About this event

2026 Labor Notes Conference: June 12-14
The Labor Notes Conference is the biggest gathering of grassroots union activists, union reformers, and all-around troublemakers out there!
Register by April 1 to buy your tickets at our discounted early-bird rate! Don’t miss a weekend of inspiration, education, and agitation.
- Join thousands of union members, officers, and labor activists who are on the front lines in our workplaces and our communities, organizing new workers and agitating together. Meet troublemakers from across the country and around the world.
- More than 200 meetings and workshops include creative organizing tactics, beating apathy, running for local union office, winning contract campaigns, bargaining over technology, assertive grievance handling, and reviving the strike.
- Organize with others in your union, industry, or campaign. Face-to-face meetings to share tactics and swap notes are the heart of the Labor Notes Conference. Join an existing industry, union, or caucus meeting—or contact us to set one up.
Details
WHEN: Friday, June 12, 9 a.m. to Sunday, June 14, 3 p.m.
WHERE: Hyatt Regency O'Hare, Rosemont (suburb of Chicago), Illinois
CONFERENCE REGISTRATION FEE:
Early-bird (available until April 1): $165
Regular: $195
Sustainer: $275
Hotel: Please note that your registration will not include lodging. Click below for info on hotel reservations, scholarships, and other logistics.
If your question is not answered below, please contact us at registration@labornotes.org
Coming to the fundraising dinner on Saturday, June 13, from 7 p.m. to 8.30 p.m.? You can buy a $100 ticket per person to the fundraising dinner as an add-on when you register for the conference. If you're buying a ticket to the fundraising dinner ONLY, you can do so here.
Coming from somewhere other than the U.S. or Canada? Please register for the conference and help us plan by also filling out this form. Reach out to dan@labornotes.org with any questions.
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PROGRAM
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HOTEL
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TRAVEL
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FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
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INTERNATIONAL
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SCHOLARSHIPS
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GROUPS
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REFUNDS AND SUBSTITUTIONS
topics and speakers
This year's lineup of workshops, meetings, panels, and speakers is still in development. Check this page a few weeks before the conference for final details. Meanwhile you can get a good idea of what the conference will be like by browsing the program from our 2024 conference (in PDF or interactive format).
featuring the great labor arts exchange!
Every year the Labor Heritage Foundation organizes a national gathering of workplace activists, artists, and labor educators who are strengthening the movement with songs, poems, hip-hop, posters, cartoons, puppets, and more.
Once again the 2026 Great Labor Arts Exchange is part of the 2026 Labor Notes Conference and included in your registration. Labor arts workshops and performances will be woven throughout the weekend. Check this page as the event gets closer for details of workshops, performances, and how to enter the Song, Poem, Drag, and Hip-Hop Contest.
hotel booking
The conference is held at the Hyatt Regency O'Hare, 9300 W Bryn Mawr Ave, Rosemont, IL 60018, (847) 696-1234, a union hotel not far from the airport. (See it on Google Maps.)
Reserve now. Rooms go fast! Our rate at the Hyatt is $189 per room per night. Book at this link or call (847) 696 1234. Mention “Labor Notes Conference” to get this rate (guaranteed until rooms fill up).
OTHER HOTEL OPTIONS
tipping
If you are staying in a hotel, UNITE HERE recommends that you accept housekeeping every day and tip at least $5 every day (don't wait till the end of your stay). Leave a note so housekeepers know it's for them. Tip more for suites.
hotel layout
The Hyatt Regency O’Hare website provides general info about the hotel and its amenities.
Conference sessions take place on three levels, all accessible by elevator; here is a floor plan.
The main sessions and fundraising dinner are held in an enormous ballroom. The workshops are in conference rooms. We will ask the hotel staff who set up chairs to ensure that each room has accessible seating space for participants using wheelchairs or mobility aids, and a marked path from the door to be kept clear.
airport
shuttle
From O'Hare Airport, catch the Hyatt Regency (not Hyatt Rosemont) shuttle outside Terminal 2 or Terminal 5:
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Terminal 2: From the Arrivals (lower) level, exit through door 2A and cross to the middle lane to catch the shuttle.
