Today's AFL-CIO Press Clips
MUST WATCH
AFL-CIO President Liz Shuler Delivers State of the Union Address
C-SPAN
Aug. 27, 2024
AFL-CIO President Liz Shuler urged union members to vote and get others to the polls for the Harris-Walz ticket because the unions and workers' right are on the line in the 2024 elections. Ms. Shuler stressed the importance of the labor movement and the role of unions in communities across America during a speech at the AFL-CIO headquarters in Washington, DC.
POLITICS
Harris prepares for return to the campaign trail with Georgia bus tour
The Washington Post
By Mariana Alfaro
Aug. 27, 2024
AFL-CIO President Liz Shuler, in her annual Labor Day speech the week before the holiday, said labor unions are crucial for a Harris-Walz victory in November and encouraged union members to mobilize for the Democratic ticket. Shuler noted that in the swing states of Pennsylvania, Michigan, Wisconsin and Nevada, the margin for Harris among union members is 15 points. But she said polls show that if the labor movement doesn’t show up to vote, Harris would lose by two points. “We are the difference,” Shuler said.
Kamala Harris and Joe Biden will visit Pittsburgh on Labor Day to mobilize their union base
The Philadelphia Inquirer
By Fallon Roth
Aug. 27, 2024
Vice President Kamala Harris will join President Joe Biden in Pittsburgh on Monday, marking the pair’s first joint campaign event since Harris accepted the nomination to become the Democratic nominee for president. The Pittsburgh visit will be a part of the Harris’ larger blitz of battleground states on Labor Day, as she seeks to mobilize union workers who have historically served as a key part of the Democratic coalition.
Tim Walz to visit Milwaukee on Labor Day, highlight union strength
WISN
By Mariana La Roche
Aug. 27, 2024
On Labor Day, Gov. Tim Walz will spearhead the Harris-Walz campaign's nationwide series of events in Milwaukee. Walz and his wife, Gwen, will spend their Labor Day in Milwaukee to support union workers and emphasize the Harris-Walz administration's pro-union stance. Meanwhile, Vice President Kamala Harris will travel to Detroit, Michigan, before joining President Joe Biden in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, for their inaugural joint campaign event since Harris became the Democratic nominee.
Trump and Vance take aim at Biden's climate legislation. Some Republicans would rather they didn't
CBC in Ohio
By Susan Ormiston and Jill English
Aug. 26, 2024
Tim Burga, president of the Ohio AFL-CIO union, says the state has a long history of mining coal and making steel. His own grandfather worked in the coal mines. "There's a historic connection, there's an economic connection, with coal and fossil fuels," he acknowledged, but also said there has to be "a transition into a green energy economy." The key is putting workers at the heart of that transition. "It's got to be a way that takes care of those people and the generations that have given their lives to move America's economy forward," Burga said.
City & State
By City & State
Aug. 26, 2024
Organized labor is an integral part of life in New York, from the private and nonprofit sectors to the world of politics and policy. Union leaders use their influence to advocate for their members, often improving pay levels and working conditions, while making endorsements of candidates and laying out policy priorities – and then mobilizing to support them. This year’s Labor Power 100 features dozens of notable union leaders – in New York City and all across the state – who are shaping the future of New York. Mario Cilento, the longtime leader of New York’s 2.5 million-member umbrella labor organization, enjoyed another strong year in Albany. He led a coalition that pushed successfully to reform the state’s pension system, which Cilento argues will improve employee retention. He also saw lawmakers pass legislation to regulate artificial intelligence use by state agencies, new protections for workers with PTSD and a requirement that municipal industrial development authority boards include a worker and school district representative. Cilento has also focused on workers’ compensation and the economic benefits of immigration. Cilento’s top deputy, veteran labor leader Terrence Melvin, started his career in union leadership with his 1983 election as president of CSEA Local 427 at the age of 21.
Harris campaign releases new ad to highlight plans to build 3 million homes and reduce inflation
AP
By Josh Boak
Aug. 27, 2024
Vice President Kamala Harris has a new advertising push to draw attention to her plan to build 3 million new homes over four years, a move designed to contain inflationary pressures that also draws a sharp contrast to Republican Donald Trump’s approach. Harris, the Democratic nominee for president, highlights her plan in a new minute-long ad released Tuesday that uses her personal experience, growing up in rental housing while her mother saved for a decade before she could buy a home. The ad targets voters in the swing states including Arizona and Nevada. Campaign surrogates are also holding 20 events this week focused on housing issues.
