2026 Labor Notes Conference: Full Schedule

1:00pm CDT

Building a Healthy, Activist Local Union

Friday June 12, 2026 1:00pm - 2:45pm CDT

Explore creative ways to maximize member participation in contract campaigns... and in the long stretches between contract fights. Learn how to build strong, healthy locals with high involvement year-round. If you have an approach you've found effective, come and share it.

Moderators

Al Davidoff

National Labor Leadership Initiative, author of Unionizing the Ivory Tower: Cornell Workers' 15-Year Fight for Justice and a Living Wage

Friday June 12, 2026 1:00pm - 2:45pm CDT
Lindbergh

Shop Floor Power

3:05pm CDT

Graduate Worker Organizing

Friday June 12, 2026 3:05pm - 4:50pm CDT

Lindbergh

Tens of thousands of graduate student employees are now in unions, and they're making their presence felt on campus as they push for a better working and learning environment. Learn from campaigns to win better protections for international student workers, increase pay even without a union contract, and grow the union by representing workers previously excluded from a contract.

Moderators

Levin Kim

Higher Education Labor United

Speakers

Beth Holden

United Campus Workers-Southeast

Udayan Tandon

United Auto Workers Local 4811

Marta Struve

Graduate Employees' Organization-AFT Local 3550

Friday June 12, 2026 3:05pm - 4:50pm CDT
Lindbergh

New Organizing Educators Contract Campaigns

9:00am CDT

Coordinated Bargaining

Saturday June 13, 2026 9:00am - 10:45am CDT

Lindbergh

Join us for a discussion of coordinated bargaining in various scenarios: within the same union with a common employer, across different unions with a common employer, and across different unions with different employers. Topics will include aligning contracts, coordinating actions and strikes, and negotiations strategy.

Moderators

Mark Brenner

University of Oregon Labor Education and Research Center

Speakers

Sarina Roher

Oregon Federation of Nurses & Health Professionals

Matias Campos

UPTE-CWA and California Nurses

Richelle Milford

Richmond Teachers Association

Saturday June 13, 2026 9:00am - 10:45am CDT
Lindbergh

Bargaining Strategy

11:05am CDT

Telecom Meeting

Saturday June 13, 2026 11:05am - 12:35pm CDT

Lindbergh

Saturday June 13, 2026 11:05am - 12:35pm CDT
Lindbergh

2:15pm CDT

Black Workers and the Public Sector

Saturday June 13, 2026 2:15pm - 4:00pm CDT

Lindbergh

Unionized publc sector employment has been a critical source of stability for Black workers both historically and today. Austerity and attacks on public workers are a threat to this pillar of racial justice. Hear from Black workers about their experience in the public sector and why it's so important for fighting racial inequality.

Moderators

Angela Bonilla

Portland Association of Teachers

Speakers

Margaret Cook

CWA Public, Healthcare and Education Workers

Jonathan Smith

Postal Workers (APWU)

Latisha Thompson

AFGE Local 1793, Federal Unionists Network

Saturday June 13, 2026 2:15pm - 4:00pm CDT
Lindbergh

Government Workers Overcoming Divisions

4:30pm CDT

Bringing Immigrant Workers into Union Life

Saturday June 13, 2026 4:30pm - 6:15pm CDT

Lindbergh

The bosses fear our collective power, so they try to pit us against each other, non-immigrant vs. immigrant. But the more workers are active in the union, the greater our power on the job. Learn how to build a union culture that welcomes and develops immigrant leaders, fosters open discussion to overcome divisions, and builds our collective power.

Moderators

Sarah Lazare

Workday Magazine

Speakers

Paco Arago

Electrical Workers (IBEW) Local 11

Scott Durbin

Electrical Workers (IBEW) Local 666

Rafael Espinosa

SEIU Local 26

Saturday June 13, 2026 4:30pm - 6:15pm CDT
Lindbergh

Immigrant Workers Overcoming Divisions Building Trades Workers

9:00am CDT

Your Caucus Won. Now What?

Sunday June 14, 2026 9:00am - 10:30am CDT

Lindbergh

How does the work of a union reform caucus develop, after you win campaigns against the boss or get a slate into union office? Learn from veteran organizers in three of the longest-running reform caucuses about how their caucuses reflected and evolved in the unions they helped transform.

Moderators

Barbara Madeloni

Labor Notes

Speakers

Basil Darling

Teamsters for a Democratic Union, Teamsters 804

Max Page

Educators for a Democratic Union, Massachussetts Teachers Association

Jackson Potter

Chicago Teachers Union

Sunday June 14, 2026 9:00am - 10:30am CDT
Lindbergh

Reform Caucuses

10:45am CDT

Mieux S'Organiser Pour Gagner

Sunday June 14, 2026 10:45am - 12:30pm CDT

Lindbergh

Êtes-vous découragé lorsque vous essayez d'impliquer vos collègues? Cet atelier est pour vous. Écoutez des exemples de réussite montrant comment d'autres personnes ont transformé leur lieu de travail et ont transformé l'apathie en action. Découvrez des outils d'organisation pratiques pour engager vos collègues, organiser des actions et obtenir des résultats. [Workshop for French speakers only.]

Moderators

Marsha Niemeijer

Steelworkers Local 9544

Sunday June 14, 2026 10:45am - 12:30pm CDT
Lindbergh

Secrets of a Successful Organizer

1:00pm CDT

3:05pm CDT

9:00am CDT

11:05am CDT

2:15pm CDT

4:30pm CDT

9:00am CDT

10:45am CDT

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