Workers’ Rights Battle Goes National at Pivotal Time for Labor

Unions and their allies are planning rallies, vigils and press conferences in at least 27 states this week against what they see as a national attack on government employees that is a seminal moment for organized labor.

Demonstrations are spreading from Wisconsin and Ohio, where bills from Republican governors to curtail collective-bargaining rights have attracted thousands of protesters. Efforts include lobbying all week against measures in Indiana and a Feb. 25 AFL-CIO rally to warn New Jersey Governor Chris Christie “not to balance the budget on the backs of middle-class families.”