Dear LCLAA members and allies,
While the weather may be cooling down in your neck of the woods, the strike wave sweeping the country is just heating up! What started as a series isolated strikes this summer turned into a full-blown movement by "Striketober," when workers at Kellogg's, John Deere, Catholic Health and countless other workplaces took to the picket line to make their demands heard.
And as Striketober turns into Strikesgiving, this movement for worker empowerment shows no sign of stopping. In fact, the AFL-CIO's real time strike map continues to show dozens of work stoppages around the country, and many more union members are using strike authorization as leverage in contract negotiations.
So what can you do to help workers achieve fair pay and dignified working conditions? Show up on the picket line and show your solidarity! If you are near a striking workplace, I urge you to organize a visit with your LCLAA chapter, union local, or neighborhood to give moral support and supplies to those holding down the picket line. Be sure to contact the point person listed on the strike map to schedule your visit and make sure visitors are welcome.
As we continue to observe National Apprenticeship Week, you can also support well-paid middle class jobs by making sure youth in your community know the benefits of apprenticeships and know how apply to local programs.
Finally, we want to express our continuing solidarity with native peoples as we celebrate Native American Heritage Month. Although Thanksgiving is a time of community and connection, its origins are intertwined with the beginning of centuries of oppression and injustice towards Native Americans. This Thanksgiving, I invite you to reflect on this history and how we as trade unionists can uplift and fight with our Native brothers and sisters.
In solidarity,
President Yanira Merino and the LCLAA staff
