Dec. 8 , 2021 Labor Tribune

More than 2,000 Missouri and Illinois transportation projects started in first year of Infrastructure and Jobs Act

By TIM ROWDEN Editor-in-Chief

Missouri and Illinois secured funding for more than 2,000 trans portation projects started in this, the first year of the bipartisan Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, according to an industry group study.

• Missouri leveraged $1.2 billion in federal highway and bridge formula funds this year to help jumpstart 872 new improvement projects in communities across the state during the first year of the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA), a review of U.S. Treasury Department data through Sept. 30 shows.

• Illinois leveraged $2 billion in federal highway and bridge for mula funds in FY 2022 for 1,220 new improvement projects in communi ties across the state, the Treasury Department data shows.

“A key takeaway from the Trea sury data is that the bipartisan infra structure law is working in year one as intended, with state transporta tion departments disbursing funds and projects breaking ground,” said American Road & Transportation Builders Association (ARTBA) Chief Economist Dr. Alison Premo Black, who prepared the report.

“The economic and quality of life benefits of the infrastructure law will become even more appar

ent as funding of these long-term investments will be felt by the American traveling public in their communities.”

President Joe Biden signed the IIJA into law Nov. 15, 2021. Nearly 90 percent of IIJA’s highway funds are dispersed by existing formula to states, with the remainder dis tributed through discretionary grant awards and other allocated programs.

Nationally, over 29,000 IIJA

projects were launched. Here’s a breakdown of some of the biggest St. Louis-area projects:

MISSOURI

The five largest projects sup ported by formula funds in Mis souri are:

• MO 51 – Replacement of Chester Bridge over Mississippi River and construction of a two-lane road–$107.5 million.

• St Louis County, I-270 – Modify in terchange configuration at Riverview Blvd. in St Louis City – $37.1 million.

• MO 86, Taney County – Bridge replacement over Table Rock Lake – $32.0 million.

• St Louis Co, I-55 North – Bridge rehabilitation from north of Lind bergh Blvd. to Loughborough Ave. – $28.0 million.

• Statewide Planning Funds – $25.7 million.

Missouri Works Initiative pre-apprenticeship programs win national recognition

By ELIZABETH DONALD Illinois Correspondent

Illinois’ Democratic incumbents held most of the state and federal offices in the Nov. 8 midterm elec tion, while a few seats flipped back to the Republicans despite union endorsement.

Gov. JB Pritzker and the full slate of Democrats for statewide elected offices won reelection in what the Chicago Tribune called a “Democratic blowout,” using words like “shellacking” and “blue wave” to describe Illinois’ election results.

Pritzker vowed to work toward a society where “books are not banned, nor children are shielded from the truth about all of our American history.” Touching on conservative extremism, women’s rights, education, health care, a living wage and former President Donald Trump’s imminent presi dential campaign, Pritzker’s speech has spurred pundits’ speculation for a future presidential run for the

WIDER MAJORITY

Illinois Democrats now hold a wider majority in the state House than any time in history, with as many as 78 of 118 seats held by Democrats. With at least 40 Demo cratic state Senators, the Senate also will have a supermajority.

Pritzker, who has repeatedly campaigned downstate including in the Metro East, easily defeated rural conservative Darren Bailey with 2.1

By SHERI GASSAWAY Missouri Correspondent

In fact, the three programs are the only pre-apprenticeship programs that made NABTU’s list of comprehensive apprenticeship readiness programs, Dr. John Gaal told attendees at the 27th St. Louis BUD cohort graduation Nov. 18 at the IBEW Local 1 union hall in St. Louis.

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ILLINOIS LEVERAGED $2 BILLION in federal highway and bridge formula funds to help jumpstart 1,220 new improvement projects.

MISSOURI LEVERAGED $1.2 BILLION in federal highway and bridge formula funds this year to help jumpstart 872 new improvement projects in communities across the state.

LIUNA’s John Penn inducted into Illinois Union Hall of Honor Page

Members

unions

ILLINOIS

Southwestern Illinois Central Labor Council MISSOURI

St. Louis Labor Council

LABOR-FRIENDLY Illinois Democrats hold a wider majority in the state House than any time in history, with as many as 78 of 118 seats held by Democrats.

Post-election Illinois’ unionfriendly Democrats now hold a wider majority in the state House than any time in history reelected governor.