Harris campaign highlights housing plan in new ad
The Hill
By Alex Gangitano
Aug. 27, 2024
Vice President Harris’s campaign unveiled a new ad Tuesday that highlights her plan to lower housing costs and end the housing shortage, with the Democratic nominee putting a personal spin on the proposal. The one-minute ad entitled “Full House,” which Harris narrated, focused on her housing plan in the lens of her background.
Missouri AFL-CIO president looks ahead to labor's impact on 2024 elections
KCUR
By Jason Rosenbaum
Aug. 27, 2024
Missouri holds a unique distinction among Republican-dominated states: having a robust and politically significant organized labor community. Individual unions often play a major role in campaigns for statewide and state legislative offices. And though organized labor is a core constituency of the Democratic Party, labor unions in Missouri have gotten involved in Republican primaries — especially when GOP contenders have pro-labor views. During an episode of the Politically Speaking Hour on St. Louis on the Air, Missouri AFL-CIO President Jake Hummel discussed how labor unions are approaching the upcoming election cycle. And that includes how his group endorsed Democrat Crystal Quade and Republican Mike Kehoe during last month’s primary races for governor — something he said was somewhat unusual.
Tim Walz is coming back to Boston Wednesday. Here’s what to know.
Boston.com
By Lindsay Shachnow
Aug. 27, 2024
Vice presidential nominee Tim Walz will speak at the 57th International Association of Fire Fighters Convention in Boston on Wednesday morning. Walz will deliver remarks to one of North America’s largest labor unions, representing nearly 350,000 firefighters, emergency medical workers, and rescue workers in the United States and Canada. “Governor Walz, a former union member himself, has a strong record of standing up for unions and delivering for workers — from joining the picket line and passing the most pro-worker package of laws in Minnesota history, to guaranteeing Minnesota workers [are] paid sick, medical, and family leave,” a statement from the Harris-Walz campaign said.
ORGANIZING
Nevada DMV, welfare workers vote to join union contract negotiations
The Nevada Indepedent
By Eric Neugeboren
Aug. 27, 2024
A group of nearly 3,000 state employees — including those working for the welfare agency and Nevada Department of Motor Vehicles — have voted to be a part of collective bargaining agreements negotiated by a major state worker union. More than 88 percent of the 1,001 state employees who participated in the election this month voted to be represented in collective bargaining talks by the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME) Local 4041. The state’s Government Employee-Management Relations Board, which held the election, will vote on certifying the results next month. The bargaining unit now represented by AFSCME includes DMV service technicians, family support specialists in the Department of Welfare and Support Services, engineering technicians from the Department of Transportation and library technicians across all Nevada System of Higher Education institutions.
Do Good Multnomah workers seek union
Northwest Labor Press
By Grant Stringer
Aug. 27, 2024
Staff at the Portland homeless service nonprofit Do Good Multnomah are campaigning to join Oregon AFSCME. About 75% of Do Good Multnomah’s 270 workers have signed union authorization cards, said union supporter Davis Nafshun, a case manager at a shelter in Portland’s Old Town. On Aug. 7, workers asked the nonprofit’s managers to voluntarily recognize their union. “We’re confident that we can win if it comes to an election,” Nafshun said.
NEGOTIATIONS & STRIKES
Union: Workers at 35 Boston hotels preparing for potential strike over wages and workloads
Boston 25 News
By Maria Papadopoulos
Aug. 27, 2024
After months of unsuccessful negotiations over wages and workloads, hotel workers in Boston are preparing for a potential strike at 35 hotels, the union representing the city’s hotel workers said Tuesday. Plans for a potential strike comes less than a week before contracts expire, UNITE HERE Local 26, the union representing hotel workers in Boston, said in a statement. Hotels that could see a potential strike include the Hilton Boston Park Plaza, the Hilton Boston Logan Airport, and the Fairmont Copley Plaza. Hotel workers are registering for strike benefits, signing up for picket duty, and assembling “On Strike” signs, the union said.
