{"id":724,"date":"2015-04-30T14:18:08","date_gmt":"2015-04-30T14:18:08","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/thesocietypages.org\/trot\/?p=724"},"modified":"2015-10-13T18:58:38","modified_gmt":"2015-10-13T18:58:38","slug":"may-day-part-i","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/thesocietypages.org\/trot\/2015\/04\/30\/may-day-part-i\/","title":{"rendered":"May Day Part I: The U.S. and Inequality"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"workers<\/a><\/h3>\n

Workers of the World, Unite!<\/h3>\n

Since the late 1800s May Day—the first of May and a traditional European spring celebration—has been recognized as International Workers Day. It\u2019s a time to celebrate working people and the possibilities for international solidarity. On May Day 2015, the state of workers looks rather grim: expanding inequality, increasing fiscal austerity, and degrading working conditions. Amid these negative trends, though, there are glimmers of hope as global workers organize and mobilize to assert their rights, curtail corporate power, and create a more equitable world.<\/p>\n

To mark May Day, we are exploring issues of inequality, labor, and social movements in a three-part series.<\/p>\n

Part I: The U.S. & Inequality<\/h3>\n

Deregulation, privatization, and declining unionization have exacerbated the gulf between rich and poor in the past 50 years. Researchers have documented how much of the increase in wage inequality is due to the weakening of policies and institutions that have historically protected and empowered workers—unions, minimum wage laws, unemployment insurance, and labor law—in addition to structural changes in the economy and labor market.<\/h5>\n