Passing the Buck: Why We Make Less But Pay More Part 15: How We Get There

Building the Power to Win

We’ve shown you the problem. We’ve named who profits. We’ve proven it doesn’t have to be this way.

Now comes the hard part: How do we actually fix this?

This won’t be easy. This won’t be quick. And anyone promising simple solutions is lying to you.

But it is possible. We have historical precedent. We have working models from other countries. We have growing public support. And we have the one thing corporations fear most: the potential for organized worker power.

Let’s be honest about what this requires.

First: Confronting the Cynicism

“Nothing will ever change.” “Both parties are bought.” “Corporations have too much power.” “We’re screwed.”

You’re not wrong to feel this way. Parts 11-13 showed you exactly why the system persists. Corporate money. Bipartisan consensus. 50 years of deliberate policy.

But cynicism is what they want. Cynicism means you don’t organize. Don’t vote. Don’t fight back. Just accept it.

The corporate class didn’t build this system because workers are powerless. They built it because workers ARE powerful—when organized.

That’s why they spent 50 years breaking unions. Why they fund both parties. Why they pour billions into lobbying. Because they know: organized workers can win.

Historical proof:

The New Deal (1930s-1940s):

• 40-hour work week
• Minimum wage
• Social Security
• Unemployment insurance
• Right to organize unions
• Child labor laws banned

Did this happen because politicians were nice? No. It happened because workers organized. Unions struck. Mass movements demanded change. The alternative was revolution, so the system bent.

Civil Rights Movement (1950s-1960s):

• Ended legal segregation
• Voting Rights Act
• Fair Housing Act
• Changed America fundamentally

Did this happen through voting alone? No. It happened through organizing, marches, boycotts, sustained pressure, and yes, voting for champions who emerged from the movement.

Change has happened before. It can happen again.

But it requires strategy, organization, and realistic expectations about the timeline.

The Decades-Long Reality

Let’s be clear: This will take 20-30 years minimum.

The corporate counterattack took 50 years to build (Part 13). Undoing it won’t happen in one election cycle.

Phase 1 (Years 1-5): Building Power

• Organize unions and worker power
• Win local and state victories
• Primary corporate Democrats
• Build infrastructure

Phase 2 (Years 5-10): Breaking Through

• Win federal elections with real reformers
• Pass initial reforms (public option, labor law reform)
• Defend against corporate backlash
• Expand union density

Phase 3 (Years 10-20): Structural Change

• Medicare for All
• Free public college
• Break up monopolies
• Restore labor power to 1970s levels
• Progressive taxation

Phase 4 (Years 20-30): Consolidation

• Constitutional reforms (overturn Citizens United, etc.)
• Lock in changes so they can’t be easily reversed
• Build lasting institutions

This is the honest timeline. Anyone promising faster results is selling you something.

But here’s why it’s worth it: The alternative is collapse.

The current system isn’t sustainable. Emma (Part 10) can’t survive on $253/month. The median worker being $572/month short isn’t sustainable. 78% living paycheck to paycheck isn’t sustainable.

Either we fix it deliberately through organizing, or it breaks catastrophically through crisis.

Deliberate change is better than catastrophic collapse.

Strategy 1: Organize Labor (The Foundation)

This is the most important strategy. Everything else is harder without union power.

Why unions matter:

From Part 2, we showed:

• Union workers earn 10-20% more
• Union workplaces have better benefits
• Union density correlates with wage growth for ALL workers (even non-union)

When union membership was 27% (1970s):

• Median worker could afford a house, car, healthcare, kids’ education
• One income supported a family

When union membership fell to 10% (today):

• Median worker can’t afford basics
• Two incomes barely cover expenses

Union power isn’t just about individual workplaces. It’s about shifting the entire labor market.

How to support union organizing:

If you work in a non-union workplace:

1. Talk to coworkers about wages, conditions, problems
2. Contact a union in your industry (SEIU, UAW, Teamsters, UFCW, etc.)
3. Organize a union drive (yes, this is risky—they’ll fire organizers illegally, but organized workers can win)

If you’re already in a union:

1. Get involved (attend meetings, run for steward)
2. Support organizing at other workplaces
3. Push your union to be more militant
4. Vote in union elections

If you can’t unionize (management, self-employed):

1. Support strikes (join picket lines, donate to strike funds)
2. Don’t cross picket lines
3. Support pro-union politicians
4. Talk about unions positively (counter anti-union propaganda)

Target industries:

• Amazon warehouses (massive fight, huge impact)
• Starbucks (winning locations, keep going)
• Tech workers (high-paid but organizing matters)
• Healthcare (nurses organized, expand to other workers)
• Gig economy (Uber, Lyft, DoorDash drivers)

Current momentum:

• Union approval: 71% (highest since 1960s)
• Strikes: Increasing (2023 saw major victories)
• Young workers more pro-union than any generation since 1930s

The obstacle: Corporate union-busting is legal and effective.

