Michelle Chen

Contributing Writer

@meeshellchen

Michelle Chen is a contributing writer for The Nation.

Steaks

Amputated Hands and Torn Fingers: The Meat-Processing Industry’s Horrifying Injuries Amputated Hands and Torn Fingers: The Meat-Processing Industry’s Horrifying Injuries

When a worker is seen as nothing more than a part on an assembly line, who cares if they break?

Feb 24, 2016 / Michelle Chen

Child workers in Thailand

Congress Has Only Now Banned Slave Labor in US Imports Congress Has Only Now Banned Slave Labor in US Imports

Congress just passed legislation to close a loophole that’s allowed Americans to import slave-made goods for decades.

Feb 23, 2016 / Michelle Chen

Freelance Worker

The Industry That Treats Wage Theft as the Cost of Doing Business The Industry That Treats Wage Theft as the Cost of Doing Business

A new law could make skipping out on paying freelancers more difficult.

Feb 19, 2016 / Michelle Chen

The Union Busting That Goes Into Your Canned Fish

The Union Busting That Goes Into Your Canned Fish The Union Busting That Goes Into Your Canned Fish

A free trade deal between the US and Morocco was supposed to increase development in North Africa—not flame labor conflicts and union suppression.

Feb 17, 2016 / Michelle Chen

Supports at Silicon Valley Rising Launch

Silicon Valley’s Wealth Gap Silicon Valley’s Wealth Gap

The tech hub is becoming completely unaffordable for the service employees who work there.

Feb 12, 2016 / Michelle Chen

Chinese Ikea Worker

The Toxic Work Environments That Produce Your Pots and Pans The Toxic Work Environments That Produce Your Pots and Pans

Multinational corporations are once again profiting off of China’s dismal labor conditions.

Feb 10, 2016 / Michelle Chen

Flint bottled water

Water Privatizers Have Their Eye on Flint’s Lead Crisis Water Privatizers Have Their Eye on Flint’s Lead Crisis

To disaster capitalists, Flint’s sick children present an opportunity for privatization and profit.

Feb 8, 2016 / Michelle Chen

Yale Student

When the Biggest Employer in Town Isn’t Employing the Town When the Biggest Employer in Town Isn’t Employing the Town

Can activists force New Haven institutions to see job creation as a civic duty, not just a byproduct of financial investment?

Feb 5, 2016 / Michelle Chen

Indiana Representative Luke Messer

Does Labor Deserve Its Own Downfall? Does Labor Deserve Its Own Downfall?

The Supreme Court’s Friedrichs case could be disastrous for unions—how did we get here and what can labor do to regain its former clout?

Feb 4, 2016 / Peter Schrag, David Rolf, Jane McAlevey, and Michelle Chen

Guestworkers processing crabs

The Two-Tier Employment System You Haven’t Heard Of The Two-Tier Employment System You Haven’t Heard Of

Migrants on guestworker visas are constrained by the border on one side and their boss on the other.

Feb 3, 2016 / Michelle Chen

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