PAGE 8 | March 1, 2019 | NORTHWEST LABOR PRESS
What working families want
By Richard Trumka National AFL-CIO president
The freedom to join together, and an economy that works for all
Last year, in communities all across the
country, millions of Americans mobi-
lized and called for an economy that
works for all of us. From state houses
and governors mansions to Capitol
Hill, we elected advocates who com-
mitted themselves to advancing that
cause. That election was defined by a
movement of hard-working people
who stood together to reject the meager
crumbs we are being handed and re-
claim what is rightfully ours.
In electing more than 900 union
members to office, we secured a great
opportunity to right the structural
wrongs of our economy. Our mission
was not simply to rack up victories on
election night last November. We
changed the rulemakers. Now it is time
for them to change the rules. As legis-
lators move past the manufactured cri-
sis that defined the first weeks of the
116th Congress, working people are
ready to fight for that change.
Above all, that means affirming our
ability to have a real voice on the job.
A recent study by the Massachusetts
Institute of Technology found that half
of all nonunion workers, or more than
60 million Americans, would choose to
join a union if they were given the
chance, yet aspiring union members
continue to face countless obstacles.
The power of working people must be
unleashed. Whether we work for pri-
vate companies or public employers, in
an office or a mine or a factory, all of
us have the right to freely negotiate
higher wages and better working con-
ditions.
Congress should modernize the
badly outdated National Labor Rela-
tions Act to truly protect our freedom
to organize and mobilize together. Top
lawmakers have put forth promising
proposals that would ensure workers
can organize a union without facing
scorched earth tactics and hostile cam-
paigns from corporations. If workers
sign up for a union, they deserve to
know their decision is protected by law.
It is not the job of executives, gover-
nors, or right-wing operatives to make
those decisions for them.
However, our fight will not end with
one piece of legislation. An agenda for
working families means building a
fairer economy and a more just society
for everyone in our country, whether
you are in a union or not. That means
achieving full employment where
every American is able to access a
good job, passing a $15 federal mini-
mum wage, and refusing to approve
any trade agreement that lacks enforce-
able labor protections.
It means providing a secure and
prosperous future for all our families
by expanding Social Security, strength-
ening our pensions, and making a seri-
ous federal investment in our infra-
structure. It means defending the health
and lives of working people by shoring
up the Affordable Care Act, removing
onerous taxes on health insurance plans
negotiated by workers, expanding
Medicare coverage to more people, and
lowering prescription drug costs. It
means passing laws that ensure paid
sick and family leave.
All of these guarantees are long
overdue for working people, but there
is arguably no task so vital as defend-
ing our right to safety and dignity on
the job. Congress should also extend
comprehensive federal protections, in-
cluding the Equality Act, Deferred Ac-
tion for Childhood Arrivals, and Tem-
porary Protected Status, to LGBTQ
and immigrant workers, whose liveli-
hoods and families too often rest on the
whims of their employers.
As one of a handful of men in my
family to survive the scourge of black
lung in the coal mines of Pennsylvania,
I cannot overstate the dire need for
broadly strengthened safety regula-
tions, including the expansion of Occu-
pational Safety and Health Administra-
tion coverage to all workers, toughened
federal enforcement, and ironclad
whistleblower protections.
Corporations and right-wing inter-
ests continue to try their best to deny
working people our fair share of the
enormous wealth that we produce
every day. In November, we stood up
to change that twisted status quo. We
made our voices heard at the ballot
box, and we intend to hold the people
we elected accountable to an economic
agenda that will raise wages, move our
country forward, and lead to better
lives for all of us.
Richard Trumka is the president of the national
AFL-CIO. He previously served as secretary treas-
urer and is former president of the United Mine
Workers.
Glazier
Apprenticeship
Accepting
Applications
The Oregon & SW Washington
Glaziers, Architectural Metal &
Glass Workers Joint
Apprenticeship & Journeyman
Training Program will be open
to accept applications to create
a pool of eligible applicants.
Applicants must be at least 18
years old. Must apply in
person and furnish a copy of a
high school diploma and grade
transcript or GED and test
scores at time of application.
Additional educational
documents, résumés, and
letter of reference are also
helpful for scoring purposes.
Applications will be taken
March 11-22, 2019
Monday through Friday,
9 to 11 a.m. and 1 to 3 p.m.
Glaziers Training Center
Mt. Hood Community College
Room GE 108
26000 SE Stark St.,
Gresham, Oregon
Women and minorities are
encouraged to apply; Veterans’ GI
Benefits may apply in this program
Bethany Sherer
971.978.9534
12/31/19
2018