My favorite one-shot that I’ve ever ran involved the PCs being hired by a city to go kill some kobolds. The kobolds had taken over their mine, had fortified the place, and were violently rejecting any attempts to make them leave.

When the PCs arrive, it’s basically as described: The mine is overrun with kobolds, who have erected makeshift barricades and are armed with crossbows.

In actuality, the city had hired the kobolds to mine the ore for them, but then refused to pay them after taking delivery. It’s a labor dispute, and the PCs had been hired to kill them because nobody would question some adventurers killing some kobolds. The players discovered this and were upset enough about being lied to that they joined the kobolds’ side and basically acted as the (very well-armed and aggressive) union reps, negotiating better pay and more favorable terms for them. Was a great time.

Hey, you’re the one underpaying your fictional workers in the first place

That’s my kind of game. The “let’s not be political (even though it is political)” flavor is less appealing.

JDPON Bard leading a protracted people’s war against the despotic empire.

Player: I want to ask this road worker about their job.

GM: They tell you that they are perfectly happy with their job. They say they work short hours, get paid well and have a contract with very favourable terms that prevent them from being fired arbitrarily. All of their colleagues seem to feel the same way.

Player: Hm, what if they’re lying?

Why do you think it is called a party?

You know what that’s called, right? It’s class consciousness. When people’s power fantasies are union organizing, that implies there is a degree of cultural hegemony going on and that’s pretty neat.

You can do a harry potter thing where the workers want to be slaves