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Get to Know AFL-CIO's Affiliates: Bricklayers
AFL-CIO
Next up in our series that takes a deeper look at each of our affiliates is the Bricklayers.
Name of Union: International Union of Bricklayers and Allied Craftworkers (BAC)
Mission: To help workers in the industry deal with unfair treatment, discrimination and other workplace issues in pursuit of balancing the power that an employer has over individual employees. To provide information, training and support for bricklayers and allied craftworkers.
Current Leadership of Union: James Boland serves as president of BAC. Boland became a BAC member in 1977 and worked on projects in the San Francisco Bay Area for a decade. In 1988, he became a business agent for BAC Local 3 before being elected president in 1992. A year later, he joined BAC's Executive Council. Boland joined the international union's headquarters staff as assistant to the vice president. Later that year, he became regional director for California and Nevada. He served as secretary-treasurer from 1999 to 2010. He became president in 2010 and was re-elected in 2015.
Timothy J. Driscoll...
‘State of the Unions’ Podcast—Special Episode: The Labor Movement Responds to the El Paso Massacre
AFL-CIO
On the latest episode of “State of the Unions,” podcast co-hosts Julie Greene and Tim Schlittner talk with Texas AFL-CIO Secretary-Treasurer Montserrat Garibay (Education Austin/AFT-NEA) in the wake of the deadly mass shooting in El Paso, Texas. They discuss immigration, organizing and the need for solidarity in times of darkness.
Listen to our previous episodes:
UNITE HERE President D. Taylor talking about the activism of airline catering workers and the current moment for union organizing.
Highlights of AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka's (UMWA) town halls in Pittsburgh, Cleveland and Detroit, where he discussed NAFTA and trade.
AFL-CIO Secretary-Treasurer Liz Shuler (IBEW) talks about pushing the labor movement to be bold, take risks and not be afraid of failure.
Pride At Work Executive Director Jerame Davis discusses the progress made by LGBTQ working people over the past quarter-century and the work still left to be done.
Union organizer Andy Levin goes to Washington to make...
A Labor Icon: The Working People Weekly List
Every week, we bring you a roundup of the top news and commentary about issues and events important to working families. Here’s the latest edition of the Working People Weekly List.
CWA's Morton Bahr Was a Labor Icon: "On Tuesday night, Communications Workers of America (CWA) President Emeritus Morton Bahr passed away. Bahr was an iconic leader in the American labor movement whose innovation and dedication will be felt for many years to come."
Drivers Win Dignity by Forming Union, Striking for Fairness: "Right in the heart of tourist season on Martha’s Vineyard, Massachusetts, visitors and residents alike now will be driven around the island by union bus drivers who just won their first contract."
Hotel Trades and Airbnb Square Off in Jersey City Over Ordinance Regulating Short-Term Rentals: "On June 26, the Hotel Trades Council celebrated the passage of a Jersey City ordinance that places regulations on Airbnb rentals. The ordinance safeguards the wages, benefits and jobs of hundreds of hotel workers in the Jersey City region. Moreover, it protects affordable housing and quality of...
Global Champion for Working People, Barbara Shailor, Passes Away
Solidarity Center
Working people across the world lost an important champion last week when Barbara Shailor passed away. Shailor spent her life dedicated to helping improve the lives of working people, particularly women, both in the United States and around the world.
Shailor had a long and distinguished career fighting on behalf of working people across the world. She was committed to social justice, had a rigorous intellect and great style.
Her career began when she first got a job as a flight attendant. After years of pioneering labor/community coalitions to address political issues such as energy and workers' rights, she rose up the ranks to become international director of the Machinists (IAM). She was chosen in 1995 by then-AFL-CIO President John Sweeney to reorganize and refocus the federation's international work. She served in the role of international affairs director for the AFL-CIO and oversaw the work of the Solidarity Center, refocusing its mission for modern times. After leaving the federation, she served as the U.S. State Department'...
Get to Know AFL-CIO's Affiliates: Longshoremen
AFL-CIO
Next up in our series that takes a deeper look at each of our affiliates is the Longshoremen.
Name of Union: International Longshoremen's Association (ILA)
Mission: To promote the best interests of our members and their families; to organize unorganized workers; to bargain collectively and to negotiate; to improve the wages, hours of work, job security, work and living conditions; to secure and promote laws for the benefit of all workers; to expand educational opportunities of our members and their families; and to promote health, welfare, pension, recreational and civic programs in the interests of our members and their families.
Current Leadership of Union: Harold J. Daggett serves as international president of ILA. Daggett began his career with ILA as a mechanic with Local 1804-1 in 1967. He is a third generation ILA member who worked with Sea-Land Services for more than a decade until he was appointed as secretary-treasurer and business agent for his local. He was re-elected to that position six times, while also serving as secretary-treasurer of the...
