Liberation Road

Get a Rank & File Job! A Note to Young Activists

The student movement has been fertile ground for the left. Time away from the daily grind of work, exposure to a wide variety of ideas and experiences changed many people’s lives. Thirty years ago political activists coming out of college chose to get a job in the workplace — hospitals, factories, hotels— to build for a working class-led revolution.

But these days, more and more young activists choose to work as staff in politically oriented non-profits or less often as staff within unions.

With the economy in the toilet, recent grads are finding it difficult to land a job in their “field.” Progressive NGOs are struggling for funds cutting out another prevalent employment scene for educated leftists. Maybe it’s time to (re)consider becoming a rank and file worker. Those college skills will be used, but not in the way that might have been envisioned.

Read our pamphlet to find out why we think the workplace is still a major site of struggle for workers. Find out why we think rank and file work can be a strategic path towards building the power of those oppressed by capitalism from the workplace.