A postmortem from Indybay about the Oakland strike
Truckers are striking all over. For the past decade, truckers have been trying to get organized, and overcoming challenges. The primary one being their classification as independent contractors, not employees. Though they work the same job as a trucker who is an employee, the contractor status means that the employer doesn't compensated for Social Security and other benefits.
This issue of status extends well beyond truckers, but the current battle the Troqueros are fighting, and the way they are fighting it, are an object lesson in contemporary organizing. Atomized by the "market", they used cel phones and CBs to communicate, figure out demands, and meetings to self-organize.
Other jobs where people are considered "IC"s or independent contractors include strippers, bike messengers, sweatshop workers, high tech temp workers, and maids. Unlike true contractors, these ICs don't have multiple clients or market-established rates; the categorization is generally used industry-wide so that the owners can escape labor laws. It's a loophole that's been opened wide, and is being used to exploit workers.
The Troqueros self-organizing isn't uniqe, but is rare in recent years. Unions for independent workers exist all over Los Angeles: the Hollywood unions aren't entirely dissimilar, and organize people who are employed by multiple employers.
