Labor-Management Partnerships

By partnering with employers, unions help working people develop in-demand skills to power the next generation of American-led innovation. Joint labor-management training programs in the building and construction industry contribute about $1.5 billion to the American economy every year.

In the building and construction industry, thousands of local Joint Apprenticeship and Training Committee (JATC) groups oversee apprenticeship and journey-level skills upgrade trainings in growing, cutting-edge occupations such as energy conservation and alternative energy. These programs have been far more successful than non-unionized sectors in opening the door to solid, middle-class jobs for women, African American and Latinx working people.

We combine forces to offer opportunities for working people in many other industries including health care, construction, manufacturing, hospitality and aerospace.

The Alliance for Employee Growth and Development, with the Communication Workers of America and the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers, has provided 16.7 million training hours to more than 178,000 working people who are growing their professional skills in telecommunications and beyond.

The USW Institute for Career Development pursues the goal to help every worker attain his or her full potential, both as an employee and as a human being, in the competitive and challenging environment that lies ahead.

The United Auto Workers alliances with Ford and GM drive innovation in labor-management relations, improve the lives of union members, and propel the auto industry into a pattern of profitable growth for the 21st century.

The Kaiser Permanente Labor Management Partnership covers 115,000 union-represented workers, 14,000 managers and 19,000 physicians. It is is the longest-running labor-management partnership in the U.S. The LMP’s two employee education trusts have helped more than 104,000 union coalition-represented workers enhance their job skills and advance their careers.