Points of Departure: A Harry Cleaver Reader Book Launch with Robert Ovetz

“Refuse work. Revolt against capitalism. Read Harry Cleaver. In that order. Repeat.”

SWU Executive Committee Member Edith Till reports on Robert Ovetz launching Points of Departure: Refusal of Work and the Crisis of Capitalism: The Collected Writings of Harry Cleaver (Common Notions 2026) on 16th July 2026 in MayDay Rooms, London.

Points of Departure: Refusal of Work and the Crisis of Capitalism: The Collected Writings of Harry Cleaver is a definitive collection of Harry Cleaver’s best unpublished, translated, or lesser-known writings on the refusal of work, class composition and “inversion of the class perspective,” the crisis of capitalism. He shows the ongoing necessity of re-reading Marx theory to understand, find points of departure from, and finally end capitalism before it ends us. The reader is co-edited by Robert Ovetz, author, organizer, lecturer and former long-time student of Cleaver, and author and organizer Kevin Van Meter.

Points of Departure was released on Common Notion Press’s new Class Compositions series in September 2026. A special edition has been released to coincide with the June 2026 Labor Notes conference in Chicago and will have a full release in October 2026.

The book launch discussion with Robert Ovetz began with the idea that struggles over work, technology, and management shaped how workers experienced capitalism. Perry’s writing emphasised three core principles: moving beyond capitalism, recognising how workers opened spaces of resistance, and understanding how these spaces revealed glimpses of a possible post‑capitalist future. These principles helped explain the relationship between workers’ struggles and the movement of capitalism itself. Instead of seeing workers as merely reacting to capitalist power, Perry argued that workers’ actions often drove change, even when it felt like capital was dominant.

The conversation turned to what people saw as the biggest issues in society — the pressures of work, the anxiety around productivity, and the physical and mental toll that modern labour demanded. One speaker described their own experience: mental health deteriorating, physical pain, worsening eyesight, and exhaustion from constant strain. These conditions had pushed them into the labour movement.

They described alienation not as an abstract concept but as something deeply physical and spiritual — the sense that work drained both body and mind.

Without alienation, people could have been healthier, more present, and more connected to themselves and others. That, they argued, was one of the primary concerns of the time.

Another reflection drew on Marx’s idea that a piece of humanity was embedded in every commodity or service produced. Workers literally put their bodies, health, and survival into their labour. This led to resistance — sometimes by changing careers entirely, sometimes by small acts like taking breaks, slowing down, or leaving early. These everyday acts of refusal were often the starting point for collective organising.

Union activists pointed out that many of these issues were framed as “health and safety,” but the deeper truth was that workers simply wanted less work. Robert, the co-editor, shared: Even jobs that seemed intellectual or non‑physical, like teaching or writing, took a physical toll. Writing could damage the back, strain muscles, and create long‑term health problems.

Hidden labour — the emotional, administrative, and organisational work that institutions relied on — was unevenly distributed and often invisible.

Some workers carried far more of this burden than others, and it led to burnout and health issues. Institutions benefited from this hidden labour because wages concealed the true amount of work being done.

Care work and social work were highlighted as examples where the most demanding tasks were undervalued. The therapeutic and emotional aspects of social work often overshadowed the formal duties, consuming personal time and reshaping one’s personality. Emails, crises, and emotional labour spilled into life outside work, creating imbalance.

The conversation shifted to the issues young people faced. From the audience, one parent described supporting their seventeen‑year‑old through school, exams, and the pressure to perform academically while also trying not to overwork. Young people faced contradictory messages: work hard but don’t burn out; succeed but stay relaxed; care about grades but don’t panic. Alongside this, teenagers were dealing with toxic masculinity, climate anxiety, and social pressures. Law students who wanted to do well often struggled with the same contradictions — striving for success while resisting the stress and panic the system produced.

The group then discussed AI and the fear that it would eliminate jobs.

In Silicon Valley, people panicked about AI replacing human labour. But the speaker argued that this fear was largely propaganda. AI was unlikely to replace all work; instead, it would break down tasks and automate small parts of jobs, increasing productivity and often increasing the amount of work workers had to do. Historically, new technologies — trains replacing horse‑drawn wagons, telephones replacing telegraphs, automobiles replacing trains — destroyed some jobs but created new ones. Capitalism depends on labour exploitation, so it continually reinvests surplus profit into creating more work, not eliminating it.

Robert referred to a science‑fiction film where the wealthy built a machine that granted eternal life, while Earth became a wasteland with billions of people and no work except building robot police to suppress protests. The point was that such a world would not have been capitalist, because capitalism could not function without labour exploitation. Capitalism required workers; without work, the system collapsed.

The discussion returned to Perry’s analysis: technological change always reshaped labour, but it never removed the need for workers.

AI would follow the same pattern. It would destroy some jobs, create others, and intensify exploitation in new ways. The real issue was not whether AI replaced workers but how workers resisted, organised, and shaped the future of labour.

Throughout the book launch event, the theme remained clear: workers were struggling under immense pressure — physical, mental, emotional, and social. Hidden labour, alienation, and technological change all contributed to a sense of crisis. Yet within these struggles lay the seeds of resistance. Workers refused, organised, and carved out spaces that challenged capitalist relations. These spaces offered glimpses of what a different future might look like — one where work did not dominate life, where health and humanity were prioritised, and where collective action reshaped society.