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Terminal 5: Exit through door 5E and cross the middle lane of traffic to find the designated shuttle pickup area under the awning.
The shuttle runs continuously; you don't have to call for it. You can track the shuttle location at this link.
UNITE HERE recommends tipping shuttle drivers $1-2 per person.
parking
Transit
ACCESSIBILITY
Labor Notes is enthusiastic about hosting inclusive, accessible events that enable all workers, including people with disabilities, to fully engage. Please let us know in advance if there are any specific adjustments we need to make to allow you to fully participate in the conference. Contact access@labornotes.org. You may also find relevant info under Food, Mobility Aids, and Quiet Room, and under Hotel Layout (in the Hotel tab).
Childcare
We are pleased to offer childcare throughout the weekend to make the conference accessible to parents. Available for children over one year old. Fill out the request form by May 29. Donations are encouraged for those who are able to give.
Food
fundraising dinner
Note that the fundraising dinner on Saturday evening, June 13, at 7 p.m., is an optional separate ticket ($100). You can choose to purchase it when you register for the conference.
If you're buying a ticket to the fundraising dinner ONLY: If you’re not attending the conference or if you already have a ticket to the conference, but you want to separately get yourself a ticket to the fundraising dinner on Saturday, June 13, you can do so here.
Lactation/Nursing Room
Mobility Aids
We can help arrange rental of a scooter or walker for the weekend. Email access@labornotes.org.
Pronouns
Quiet Room
Recovery Meeting
Restrooms
Schedule
Spanish Interpretation
Volunteering
Hundreds of volunteers play an integral role in helping us pull off this one-of-a-kind conference! If you're willing to volunteer, please indicate it when you register.
Some volunteer tasks involve moving heavy things, some involve moving only lightweight things, and some can be done sitting at a table. We can also make use of skills you might have, like speaking a second language, troubleshooting the connection between a laptop and a projector, or being warm and welcoming. Thanks for any way you're willing to help out!
international attendees
Coming from somewhere other than the U.S. or Canada? Please fill out this form to help us with planning, and to let us know if you want to join a post-conference labor history tour of Chicago.
Scholarships
Do you need a scholarship to register for the Labor Notes Conference? Apply here to be considered for a partial or full discount.
Group registrations
If you're planning to send a group larger than 20 people, please first email registration@labornotes.org to get approval!
You can purchase tickets through this page for up to 20 registrants. You may purchase a block of tickets before you know the names of all the attendees in your group. However, you will need to return to this page and add the names and full contact information of all registrants by May 1. After that deadline, we may cancel and refund unassigned tickets, to make space for others to attend.
Space is limited, and we want to make sure the conference includes a wide variety of workers, so we may not be able to accommodate groups larger than 20 people. Requests will be considered case by case. Call 718-284-4144 or email registration@labornotes.org.
Reimbursement and substitution policy for individual registrations and groups of 20 or fewer: Reimbursement: Refunds are available if for registrations canceled prior to Friday, May 29. We will not be able to process refunds for cancellations made after that date or for no-shows, except in the case of illness or other extenuating circumstances. To cancel your registration and request a refund, please email us at registration@labornotes.org with the subject line, “Refund request for registration: 2026 Conference."
Substitution of attendees for groups of 20 or fewer: You may substitute members in your group at any time by modifying your registration.
Removing members from your registration without replacing them, reducing the overall size of your group: You may remove members from your group at any time by modifying your registration. Refunds will not be processed automatically. To receive a refund for tickets you will no longer use, please email us at registration@labornotes.org prior to May 29 with the subject line, “Partial request for group registration: 2026 Conference.”
Refund and substitution policy for groups larger than 20: To request a refund or substitution, please email us at registration@labornotes.org with the subject line “Refund/substitution request for large group: 2026 Conference.” We can accommodate substitutions until May 29 and will consider refunds on a case-by-case basis before that date. We will not be able to make substitutions or process refunds for large groups after May 29.
Countdown to the 2026 Labor Notes Conference