The solution: Labor law reform (which requires electoral power, Strategy 2).

The catch-22: Need electoral power to get labor law reform, need labor power to get electoral power.

The answer: Build both simultaneously.

Strategy 2: Win Elections (But Strategically)

Voting alone isn’t enough. But not voting guarantees failure.

The electoral strategy has two parts:

Part A: Primary Challenges to Corporate Democrats

Both parties take corporate money (Part 12). But Democrats have some internal division. Use that.

Target corporate Democrats in safe blue districts:

• These seats won’t flip Republican
• Corporate Democrat vs. Progressive Democrat in primary
• If progressive wins primary, they win general

Examples of successful primaries:

• AOC defeating Joe Crowley (2018)
• Jamaal Bowman defeating Eliot Engel (2020)
• Summer Lee defeating Steve Irwin (2022)
• Many others

These victories:

• Replace corporate Democrats with labor-backed progressives
• Shift the party (slowly)
• Show it’s possible

How to support:

• Donate to primary challengers (Justice Democrats, Brand New Congress, WFP)
• Volunteer for local progressive candidates
• Run for local office yourself (school board, city council, state legislature)

Reality check: This is slow. Corporate Democrats fight back. Media opposes. Party leadership opposes. But it’s working incrementally.

Part B: Vote for Best Available Option in General Elections

Yes, even when the choices are bad.

Why?

Biden’s NLRB and FTC are better than Trump’s would be.

• Lina Khan (FTC) is challenging monopolies
• Jennifer Abruzzo (NLRB) is supporting unions
• This matters for workers organizing

Republican victory means:

• Anti-union NLRB
• Corporate-friendly FTC
• More corporate judges
• Worse starting position for organizing

Vote for the best available option, then organize to make better options available.

The goal isn’t to elect saviors. The goal is to create conditions where organizing can succeed.

Strategy 3: Build Independent Working-Class Institutions

Don’t wait for government. Build power now.

Credit Unions (Not Banks)

Remember Part 3 (banking fees)? Credit unions are not-for-profit.

Differences:

• No overdraft fee traps
• No minimum balance fees
• Better interest rates on savings
• Lower interest on loans
• Owned by members, not shareholders

Action: Switch from big banks to credit unions. It won’t fix the system, but it stops feeding the banks that lobby against you.

Mutual Aid Networks

Community support systems:

• Childcare co-ops
• Tool libraries
• Food co-ops
• Emergency funds for neighbors

Why it matters: Reduces dependence on market solutions for everything. Builds community power.

Worker Co-ops

Alternative to traditional employment:

• Workers own the business
• Democratic decision-making
• Profits shared among workers

Examples:

• Mondragon Corporation (Spain): 81,000 worker-owners
• Cooperative Home Care Associates (Bronx): 2,000 worker-owners
• Many smaller co-ops growing

Not a full solution (still operates in capitalist market), but demonstrates alternative models.

Tenant Unions

Organize your building:

• Collective bargaining with landlords
• Rent strikes when needed
• Fight unfair evictions
• Political pressure for tenant protections

Cities with strong tenant movements:

• New York
• San Francisco
• Los Angeles
• Growing elsewhere

Strategy 4: State and Local Wins (Don’t Wait for Federal)

Federal government is gridlocked. State and local governments can act now.

State-level victories:

Minimum wage:

• Federal: $7.25 (since 2009)
• States that raised it: 30 states above federal
• Some cities: $15-20/hour

Paid family leave:

• Federal: Zero
• States with paid leave: 13 + DC
• More states considering

Healthcare:

• Can’t do single-payer at state level (need federal)
• But can: Expand Medicaid, create public options, negotiate drug prices

Housing:

• Rent control (where not banned by state)
• Inclusionary zoning
• Community land trusts
• Tax vacant properties

Municipal broadband:

• Cities can build their own internet (where not banned)
• Chattanooga model: $70/month for 1 Gbps
• Breaks telecom monopolies locally

Action: Focus on achievable local wins while building toward federal change.

