Hello Friend,
Spring was a season of both action and reflection for the National Jobs for All Network (NJFAN).
Last month we celebrated May Day, International Workers’ Day, established in 1889 to honor workers’ struggles, following the Haymarket events in Chicago tied to the fight for the eight-hour workday. This year’s May Day theme, “Workers Over Billionaires,” felt especially timely. On May 1, May Day Strong mobilized millions of workers, students, and families to take part in actions across the country, calling for a nation that puts workers over billionaires. People over profit.
In New Haven, our affiliate, the Connecticut Task Force for Jobs and Human Rights, joined millions across the country in marching alongside working families and community leaders, showing the power of collective action.
What stood out this year is that May Day was not only about labor in the narrow sense. Taifa Smith Butler, President of Dēmos wrote, “worker power is not solely a labor issue, but one of the most urgent democracy crises of our time.” That framing matters. May Day reminds us that workers are people too. It requires us to ask a deeper question: what is the purpose of an economy? In a time of deep instability and global chaos, the fight for good jobs is not simply about wages or work in the abstract, but about whether our economy is organized to support dignity, stability, and human flourishing.
May was also Mental Health Awareness Month. I think we all know economic insecurity is never just about income. Job loss, poor working conditions, exclusion from the labor market, and the constant stress of trying to make ends meet all shape people’s well-being in profound ways. Good jobs matter because they can help create the conditions people need to thrive–in many cases jobs provide a sense of stability and hope. The human right to work. Seeing people out on the streets for May Day was just as emotional as it was inspiring—tangible evidence that workers demand better.
Strong movements are born from people power and solidarity—the people in those movements cannot pour from an empty cup. In June, we celebrate our 32nd Anniversary as an organization committed to human rights and dignified work. With your help I know we can build an economy that centers people and the environments in which we live, where good jobs are a reality for all.
Thank you for being part of this work with us.
NJFAN in action!
For Good Jobs & Peace,
Cortney Sanders
Executive Director
National Jobs for All Network
The Institute on Race, Power and Political Economy
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June 9, 2026