Three Missouri Works Initiative pre-apprenticeship programs – the St. Louis Building Union Diversity (BUD) program and its Kansas City and Springfield versions – have been recognized by the National Associa tion of Building Trades (NABTU).

TO BRIGHT FUTURES: Seventeen pre-apprentices graduated from the St. Louis Building Union Diversity (BUD) program, which recently won recognition from the National Association of Building Trades as a registered comprehensive apprenticeship readiness program. Celebrating their bright new futures are (front row) Maurice Rogers; Asante “AJ” Williams; and Darion Murray; (center row) BUD Program Coordinator Aurora Bihler; Amir Williams; (name withheld); Melanie Breihan; Ki’Arra Franklin; Sharannah “Shay” Jones; Genevieve “Raine” McDevitt; and Jorge Morales Soriano; (last row): Starkeisha “Jolea” Tate; Gabriel Tolliver; Dwane Henry; Nixon Holloway; Jessica “Jess” Schrum; Samson Tatum; and Peyton Lopes. – Labor Tribune photo

By JAMIE K. McCALLUM

conversation about worker justice in ways the previous decade failed to do.

By PATTI DAVIS

WORKING CLASS REVIVAL

The story of essential workers during the pan demic is part of the long unraveling of the New Deal. The destruction of the welfare state, the at tack on unions, and the rise of neoliberalism provide the historical backdrop for the pandemic Labor unrest. As workers’ fortunes came under re newed attack in the early 1970s, the historic gains of the New Deal were rolled back decades. Inequality became the defining feature of our economy as we arrived at a second Gilded Age. This was more than unfair during the pandemic it had deadly consequences. A 2020 study found that in over 3,000 U.S. counties, income inequality was associated with more cases and more deaths by the virus.

In the immediate aftermath of the Great Recession of 2007 2009, the unemploy ment rate remained stubbornly high long after the crisis had been declared officially over. The solution to lagging employment growth was an explosion of low-wage service jobs. It was this new servant class of gig workers, low-wage healthcare work ers, fast-food employees, maids, delivery drivers, and retail clerks who endured the most intense economic hardship during the Covid pandemic recession. They were deemed essential and worked through the pandemic, or they lost their jobs. Without this longer time frame for context, essential workers appear to be merely the product of the pandemic rather than the outcome of decades of political and economic shifts.

ESSENTIAL FRONTLINE WORKERS

By April 2020, about a third of U.S. workers were designated as “essential” or “frontline” workers, tasked with laboring in person through the pandemic. Who was considered essential or not often seemed capricious. Employers carved out niches for themselves as essential, forcing their employees into dangerous workplaces, even though they served no public benefit. Walmart designated its store greeters as essential, putting countless workers at unnecessary risk. The state of Montana designated elite fly-fishing guides as es sential. Kirk Gibbs, an electrician from Syracuse, N.Y., summarized his status as an essential worker like this: “I’m essential to the pocketbooks of rich contractors and essential for spreading the virus, but that’s about it.”

Across the world the designations varied even more. In fact, it wasn’t always clear what essential workers were essential for. Economic stability? Corporate wealth ac cumulation? Public health? Social repro duction? To ensure a pleasant experience for retail shoppers?

This mattered beyond public recogni tion. Because workers did not have a straightforward relationship to being classified as essential or not, their abil ity to collectively organize as such when necessary was inhibited.

Still, workers used the rhetorical power of their designation as “essential” to highlight their mistreatment and exploita tion. In some cases, workers forced their managers, bosses, and corporate boards to provide lifesaving safety protocols, more paid sick days, raises, and better healthcare and other benefits. Were it not for workers blowing the whistle, we might never have known the hazards they faced or gotten the kinds of improvements that saved lives. In addition to these much-needed tangible gains for an eclectic class of workers, pandemic-era activism shifted the national

A major consequence of Labor unrest during the pandemic was that, against great odds, essential workers helped to transform the political conversation about work in America. They even influenced the Demo cratic Party’s established preference for austerity in ways that were unimaginable before the pandemic arrived.