Strategy 5: Strategic Consumer Action (Limited but Useful)

Individual consumer choices won’t fix systemic problems. But strategic collective action can apply pressure.

Boycotts (when organized):

• Grape boycott (1960s-70s): Supported farmworker organizing, worked
• Montgomery Bus Boycott (1955-56): Part of larger civil rights movement, worked
• Random individual boycotts: Don’t work

Buy union when possible:

• Look for union labels
• Support union businesses
• Cross picket lines never

Support striking workers:

• Donate to strike funds
• Join picket lines
• Respect boycotts during strikes

Reality check: This supports other strategies but doesn’t replace organizing.

Strategy 6: Information Warfare (Counter Corporate Media)

Corporate media protects corporate interests. We saw this in Parts 11-12.

How to counter:

Support independent media:

• Subscribe/donate to: labor publications, independent journalists, worker-focused outlets
• Share their work
• Counter corporate narratives

Use social media strategically:

• Share information about wages (break the taboo)
• Document workplace issues
• Expose corporate behavior
• Organize online → offline

Tell your story:

• Parts 1-10 showed you the math doesn’t work
• Your story proves it
• Share it (anonymously if needed for job security)

The narrative war:

• Corporate media: “Labor shortage” (means workers have power, frame as problem)
• Counter-narrative: “Wage shortage” (jobs exist, just don’t pay enough)

The goal: Shift public understanding from “individual failure” to “systemic extraction.”

Strategy 7: Direct Action and Disruption (When Necessary)

Sometimes the system only responds to pressure.

Historical examples:

• Sit-down strikes (1930s): Occupied factories, forced negotiations
• Freedom Rides (1960s): Direct confrontation with segregation
• ACT UP (1980s-90s): Forced action on AIDS crisis

Modern applications:

• Mass strikes (teachers, nurses, others)
• Walkouts
• Occupations
• Shutting down business as usual until demands are met

This is risky. People get fired. Arrested. Hurt.

But it works when:

• Organized (not random)
• Strategic (clear demands)
• Sustained (not one-day protest)
• Backed by majority (public support)

We’re not there yet. But building toward it.

Strategy 8: Play the Long Game

The corporate class thinks in decades. The Powell Memo (Part 13) was 1971. The corporate counterattack took 50 years.

We need to think the same way.

What this means:

For young people:

• This is your life’s work
• Get involved now
• Build career in organizing, run for office, or support from other careers
• This is the long struggle

For older people:

• This won’t be fixed in your lifetime
• But you’re planting trees you’ll never sit under
• Support young organizers
• Pass on knowledge and resources

For everyone:

• Wins will be incremental at first
• Celebrate small victories (union drive, local election, policy win)
• Don’t give up when big wins don’t come immediately
• This is a marathon, not a sprint

The Obstacles (They Will Fight Back)

Be realistic about what we’re up against:

Corporate resistance:

• Billions in lobbying
• Anti-union campaigns
• Media opposition
• Legal challenges
• Political pressure

Political obstacles:

• Filibuster (Senate)
• Corporate Democrats
• Republican opposition
• Gerrymandering
• Voter suppression
• Money in politics

Cultural resistance:

• “Socialism” scare tactics
• Individualism ideology (“pull yourself up”)
• Culture war distractions
• Media propaganda

Legal obstacles:

• Supreme Court hostile to labor
• Citizens United
• Anti-union laws in many states

Internal challenges:

• Movement division
• Burnout
• Impatience
• Despair

This will be hard. They will fight. We will lose battles.

But we can win the war.

Why It’s Different This Time

What’s changed since previous labor defeats:

1. The extraction is hitting the middle class

Parts 1-10 showed even above-median earners can’t make it. This creates a larger potential coalition than just the poor.

2. Public opinion has shifted

• Union approval: 71%
• Medicare for All: 63% support
• Tax the rich: 67% support
• Break up big tech: 57% support

Majority already supports the policies. Just need the power to implement them.

3. Young people are radicalized by their own experience

• Student debt
• Can’t afford housing
• Healthcare crisis
• Climate crisis
• No expectation of doing better than parents

This generation has nothing to lose and is organizing.

4. The system is visibly failing

• 78% living paycheck to paycheck
• COVID exposed healthcare system
• Inflation showed corporate price-gouging
• People know something is wrong

5. Technology enables organizing

• Social media coordination
• Information sharing
• Rapid response
• Breaking corporate media monopoly

The conditions for change are better than they’ve been in 50 years.

