used the great turnout from other workers as an organizing opportunity. I shared some basic techniques for the necessary materials to fit out the signs on short wooden poles.
When the day of the strike rolled around I was out of town, but it was a thrill to watch the action unfold from afar. The Portland chapter of the Democratic Socialists of America (where I do most of my organizing these days) did extensive strike support at most of the striking locations, providing food and drink and mobilizing community members to join the rallies.
The strike worked- the company lost more than a million dollars in sales, and learned a powerful lesson in exactly what power their workers have to turn the tap of their profits on and off. Workers return to the bargaining table this month with a win in their pocket and a demoralized opponent.
Building powerful visual materials like these for the contemporary labor movement is an ongoing project for my partner Erica Thomas and I here in Portland and beyond. In these pics you can see some of the other signs we’ve made for local struggles and strikes, repurposed for this one- and ready for the next!