DAVIS McCALLUM

When I was about 8 or 9, I was bullied ruthlessly in school by a boy in my class. I faked being sick so I wouldn’t have to go to school, but my parents figured out that something was going on and my father came in to talk to me. I confessed to him that I was scared of my tormentor, and what followed was a lesson in the beauty of ignoring another person.

so often it’s hard to keep track of them. Just to name a few really important issues. What if there was a collective pledge among responsible news organizations to take Donald Trump off the front pages, to not talk about him every single day? He would huff and puff and try to blow the house down, but no one would be paying attention. Think of how much calmer the waters would be. Think of how many other stories would get the bandwidth they deserve.

Why did Joe Biden who had built his entire career on not being Bernie Sanders promise on the eve of his elec tion to be “the most prounion president you’ve ever seen?” Why did he come out in support of Amazon workers in what was the most hotly debated union election in recent history? Why did he immediately create a task force on Worker Organizing and Empowerment and pursue the Protecting the Right to Organize Act, groundbreaking legislation that would recast American Labor law in workers’ favor?

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He explained that bullies crave attention and that if they are ignored, they sort of deflate. He then showed me how frustrating it is to feel like you’re invisible, by ignoring me when I tried to speak to him. It worked. I returned to school, I ignored the bully and he gave up his attacks on me.

LIKE AN ABUSIVE BOYFRIEND

It’s not easy ignoring someone who keeps barreling onto the world stage, de termined to create chaos and eviscerate the democracy we depend on, but it is often the only remedy that will work. The person being ignored will find himself alone on a battlefield he created, with only his own voice bellowing around him. Linger on that image for a moment – Donald Trump all alone in the wilderness, with only his own voice to keep him company.

EVERY BULLY IS SCARED OF SOMETHING

“The marching order from the president,” said Jared Bernstein, a member of the presi dent’s Council of Economic Advisers, “is ev erything we do in the job market space needs to reflect the importance of unionization.”

Biden didn’t have a change of heart. He was just reading the pulse of the country, and milquetoast socialism was the order of the day. Long-held popular assumptions about the goodness of unfettered capitalism were being challenged on a daily basis, in the press and in the workplace. The nature of the pandemic raised concerns about essential workers to issues of national security, which gave these workers’ struggles a larger audi ence and deeper significance. Just as Occupy Wall Street changed the conversation about inequality in America — focusing greater at tention on systematic wealth concentration, not merely “greed” — Labor struggles during the pandemic contributed to a new valuation of America’s working class.

Yet a year after campaigning to “get things done,” Biden wasn’t able to rally even his own party to his signature plans for jobs, infrastructure, climate, higher education, and voting rights. Nonetheless, many of the country’s major Labor leaders seemed to be waiting for him to do exactly that before tak ing matters into their own hands.

When what was needed was decisive political leadership and militant organizing on a large scale, neither transpired. It wasn’t until spring 2022, led by historic movements within Ama zon warehouses and grassroots campaigns to unionize Starbucks cafés, that Labor seemed emboldened to chart a new course.

WORKPLACE ORGANIZING AND SOCIAL JUSTICE

In 2020, a few important shifts happened in the way workers organize. First, workplace organizing and social justice struggles out side the workplace began to cross-pollinate each other. Before the pandemic, the working class was mostly siloed in their own occupa tions or industries. In 2020, however, a front line class emerged across multiple essential industries, leading to worker organizing efforts that bridged those divides, and even spilled over outside the workplace.

Half of the mass strikes that year were led by nurses, but their picket lines attracted all kinds of other essential workers in solidar ity, learning from those on strike, and then building their own movements back at their jobs. Moreover, social justice movements like Black Lives Matter began talking about the “Strike for Black Lives,” using the lan guage and tactics of Labor to address white supremacy and police violence.

Donald Trump is like the abusive boyfriend or ex-husband who won’t go away. In that situation, one would take out a restraining order, but obviously we can’t do that with Mr. Trump. So how about not making him the predominant news story?

I have noticed, to be fair, that he is a little less predominant, but let’s face it, he is still everywhere in the news. I understand that announcing his candidacy for president is news. But does it have to be a front-page story? Does the end of his exile from Twitter have to dominate the day’s coverage? Does every move he makes, every ridiculous statement he utters, have to be reported?

