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The Upsurge is a podcast about UPS, the Teamsters, and the future of the American labor movement. It is produced in partnership with In These Times and The Real News Network.

On July 31, the labor contract of over 340,000 UPS workers will expire, and if their demands aren’t met in a new collective bargaining agreement, they may launch one of the largest strikes in US history. The contract fight by the Teamsters union, which represents the workers, may be the most important fight for the labor movement in a generation.

Through interviews with UPS workers themselves, as well as experts and other workers and activists, The Upsurge explores what makes this an unprecedented moment in US history. Please become a patron to keep this show going. The show is produced by NYGP with the help of Ruby Walsh and in partnership with In These Times. Teddy Ostrow is host and co-producer of the show.

Listen to the show on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, YouTube, or anywhere you can listen to podcasts.

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Latest Episode

The Big Three have fallen

After forty-four days on the picket line, the UAW reached tentative agreements with each of the Big Three automakers. GM was the last domino to fall on Saturday, Oct. 30, just days after Ford and then Stellantis acquiesced to their own tentative deals.



Previous Episodes

With concessions already won, the UAW strike escalates

The Stand Up strike has already forced General Motors to fold its electric vehicle battery plants into UAW’s master contract. Now, Ford’s largest truck plant in Kentucky is on strike.

Auto workers may strike next week—here’s why

150,000 United Auto Workers members are on the verge of launching a strike against the Big Three automakers—Ford, General Motors, and Stellantis. The electric vehicle transition’s effects on the industry are a major catalyst.

Teamsters organizing delivers the goods at UPS

UPS Teamsters nationwide are voting on the tentative agreement for the largest private-sector labor contract in the United States. The vote will end on August 22. A majority decision will determine whether the contract is ratified, or the national negotiating committee will return to the bargaining table and potentially call a strike.

United Auto Workers could strike next after Teamsters

150,000 UAW workers at the Big 3 automakers—Ford, GM, and Stellantis—could follow the lead of their UPS union siblings in a strike come September unless a new contract can be negotiated.

The Teamsters take Amazon

Amazon’s non-unionized workforce is an existential threat to the Teamsters—but signs of Amazon workers unionizing with the IBT could change the game.

UPS and the Logistics Revolution

A UPS strike could shake the world economy. Historian Joe Allen explains how the rise of modern logistics owes everything to workers.