Economy Gains 164,000 Jobs in July; Unemployment Steady at 3.7%
The U.S. economy gained 164,000 jobs in July, and the unemployment rate remained at 3.7%, according to figures released this morning by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Compensation in both union and nonunion sectors showed modest growth for the year ending June 2019. Meanwhile, productivity is rising faster than wages in too many industries.
In response to the July job numbers, AFL-CIO Chief Economist William Spriggs tweeted:
The tepid 3.2% in wage growth in perspective: For a higher wage sector like manufacturing, wages were up 2.5%, but in lower wage sectors where the minimum wage increases have mattered, retail trade was up 5.3% and leisure and hospitality up 3.7% @AFLCIO #JobsReport pic.twitter.com/3m4Xz8qC4g
— William E. Spriggs (@WSpriggs) August 2, 2019
With continued revisions in previously release preliminary employment numbers, so far this year has averaged 164,000 jobs a month; compared to 223,000 jobs a month in 2018. The @federalreserve rate cut should not be a mid-course correction; but, a time to change course. @AFLCIO
—...
CWA's Morton Bahr Was a Labor Icon
CWA
On Tuesday night, Communications Workers of America (CWA) President Emeritus Morton Bahr passed away. Bahr was an iconic leader in the American labor movement whose innovation and dedication will be felt for many years to come.
In 1951, Bahr took a job as a telegraph operator at Mackay Radio and Telegraph in New York. Not long after, he had organized his fellow workers into an independent union that later affiliated with CWA. He worked his way up to a leadership position, becoming district director and then vice president of the union's largest district, where he led CWA's first organizing campaign in the public sector.
Bahr's tireless efforts on behalf of working people led to his election as president of CWA in 1985, becoming only the third president in the union's history. He would win re-election to the position and remained president for 20 years. During this time, he also became an AFL-CIO vice president and Executive Council member.
The year before he was elected, the AT&T Bell System was broken up and the shakeup meant the telecommunications industry was in...
Drivers Win Dignity by Forming Union, Striking for Fairness
ATU
Right in the heart of tourist season on Martha’s Vineyard, Massachusetts, visitors and residents alike now will be driven around the island by union bus drivers who just won their first contract.
Bus drivers represented by the Amalgamated Transit Union (ATU) Local 1548 on Martha’s Vineyard approved their first contract, which raises drivers’ pay by $3 per hour. The new contract with Martha’s Vineyard Transit Authority also recognizes seniority among the drivers, provides for double pay for holidays and gives protection to the drivers during layoffs.
After a courageous 28-day strike, members of ATU Local 1548 voted to approve the new contract 32–1. “This is a historical day for VTA drivers and a great day for the island. We can now better provide for our families, our jobs are more secure, and we can get back to safely transporting our riders, friends and allies, whose support on the picket lines and year-round was critical in achieving this fair contract,” driver Richard Townes said after the vote.
The agreement follows years of conflict...
Hotel Trades and Airbnb Square Off in Jersey City Over Ordinance Regulating Short-Term Rentals
Hotel Trades
On June 26, the Hotel Trades Council celebrated the passage of a Jersey City ordinance that places regulations on Airbnb rentals. The ordinance safeguards the wages, benefits and jobs of hundreds of hotel workers in the Jersey City region. Moreover, it protects affordable housing and quality of life for tens of thousands of city residents.
Unfortunately, Airbnb has aggressively opposed this crucial ordinance, churning out misinformation and attacking elected officials who support it. The company also explicitly has attacked HTC and union members at council meetings and in press forums.
Not long after the ordinance passed, Airbnb submitted a referendum petition to repeal it. According to HTC, the referendum petition may result in the ordinance being submitted to voters on this November’s ballot.
If this happens, HTC will rely on its membership and allies to engage in a robust campaign to win the referendum election.
“The New Jersey State AFL-CIO stands in solidarity with our brothers and...
Oregon AFL-CIO Cements Deal to Make Portland Baseball Stadium Union-Friendly
Oregon AFL-CIO
The Oregon AFL-CIO and allies negotiated a historical deal with the Portland Diamond Project that will mean a stadium being built in order to attract Major League Baseball to the city will be union-friendly. In signing the labor harmony agreement, the Portland Diamond Project has voluntarily agreed to allow workers at the stadium to organize and form unions.
This is the first labor harmony agreement (also known as a labor peace agreement) for a sports arena in Oregon. The agreement sets rules for union organizing between the employer and the unions that could represent working people at the venue in the future. The agreement covers workers in concessions, sales, property service, security, hospitality, stage and theatrical presentations, entertainment and audiovisual services. Future discussions will address ballpark construction jobs.
Oregon AFL-CIO President Tom Chamberlain (IAFF) was excited by the agreement:
By signing this agreement, the Portland Diamond Project has shown us they value and respect the rights of...