STOP GIVING HIM ATTENTION

With each news story, each segment on television, we are giving him the elixir that keeps him going: attention. There are plenty of things going on in the world that are more important than Donald Trump. We have a planet to save. Russia is still waging war on Ukraine, and still imprisoning American citizens like Brittney Griner. The West is run ning out of water. There are mass shootings

The other thing that changed was that workers took matters into their own hands in ways that had not happened for decades. Whereas traditional Labor organizing over the last half century has mostly been the job of official unions, in 2020, even workers without a union began to take action without support from Organized Labor’s officialdom. A shocking one third of all strikes in 2020 were led by non-union workers, an incred ible risk to take given the nature of the other swirling crises.

Unionized workers also struck or walked out without warning, built new coalitions, and won some material gains that would have never been possible without the horror of the pandemic. It’s this bottom-up approach that we now see taking hold most visibly in the campaigns to organize at Amazon, Starbucks, and among academic adjunct workers.

This activity didn’t show up in official statistics on Labor unrest, which showed a comparably low level of worker agitation. But these differences, some of which persist today, characterized the pandemic Labor Movement.

THE COVID CLASS WAR

Unique features of capitalist society exac erbated the Covid-19 pandemic and caused it to unfold in a spectacularly tragic way. The United States has only four percent of the global population but suffered about 22 percent of Covid-19 deaths in the first year of the pan demic. By 2022, the share of Americans who had died of coronavirus was at least 63 percent

There was a very satisfying end to the story of my school bully. My parents in sisted that I had to invite everyone in my class to my birthday party; I couldn’t be rude and leave him out. We had my birthday parties at our ranch, and the entertainment was a man with a horse and a dog who had trained the dog to ride on the horse and do other tricks. Then the kids would get a chance to ride the horse for a few moments. My former tormentor burst into tears and recoiled at the idea of getting on a horse. He was terrified, and everyone started laughing at him.

All bullies have something they’re scared of. All bullies have something that knocks them off their game and reveals the weaknesses they’ve worked so hard to hide. All the media has to do is turn away from Donald Trump, and we will see who and what he truly is. Aren’t you at least curious?

(Patti Davis is an author and daughter of President Ronald Reagan. Her most recent book is “Floating in the Deep End.” Reprinted from the New York Times.)

higher than in our peer countries, the result of our inferior healthcare programs and lower vaccination rates, especially among the poor. The most reasonable explanation for this incredible excess death rate is that our social system is designed to let it happen.

Labor under capitalism puts our so ciety, especially workers, unnecessarily in harm’s way. The capitalist cocktail of ecological devastation and mass human migrations has given zoonotic disease a great leap forward. Urbanization and the destruction of tropical forests effectively eliminate the border between humans and the pathogens lurking inside wild animals. The subsequent decline of biodiversity combined with the erasure of those ecologi cal borders presents new species as food sources. These processes have long been known as outbreak risks, and the same forces driving climate change will lead to new pandemics. This threat is explicitly accelerated by industrial agriculture and livestock production, which combine novel viruses with unsanitary working condi tions, turning our food labor chain into a vector of disease.

‘GLOBAL CAPITALISM LITERALLY MADE US SICK’

Over the past five decades we’ve per fected the science and art of “just-in-time capitalism,” the on-demand supply chains and logistics hubs that make the world economy run. The absolute necessity

How the pandemic changed the landscape of U.S. Labor organizing

If we ignore Donald Trump, we might see who he really is

Recovery Friendly Workplaces empower organizations to support employees impacted by substance use disorder

The opioid crisis has exacted a heavy toll in the United States over the past decade with drug overdoses now ranking as the leading cause of accidental death in the country, Steve Walentick of UMSL Daily reports.

But even survivors of addiction pay a steep price because of the stigma that follows them, even in recovery.

“It’s difficult getting full-time meaningful employment for some people,” said Doug Swanson, a field specialist with labor and workforce development with University of Missouri Extension who also serves as the coordinator of the Labor Studies Program at the University of Missouri at St. Louis (UMSL).

“I can’t help but think that by the time you get into recovery, you realize the damage you’ve done to everything in your life, and then to not be able to support your family, in some cases, not be able to support yourself,” he said. “What’s to keep somebody from disappearing back into the cloud of addiction?”

REDUCING THE STIGMA

Employers can play a significant role in reducing that stigma, look ing beyond someone’s history with substance use and addiction to see the potential value they can bring to a workplace.

