I especially want to thank Rich Trumka for asking me to join his team.
I am succeeding a Secretary-Treasurer who was, and is, a model for any labor leader today.
But frankly, I have to tell you, some things you’ve become accustomed to in your Secretary-Treasurer are going to change.
I am totally committed to never, never, never grow a moustache.
But I do plan to build on Rich’s success.
I would like to thank Arlene Holt Baker for her leadership and friendship over many years.
Above all, it’s been a privilege to serve my brothers and sisters in the IBEW. And especially to work with President Ed Hill, who, in addition to being a visionary leader, has been an inspiration, a mentor and a friend to me for the past 11 years.
There are so many more in the IBEW to thank. Lindell Lee, Larry Neidig and all the officers and staff. Former IBEW political director Rick Diegel, who brought me to work in Washington. And my brothers and sisters of my home local, local 125 in Portland, Oregon -- especially former business manager bill miller who broke with union tradition and gave me my first opportunity so many years ago.
It’s been quite a journey with the IBEW. Starting in Portland, and all throughout the United States and Canada, we have organized together, walked picket lines together, rallied together and lobbied together. You will always be my union family.
I was fortunate to have local 125 in my life even before I went to work there. My father lance was a lineman working out of that Local and my late mother Joyce spearheaded a drive to organize office employees at the same utility.
She was incredibly talented and supportive and, like so many hard-working American moms, made every sacrifice so her children could prosper.
My father believes that with hard work and determination, you can do anything, a principle that has guided me throughout my life. He set a standard of union workmanship that is a model for what our movement needs to communicate to a new generation of workers.
Thanks also to my sister Anna and her family, who are here – Anna you’ve always been my cheerleader and the one I turn to for sage advice and I appreciate you so much.
My aunt and uncle, Donna and Stephen Bower, who have been a wonderful source of support over the years, are also here. Thank you, Donna, for being such an incredible role model for me as a professional woman.
I’d also like to thank my mother- and father-in-law, Jean and Bob Herbst, for joining us here in Pittsburgh today.
And of course, my loving husband, David Herbst. I’m so grateful to have such a wonderful, supportive partner to go on this journey with me.
Okay, before this starts to sound like a speech at the academy awards, let’s get down to business.
My first priority is to manage the finances of the federation with complete accountability and transparency.
Every dollar that comes into the AFL-CIO originates from rank and file union members – the working mom who has to watch every penny to raise her kids – the lineman who risks life and limb on a daily basis to provide us with electricity – the brothers and sisters who do the jobs, large and small, that make America work.
It’s their money, and not a day will go by that I don’t respect that fact.
Our affiliated unions, state federations, area labor federations and central labor councils are facing hard choices and making sacrifices every day. You have tightened your belts. And so will we, because the AFL-CIO is not immune to that pain.
The federation has already made some difficult cuts. As the finance report will show, the budget will be back in the black this year, but the need for prudent measures remains great. We will do what is necessary to maintain fiscal responsibility – but we will not dilute our mission or sacrifice our principles.
Financial responsibility is critical, but the job demands more, namely, to help establish priorities for our movement.
We need to revitalize and unify labor at every level. We need to reach out to unorganized workers –especially those under 35 -- who, for whatever reason, don’t see us as the answer to the economic problems they face.
It’s not that today’s young people don’t like unions; it’s just that they really don’t know about us. Their images come from the movies and corporate America. And that’s our fault.
Our message needs to resonate across generational lines. For the first time in history, we have four generations in our movement as active and retired workers, ranging from those whose lives were shaped by the great depression and world war ii, to the well-documented baby boomers, to generation x, and to the millennials, those born in the 1980s and later.
There is a world of difference in their life experiences. As we saw in the report on younger workers issued by the AFL-CIO last week, one in three worries about finding a permanent full-time job with benefits. And an equal number are still living with their parents. How many of you can relate?
I know what that’s like. I know how it feels to be young and stuck in a series of dead-end jobs and have to rely on mom and dad. It was the opportunity to have a union job that put me on the right path. It was belonging to a union that gave me a better life and a future. And that’s why i firmly believe that giving hope to and fighting for good jobs for this generation is our greatest challenge as a movement.
We know what young people are capable of — we worked side by side with them last year in a political campaign to make real change happen.
We watched them organize and spread a message of hope to the American people, and we’ve got to build on those bonds of solidarity that were forged in the heat of the campaign.
To do that, we need to open our ears and open our minds to new ways to reach some unconventional audiences, including part-time and contract workers, and those looking to acquire training for the jobs of the future.
This means stepping out of our comfort zone.
It means breaking old habits and aggressively communicating our message.
It means greater outreach to traditional media and at the same time using new media and social networks.
And that includes using humor and wit to undercut our adversaries.
Don’t think humor’s effective? Well in a recent time magazine poll, Jon Stewart, a comedian, not a journalist, was named the most trusted newscaster.
We need to become a labor movement with a sense of humor.
Our values are timeless -- social justice, the dignity of work and job opportunities for all. But we need to rethink how we present them to the world.
Rich takes great pride in how hard and how skillfully his father and grandfather worked as miners. My own union has established a code of excellence that renews our members’ pride in the work they do and proclaims our values to the community. It’s not just words on a piece of paper; it has paid off with increased work for our members and organizing success.
That’s what all of us are about – excellence. And we are going to help people make that connection.
We need to elevate awareness of the extraordinary work we do on the job and beyond -- through community service, on pro bono labor projects and through charity. We’re the real, living examples of hard work, family and community, and it’s time to share that truth with all of America.
Senator Kennedy’s final gift to us was his letter that president Obama shared with the nation last week. He wrote: “what we face is, above all, a moral issue. At stake are fundamental principles of social justice and the character of our country.”
The senator was talking about health care, but his words apply to a broader movement – our movement. All of us in this room have been blessed to be union members. With that comes a great responsibility. Our task is nothing less than renewing the labor movement in the wealthiest nation in the history of the world. Four generations look to us to provide the hope, the progress and the justice they deserve.
Together we can advance those timeless values. And together we will.
Thank you.
