Unions undertake nearly 1,000 "Workers Over Billionaires" protests against Trump across US - key points

Nearly 1,000 “Workers Over Billionaires” protests are being planned across the U.S. this Labor Day to stand against President Donald Trump’s attacks on workers’ rights. The May Day Strong coalition is leading the effort. It includes big labor groups like AFL-CIO, American Federation of Teachers, National Union of Healthcare Workers, and advocacy groups such as Americans for Tax Fairness, Indivisible, Our Revolution, and Public Citizen.

The coalition says, “Labor and community are planning more than a barbecue on Labor Day this year because we have to stop the billionaire takeover.” They accuse billionaires of stealing from working families, destroying democracy, and building private armies, according to the report by Common Dreams.

Trump record on workers

Since taking office, the Trump administration has attacked workers’ rights. His actions include stripping over 1 million federal workers of collective bargaining rights (largest union-busting move in U.S. history), cutting their wages, weakening workplace safety rules, removing protections against wage theft, and proposing to eliminate the federal minimum wage for 3.7 million childcare and home workers, as per the reports.


Even with these attacks, Americans support unions. A Gallup poll released Thursday shows 68% approval of labor unions, the highest since the mid-1960s. The coalition says, “Just like any bad boss, the way we stop the takeover is with collective action.” This same group earlier organized huge May Day rallies, bringing hundreds of thousands of workers into the streets. Now, they are preparing for nationwide protests again, across all 50 states on Monday.

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Billionaires and protests

Since then, anger has grown because Republicans passed a major tax cut. Critics say it may be the largest wealth transfer upward in U.S. history, giving huge breaks to the rich while cutting social safety net programs, according to the report by Common Dreams.

Saqib Bhattie, executive director of the Action Center on Race and the Economy, said there are nearly 1,000 billionaires in the U.S. with $6 trillion, but they still want more. He accused them of pushing cuts to Medicaid, SNAP benefits, and special education funding to fund their tax breaks. He called for taxing billionaires at state and local levels and building people power.

The protests will also target Trump’s attacks on immigrants and his militarized control of U.S. cities. Lisa Gilbert, co-president of Public Citizen, said this Labor Day is about fighting for democracy, the soul of the nation, and against Trump’s authoritarian moves that help billionaires and hurt workers, as stated in the report by Common Dreams.

Randi Weingarten, president of the American Federation of Teachers, said this year is different because it’s not only about unions. She said, “All workers and families must say enough. Workers deserve the bounty of the country.” Before the protests, May Day Strong will host a national online “mass call” on Saturday. Protest locations for Monday can be found on the coalition’s website, as mentioned by reports.

FAQs

Q1. Why are unions holding Workers Over Billionaires protests on Labor Day?
Unions and groups are protesting because they say Trump’s policies hurt workers’ rights and help billionaires.

Q2. How many Workers Over Billionaires protests are planned in the U.S.?
Nearly 1,000 protests are planned nationwide across all 50 states on Labor Day.