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Speech

Trumka to Boilermakers Convention: Your Values Are In Exactly the Right Place

… Thank you, Brother Newt [Jones] . I appreciate you and your union tremendously. Solidarity and a commitment to America’s middle class are front and center for the Boilermakers. Thank you for bringing me to Vegas to speak to your convention. Your union is strong and has a powerful future, because your values are in exactly the right place. I particularly want to acknowledge the Boilermakers’ vision and activism when it comes to the responsible … need to live a good life. And our agenda drives our politics, not the other way around. America’s labor movement doesn’t work for any party or candidate. We work for working people, period. Yes, we will stand with candidates who stand with us, …
Speech

Trumka to Letter Carriers Convention: Activism Works

… Thank you, Brother Fred [Rolando]. It’s great to be with the Letter Carriers! Thank you for inviting me to your convention. The National Association of Letter Carriers is … and talking to friends, neighbors and anyone else who will listen, and you’ve changed the national conversation about the work you do. After Election Day, that activism will help change federal law to finally end the manufactured crisis at the … has stolen our pay time and time again. He said outsourcing creates jobs. He rooted for the housing collapse. He supports right to work 100 percent. And he thinks Carl Icahn—who just eliminated 3,000 union jobs at the Trump Taj Mahal in Atlantic …
Press Release

AFL-CIO Submits Amicus Brief in Support of Immigrant Working Families

… Statement from AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka on the amicus brief urging the Supreme Court to lift the injunction in the U.S. v. Texas Case This injunction is blocking several million hard working immigrants from … workers face increasingly ugly and dangerous attacks from bigoted politicians, the labor movement rejects blatant attempts to divide us.  We will continue to stand strong with our immigrant brothers and sisters as we fight together in the Congress, the courts and the streets to …
Blog

What to Do if You Are Targeted at Work for Violence, Harassment or Hate Speech

… and what you can do if you or someone you know is the target of one of these attacks in the workplace. Click on the links to learn more about your rights, what constitutes illegal activity and what you can do about it if you are targeted. Disability : The Americans with Disabilities Act requires employers to make reasonable accommodations to enable an otherwise qualified person with a disability to do his or her job. A reasonable accommodation is any change in the work environment (or in the way things are usually done) to help an individual with a disability apply for a job or perform …
Speech

Trumka to Florida AFL-CIO: Working People Must Write the Economic Rules

… Thank you, Brother Mike [Williams]. I appreciate your leadership and your commitment to working families across Florida. You’re a powerful leader of a strong and growing movement. I’m proud to call you my brother. Good afternoon, sisters and brothers. I want to take this moment to recognize the good work all of you have done here in Florida over the past few years. Your political activism has been impressive. You’ve had to … are too high. You can’t support workers if you want to lower our pay. Trump wants to destroy labor unions. His position on right to work is “100 percent.” He is refusing to bargain with workers at his hotel in Las Vegas. And he said he wouldn’t …
Legislative Alert

Fact Sheet on Why the H-2B Program is Bad for Working People

… lawsuits tell a different story – the H-2B program displaces U.S. workers, lowers wages, and exposes foreign workers to exploitation. Employers urging lawmakers to pass policy riders to expand the H-2B program exponentially and gut crucial wage and labor protections only have their … that workers will leave an abusive employer or complain about unpaid wages or poor working conditions. This captive work structure perpetuates cycles of exploitation for H-2B workers and puts downward pressure on the wages and standards for …
Executive Council Statement

The 2016 Democracy Spring, Awakening and Congress of Conscience

… Millions of working people are standing together for voting rights and rejecting corporate billionaires’ attempts to silence the majority by buying elections and politicians As the race for president heats up and the divided U.S. Senate … the attack on an economy that works for everyone, and the assault on one of our most fundamental democratic rights—the right to vote. The residents of Flint, Michigan, who have suffered under austerity rule, and other communities across this … infrastructure, which is in place in 50 states, allows us to catalyze organizing, mobilizing and resourcing democracy work with and through our affiliates, constituency groups and national strategic partners.   Therefore, we stand firm with …
Speech

Trumka: Virginia is for Unions

… Good morning, brothers and sisters. It is great to be here in Williamsburg. Doris, thank you so much for that introduction. I am proud to call you my sister. Friends, let me … a long time, conventional wisdom told us Virginia was a conservative stronghold. Home to Liberty University, the National Right to Work Foundation and Ken Cuccinelli. A place where unions were few and far between and progress was nowhere to be found. But …
Speech

Trumka at DNC LGBTQ Pride Reception: We are Never Going Back

… Thank you, Stuart [Appelbaum] for that introduction and for your leadership at the RWDSU and UFCW. I am proud to call you my brother. I want to thank the DNC, the RWDSU and Pride at Work for hosting this reception. I want to recognize DNC Chair Debbie Wasserman Schultz, DNC LGBT Caucus Chair Earl Fowlkes, … Let’s declare tonight loudly and proudly that 2016 will be a year of progress. And let’s put Donald Trump and his ideas right where they belong: in the trash bin of history. So with that, I want to thank all of you again. I hope you have a …
Blog

AFL-CIO Reacts to Supreme Court Ruling on DAPA/DACA Case

… humane and rational enforcement of our nation's immigration laws. While we are deeply disappointed by the court's failure to reach a decision, we will redouble our organizing efforts to defeat the obstructionist, anti-immigrant forces behind this lawsuit and ensure that all working people can assert their … decision will further motivate a resilient community that is a vibrant and vital part of our labor movement. We continue to urge the administration to use its discretion to protect those courageous immigrant workers who are exercising their …