LCLAA Applauds the Senate for Passing the Bipartisan Infrastructure Deal
MEDIA STATEMENT
August 11, 2021
Contact: Pablo Stein
pstein@lclaa.org | (202) 508-6989
WASHINGTON – Today, the Senate voted 69-30 to pass the bipartisan Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act. This bill allocates resources to repair and create new roads and bridges, broadband networks, electric grids, and public transportation. Like all Americans, Latino communities and members of the labor movement stand to reap the broad benefits of this bill, which will provide us not only with badly-needed renovations and upgrades to the environments we live in but also with more of the well-paid union jobs that many of our members depend on for their livelihood.
In fact, when combined with President Biden’s Build Back Better Agenda and an immigration reform bill that includes all 11 million undocumented people, this initiative will add millions of jobs annually over the next decade to the American economy, which translates into a stronger labor force and increased union participation.
The bill is thus poised to bring us both the physical health associated with safe drinking water, accessible parks, secure roadways, access to housing and healthcare, as well as the economic security and peace of mind that stem from stable jobs in an organized workplace.
In addition to these universal benefits, however, thousands of Latinos living in underserved communities stand to benefit from this legislation as a great equalizer, which will bring to our neighborhoods the dignity and respect they deserve. This is an improvement for communities who have not had access to these benefits. No longer will a clean environment, safe roads, better schools, and reliable transportation be luxuries afforded only to those who live in the right part of town.
As we emerge from one of the darkest times in recent history for Latino workers, who disproportionately bore the front-line brunt of the Covid-19 pandemic, it is imperative that both chambers of Congress work together to support the Latino community’s growth and prosperity agenda. The Labor Council for Latin American Advancement (LCLAA) therefore implores members of the House to follow suit and pass this crucial infrastructure bill.
“The need for job creation couched in a broader definition of traditional infrastructure has never been more critical to the Latino community,” said Jose Vargas, Executive Director of LCLAA, “This is the moment to show that good-paying union jobs are the best way to revitalize our communities.”
###
The Labor Council for Latin American Advancement (LCLAA) is the leading national organization for Latino(a) workers and their families. LCLAA was born in 1972 out of the need to educate, organize and mobilize Latinos in the labor movement and has expanded its influence to organize Latinos in an effort to impact workers’ rights and their influence in the political process. LCLAA represents the interest of more than 2 million Latino workers in the American Federation of Labor-Congress of Industrial Organizations (AFL-CIO), The Change to Win Federation, Independent Unions and all its membership. Visit LCLAA on the web at www.lclaa.org, on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.