What You Can Do Right Now (10 Specific Actions)

Pick one or more:

1. Talk about your wages with coworkers

• Breaking the taboo helps organizing
• It’s legally protected (National Labor Relations Act)

2. Join or start a union

• Contact relevant union for your industry
• Or start organizing conversations

3. Vote in primaries

• Research candidates on labor issues
• Support progressive challengers to corporate Democrats

4. Move money to credit union

• Stop feeding big banks
• Switch to not-for-profit

5. Support strikes

• Join picket lines
• Donate to strike funds
• Don’t cross picket lines

6. Run for local office or support those who do

• School board
• City council
• State legislature
• These races are winnable

7. Join a tenant union or start one

• Organize your building
• Fight rent increases collectively

8. Share this series

• Email parts to friends
• Post on social media
• Start conversations
• Break the “it’s my fault” narrative

9. Donate/volunteer for progressive organizations

• Democratic Socialists of America (DSA)
• Working Families Party
• Labor unions
• Local progressive groups

10. Have the conversation

• Talk to family about wages and costs
• Counter the “personal responsibility” narrative
• Build class consciousness

Start with one. Add more as you’re able.

The Vision: What We’re Fighting For

Imagine Emma’s life (Parts 10-11) but in a just system:

She makes $77,000 as a nurse.

Healthcare: Free at point of service. No premiums. No deductibles. She’s never denied care. Saves $6,300/year.

Student loans: Never existed. Public university was free. Saves $4,080/year.

Transportation: Takes the train to work. $65/month unlimited pass. No car needed. Saves $752/month.

Housing: Rent controlled. Tenant protections. Can’t be evicted without cause. Pays $1,200 instead of $1,450 (smaller difference, but protected).

Banking: Free checking. No fees. If needed to borrow, it’s at 3% through public bank, not 21% through Chase.

Food: Grocery monopolies broken up. Farmer gets fair price. Emma pays less. Food is affordable.

Phone/Internet: Public broadband option keeps prices down. $40/month instead of $89.

Work: Union workplace. 25 days vacation. Paid sick leave. Can’t be fired without cause. Gets raises that track productivity.

Monthly expenses: $2,800 instead of $4,322

Remaining: $1,775/month instead of $253

She can:

• Save $800/month for house down payment
• Contribute $500/month to retirement
• Actually take vacation
• Have hobbies and entertainment
• Build emergency fund
• Live, not just survive

This is what we’re fighting for.

Not handouts. Not charity. Just a system where the productivity gains workers create actually benefit workers.

The Final Truth

Emma from Part 10 makes $77,000 and has $253/month remaining. She’s productive. Educated. Hard-working. Responsible.

The system is failing her.

Not because of market forces. Not because of natural laws. Not because it has to be this way.

Because corporations shifted costs onto workers, wages stagnated, and both political parties protected the transfer.

This was built deliberately. It can be undone deliberately.

But only with organized power.

The corporate class spent 50 years building this system because they feared organized workers. They were right to fear us.

When workers organize:

• We won the 40-hour week
• We won Social Security
• We won Civil Rights
• We won minimum wage
• We won overtime pay
• We won workplace safety laws

We won because we organized. We fought. We didn’t give up.

And we can win again.

It won’t be easy. It won’t be fast. But it’s possible.

The alternative is Emma working until she’s 80, never owning a home, one medical emergency from bankruptcy.

That’s not acceptable.

So we organize. We fight. We build power. We win incremental victories. We play the long game.

And maybe, in 20 or 30 years, Emma’s daughter won’t have to make this choice.

Maybe her daughter will live in a country where nurses can afford houses. Where education doesn’t mean debt. Where healthcare doesn’t mean bankruptcy. Where one job is enough.

That’s worth fighting for.

That’s worth 20 years of organizing.

That’s worth the risk, the work, the long struggle.

Because the costs have been shifted onto us for the last time.

Now we shift them back.

Where to Start

Don’t wait. Start today.

Talk to one coworker about wages. Research unions in your industry. Join a local progressive group. Move your money to a credit union. Register to vote in the next primary.

Do one thing. Then another. Then another.

The corporate class organized for 50 years to build this system.

We can organize for the next 50 to tear it down and build something better.

Let’s get to work.

Passing the Buck: Why We Make Less But Pay More is a 15-part series examining how corporations and government systematically shifted costs onto working Americans—while wages stagnated and benefits disappeared.

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