TSOTM Dec 2023: Space Struggle

Our T-Shirt of the Month for December 2023, made of 100% organic cotton by a worker-owned co-operative, and supporting grassroots labour unions in South Asia. It is dedicated to what has been described as the first "strike in space". In December 1973, the workers on the Skylab 4 space station had been set a punishing schedule, and mission commander Jerry Carr had argued that "We would never work 16 hours a day for 84 straight days on the ground, and we should not be expected to do it here in space.” Pilot William Pogue complained that they were so overworked "There is no way [they could] do a professional job", and for their first month they had to work through their days off. Carr eventually sent a wire stating: "We need more time to rest. We need a schedule that is not so packed.” Pogue said they wanted to have more time for "studying the stars, the Earth below, and ourselves". Ground control began describing the crew as "lethargic and negative".  In late December the crew reported