As America celebrates Labor Day this weekend, Civil Beat’s Pod Squad takes a look at how Hawaii stacks up in the labor movement. Host Chad Blair gathered reporters Nick Grube and Nathan Eagle, and deputy editor Eric Pape, to get the skinny on Hawaii’s unions. The quartet discussed whether union power is on the decline, labor’s impact on state policy, and if there’s a correlation between Hawaii’s high cost of living and the strength of local unions.

“Why do we celebrate Labor Day?” asked Blair. “What is the occasion?”

For those who would like to delve deeper, a history of Hawaii’s labor movement is available here, and data on national union membership rates are available from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. If after listening to this podcast you find yourself wondering, like Blair did, about union-inspired music, The Nation magazine has a list of the top 10 Labor Day songs.

Listen to the full podcast here or subscribe to it via iTunes or Stitcher.

Mike Webb produces Civil Beat’s Pod Squad every week.

Want to hear more? Check out Civil Beat’s other podcasts.
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