Michelle Chen - Dissent Magazine

Belabored Stories: Union Busting in a Disaster

Michelle Chen ▪ April 15, 2020

Art handlers in New York City have filed an NLRB complaint alleging that their employer fired workers for organizing a union.

Belabored Stories: Cancel Rent

Michelle Chen ▪ April 14, 2020

A group of laid-off service workers in Denver is pushing for a total cancellation of rent, mortgage, and utility payments, for at least the next ninety days.

Belabored Stories: Many Immigrants Won’t Get a $1,200 Check

Michelle Chen ▪ April 13, 2020

Millions of immigrant workers are toiling in frontline low-wage industries. But the CARES Act excludes many from its welfare provisions.

Belabored Stories: The Amazon Walkouts Continue

Michelle Chen ▪ April 9, 2020

Amazon is hiring thousands of new workers. What happens when they feel they risk more by going to work than by refusing to show up?

Belabored Stories: Pretty Evil

Michelle Chen ▪ April 7, 2020

No Evil Foods, a vegan food company whose products include “Comrade Cluck,” recently fought a union drive. Now workers feel unsafe in the factory.

Belabored Stories: Immigration Courts Are Still Open

Michelle Chen ▪ April 3, 2020

Detained migrants face crowded, confined conditions with remarkably limited access to healthcare, health protections, and safety precautions.

Belabored Stories: Domestic Workers’ Lives Turned Upside Down

Michelle Chen ▪ March 31, 2020

Many nannies, housekeepers, and home-care aides are out of work and do not know when it will be safe to enter others’ homes again. Those continuing to work constantly risk being exposed or exposing others to the virus.

Belabored Stories: When Gig Workers Are Emergency Responders

Michelle Chen ▪ March 30, 2020

Instacart workers are on strike today to demand the company recognize the importance of their grocery delivery service amid the pandemic.

Belabored Stories: “How Can We Bounce Back From This?”

Michelle Chen ▪ March 28, 2020

Taxi and rideshare drivers were struggling before the pandemic hit. Now, faced with plummeting ridership and high personal risk, they are demanding comprehensive aid.

Belabored Stories: “I Have to Feed My Family”

Michelle Chen ▪ March 25, 2020

Amazon workers face hazardous conditions, but many can’t afford to stay home.

Redlined by Algorithm

Michelle Chen ▪ November 6, 2019

A new rule proposed by Trump’s Department of Housing and Urban Development could allow landlords and real-estate brokers to get away with discrimination by blaming it on computer modeling.