An orientation to the weekend’s events. Hear from EWOC Conference Planners and Labor@Wayne about the direction and vision for the conference, and a guided overview of the program that highlights all the sessions you’ll want to attend!
DOGE got you down? Good news: federal workers across the country are coming together, standing up, and fighting for better working conditions—and you have the opportunity to learn from two of them how to do it! You’ll learn how to talk to your coworkers about your right to organize and practice “unilateral unionism,” where you act like a union even if the law says otherwise.
Saturday June 28, 2025 9:00am - 11:00am EDT McGregor Room E495 Gilmour Mall, Detroit, MI 48202
How do you work to bridge racial divisions in your workplace? Why is this work so central to labor organizing? Come hear from organizers who have been at the heart of organizing across racial, ethnic and linguistic divisions in their workplaces, and what they did to achieve unity despite the challenges they faced. Spend time workshopping the divisions you yourself must overcome in your campaign, and what steps you can take to advance.
Saturday June 28, 2025 9:00am - 11:00am EDT McGregor Room C495 Gilmour Mall, Detroit, MI 48202
Learn the core building blocks of any organizing effort: the “who” and the “how” - who do you talk to first, and how do get them on board? We will go from big picture - mapping and charting - to the minutiae of a good organizing conversation that builds trust and gets to the issues.
Meet other conference attendees who are part of regional and local formations within EWOC - learn about their successes, challenges, and how to connect to EWOC volunteers near you!
Saturday June 28, 2025 11:00am - 12:30pm EDT McGregor Room J495 Gilmour Mall, Detroit, MI 48202
Under the Trump Administration, federal workers face an unprecedented attack on their right to organize. But these workers are fighting back. Come learn how federal workers are central to the movement for the expansion of public services and democracy and to the right for all workers to organize
Saturday June 28, 2025 2:00pm - 3:30pm EDT McGregor Room E495 Gilmour Mall, Detroit, MI 48202
The South has been the breeding ground for the most anti-union tactics in the country, from gutting public sector unions to brutal private sector boss fights. Despite the uphill battle that workers face in states like Florida and the Carolinas, organizers have been experimenting with new tactics to fight back. These lessons and insights can provide a vision for how our organizing models across the country can shift and expand as these anti-union tactics pick up strength nationally under the Trump administration.
Saturday June 28, 2025 2:00pm - 3:30pm EDT McGregor Room C495 Gilmour Mall, Detroit, MI 48202
Building a union is always hard work. But in certain workplaces, the task of winning union certification and a contract may not be viable for many years to come. Workers in those jobs may feel they have no options, but in reality there are age-old models of unionism they can pursue. We call this type of organizing “pre-majority unionism…
From trans rights to Palestinian liberation, labor is central to every fight for liberation. Instead of seeing these as separate issues and demands, how do we make the question of solidarity central to our fellow workers and our unions? How can we use our shared struggle as workers to overcome the prejudices and hatred that have seeped into the fabric of our society? Hear from workers who are answering these questions in their organizing and join discussions as we wrestle with the big topics of our time.
Saturday June 28, 2025 4:00pm - 5:30pm EDT McGregor Room J495 Gilmour Mall, Detroit, MI 48202
Conference day one: in the books! Mingle with your fellow conference attendees at Detroit’s Museum of Contemporary Art. We’ll provide the cash bar, you bring the comradery. Food will not be served.
