I'm Elise Hugh, it's Ted Talks Daily, and today we have something a little different

for you, an episode of How to Be a Better Human, another podcast from the Ted Audio Collective.

It's hosted by my friend Chris Duffy, and in today's episode, he sits down with Stanford

Professor Margaret Levi, to talk about the power of worker solidarity.

Even if you're not part of a labor union, this conversation sheds light on what unions

and organizing can teach us about building inclusive communities.

After the break.

You're listening to How to Be a Better Human.

I'm your host Chris Duffy.

Of the many strange things about being a comedian, one of the biggest is how being

paid works.

I can perform the exact same jokes and get paid wildly different amounts.

Sometimes I go to a conference and I tell my jokes and I get a very lucrative check.

Other times I tell those same jokes at a bar and they give me two free cellars.

It's the wild west out there when it comes to joke prices.

So when I got my first TV writing job, I was really surprised to learn that I was now

part of a small but powerful union called the Writer's Guild of America.

All of a sudden, my work included things like minimum weekly rates, healthcare contributions,

a potential pension down the road, and roles about how I could be treated by my bosses.

It was honestly shocking to me.

The contrast between how much better I was treated all of a sudden, it was night and

day.

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