Thread by @JortsTheCat

You can’t get what you need unless you ask for (or demand) that thing. This is an idea that applies to so many situations but let’s use an example of American workers rights and the NLRB. This is a thread fyi

In the US if you encounter sketchy stuff, you have to REPORT it to get the NLRB’s help.

Like if you’re trying to form a union and a boss is intimidating you or doing “persuader activity” by paying someone else to do it, file a complaint. Anyone can do it nlrb.gov/resources/nlrb…

I’m not saying it’s not clunky. It’s super clunky tbh. But now in 2022 we have an NLRB that is as friendly to workers as we have had in a long time. You also only have a certain amount of time, and they aren’t allowed to investigate without a report.
worker.gov/actions/nlrb-c…

I’m going to explain what some of these letters mean but you can also google the acronyms. The NLRB is the National Labor Relations Board. It’s an independent agency who is supposed to help protect workers covered by the NLRA- National Labor Relations Act.
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_…

One bonkers thing is that the NLRA was passed way back in 1935, but it still has some big holes that make stuff really unfair. Like it doesn’t cover farm workers or domestic workers (like people who take care of babies inside their homes). I don’t want to go off topic FOCUS JORTS

Ok anyway. If your boss is intimidating you or ignoring your rights at work, you have to report it or the NLRB can’t help you.

It’s scary but if you already have an organizer helping, they’ll hopefully know how to protect your rights while you’re doing this really brave thing

I’m just a cat with a Twitter account, but there are good places to get real advice, even specific to the state where you work. You can search “labor board” and the state you live in, or you can look for a workers resource center near you. A lot of them have easy helpful hotlines

The @NLRB website has good info but ultimately no matter how helpful they want to be, they can’t help unless you ask them to and sometimes that’s a long process.

It’s a bit funny that the best protection at work is a union but it takes so much hard and brave work to form one

You can build power other ways, too. Take direct action, where you stand together without formalities to demand what you need or refuse bad things.

We can also work to change laws in our city or state to raise wages or level the playing field in other ways

There are so many ways to help each other and the NLRB is just one tool. We really can’t get what we need unless we all demand what we deserve.

Think about the phrase “earn a living.” Isn’t that a weird idea? Everyone deserves a living, we all have value

No one person needs to save everyone though, that’s the great thing. We can all help each other even when it’s intimidating. There are a lot more workers than there are bosses, and they need us or else nothing gets done.

United we really do have power, when we are brave together