Classes start at Cornell University as worker strike continues
WBFO
By Aurora Berry
Aug. 26, 2024
Classes at Cornell University started on Monday as the workers who usually staff the dining halls, clean buildings and maintain campus grounds remain on strike. The UAW union chapter is calling for higher wages, cost of living adjustments and free parking for workers. Workers began the strike on Sunday, Aug. 18, the night before students returned to campus. Since then, Cornell has called on non-union employees and retirees to fill the roles of striking workers and has limited the operations of its dining halls. Union members and their supporters rallied and picketed every day last week. One person present on the picket line Friday was Shawn Nichols, who has been a gardener at Cornell for 13 years. Over the past year, he’s had to pick up other jobs to make ends meet.
4,500 Portland Fred Meyer workers set to strike starting Wednesday
KGW 8
By Sabinna Pierre
Aug. 27, 2024
Thousands of Portland Fred Meyer employees are set to strike at stores around the metro area this week. The strike is set to start Wednesday at 6 a.m. and last until Sept. 3 at 8 a.m. unless a deal is reached, according to UFCW Local 555. The union represents about 4,500 Fred Meyer employees. Earlier this month, members of the union voted to authorize a strike over alleged unfair labor practices during contract negotiations.
SPORTS UNIONIZATION
What the new NWSL CBA means for players. Plus, Seattle retires Megan Rapinoe’s jersey
The New York Times
By Emily Olsen, Meg Linehan and Jeff Rueter
Aug. 27, 2024
As the NWSL returned this week, players wore the same white shirt, which read “We Said Now,” in honor of finalizing a new collective bargaining agreement with the league through 2030. If you missed any of the details, Meg and Steph Yang have you covered on the latest episode of the Full Time podcast. Here are some of the highlights: No more drafts (entry or expansion). Minimum salary in 2025 will be $48.5k, rising to $82.5k by 2030. Players cannot be traded without their consent. That last one was crucial for players.
IN THE STATES
Our Turn | This Labor Day, vow to capitalize on opportunity to diversify workforce
The News-Gazette
By Pat Devaney and Hannah Hill
Aug. 27, 2024
This Labor Day is a celebration of our country’s growing embrace of a new face of leadership and opportunity. In our politics, a minority woman leads a presidential ticket for the first time. And on the front lines of our labor movement, the “toolbelt generation” has tremendous room for growth led by women and minorities. Our challenge ahead is to recognize this important moment and capitalize on it, rather than let it slip by. We see more young people pursue apprenticeships and careers in the trades than pursuing the traditional four-year college degree. In Springfield, Gov. J.B. Pritzker and the Illinois Legislature are making substantial investments in these new trades pathways, including $13.4 million for pre-apprenticeship hubs that help workers find roles in the burgeoning clean-energy sector. More women and minority workers will be recruited and welcomed into these roles.
New partnership aims to expand steel industry jobs in Pennsylvania
ABC 27
By Jared Weaver
Aug. 26, 2024
Labor groups have formed a new partnership to reshape factories and retain jobs. “Union Energy” is a new collaboration between the PA AFL-CIO and the PA Building Trades. The group kicked off its campaign for sustainable energy at the Cleveland-Cliffs steel plant in Steelton. Union Energy says it wants to keep and expand steel industry jobs by using renewable energies along side fossil fuels.
WORKPLACE SAFETY AND HEALTH
Boston Globe
By Edward Kelly
Aug. 27, 2024
This week, 3,000 firefighters from across North America will come to Boston for the International Association of Fire Fighters’ 57th Convention, which has become a biennial tradition for our 106-year-old labor union. Boston is where I was born and raised. It’s where my love for firefighting began; for over 26 years, I’ve served in the same firehouse my father did, Ladder 17 in the South End. Boston is also where I started to understand the serious risk job-related cancer poses to firefighters. I’ve buried too many friends, lost too many brothers and sisters. Firefighters are exposed to all kinds of threats — from structure fires and contagious medical patients to hazardous material accidents and natural disaster rescues. But no threat is more deadly than the one we can’t see. Our bunker gear can kill us.
NBC News
By Mirna Alsharif and Jay Blackman
Aug. 27, 2024
The International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers, a union that represents airlines industry workers across North America, issued a statement on the reported tire explosion and extended condolences to the victims’ families. “As a union dedicated to the well-being and safety of our members and the broader community, we will offer our resources to all those impacted by this tragic event,” the union said. “We stand in unity with Delta workers during this difficult time and we call on Delta and the relevant authorities to quickly launch a thorough investigation into how this happened.”