“You go to the grocery store, and you see that perfect apple or pear or green pepper, but in the U.S., we throw away tons of food because it’s perfectly edible but it doesn’t look perfect,” Swanson said. “That’s kind of what we’ve done with our workforce for too long.

“For example, we’re seeing construction projects that are screaming for more help and the journeymen tradesmen are telling us anecdotally they can’t get back into the workforce because they’re on MAT, medication-assisted treat ment. There’s a stigma and an education that hasn’t quite gotten there yet for their industry.”

RECOVERY FRIENDLY WORKPLACES

The Recovery Friendly Work places Missouri initiative led by the University of Missouri (MU)

workplace cultures that promote em ployee safety, health and well-being; reduce the stigma associated with ad diction; and empower workplaces to support people affected by substance use disorders and those in recovery.

The initiative grew out of a 2019 conference on “Opioids and the Workplace” that Swanson organized at UMSL. It explored the role employ ers can have in combating the opioid epidemic by helping erase the stigma around opioid use disorder and steering people toward treatment.

Not long after that conference, Swanson was part of a team that secured a grant from the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) to fund the initiative, and Swanson is serv ing as the co-principal research investigator on the project.

MU Extension has partnered with the Missouri Hospital Association, the Missouri Rural Health Associa tion, the Missouri Chamber of Com merce and Industry, the Missouri

Department of Mental Health and the Missouri Coalition of Recovery Support Providers on the initiative.

EDUCATION

Recovery Friendly Workplaces Missouri has been providing edu cation to increase understanding about substance misuse and behav ioral health through evidence-based trainings and has provided valuable resources, including a Recovery Friendly Workplace Toolkit, to as sist businesses and organizations.

Swanson and his colleagues, in cluding Rural Opioid and Technical Assistance Project Director Ann McCauley, are aiming to create a network of employers interested in creating healthy and safe work environments that eliminate stigma and support recovery.

So far, they have certified two Mis souri businesses – Citizens Memo rial Hospital in Bolivar and Tower Rock Stone Co. in Ste. Genevieve – as recovery friendly workplaces after

they completed training and plan ning and delivered a declaration to their staff stating their support for employees in recovery. Next month a third company, Buddeez Manufacturing in Union, will be recognized as Missouri’s latest Recovery Friendly Workplace.

Businesses see benefits in sup porting workers in recovery, not the least of which is expanding its pool of potential employees at a time when businesses across the state are finding it difficult to hire workers.

Swanson and McCauley have pre sented on the work of the Recovery Friendly Workplaces Missouri and the benefits of recovery friendly workplaces around the state and at the inaugural Summit on Substance Use Disorder Stigma Reduction at Penn State University in September.

TOWER ROCK STONE CO.

They shared the story of Tower Rock Stone Co., which had an em ployee with 20 years of experience as a heavy equipment operator who tested positive for metham phetamine.

Policies in place called for the em ployee to be fired, but the safety of ficer at the quarry helped convince corporate leadership to rewrite its policies and hold the worker’s posi tion while he went into recovery. He returned to work without loss of seniority and has not relapsed.

The company saved the expense of hiring a replacement and the years of training it would’ve taken him to reach the same level of com petency in the job, and it gained an employee grateful for the second chance who has become an ambas sador for their business.

As part of the grant, Swanson conducted a survey with more than 600 businesses across the state that helped reveal the impact that drugs –including prescription medications, alcohol and other narcotics – have been having in Missouri workplaces.

TAKE THE SURVEY

Swanson is currently surveying workers to get their perspective on the impact of substance use in the workplace and is inviting students and staff to share their ex periences. Take the survey at mis souri.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/ SV_eKIBuDTjfm3hF9c

Extension was launched to foster

RECOVERY FRIENDLY WORKPLACES can play a significant role in reducing that stigma, looking beyond someone’s history with substance use and addiction to see the potential value they can bring to a workplace. – Dayton Daily News photo

DOUG SWANSON , (left) who coordinates the Labor Studies Program at the University of Missouri–St. Louis and is a field specialist with MU Extension, joins Rural Opioid Technical Assistance Project Director Ann McCauley in delivering a presentation about the Recovery Friendly Workplaces initiative in Missouri at the inaugural Summit on Substance Use Disorder Stigma Reduction held in September at Penn State University.

– Photo courtesy of Doug Swanson

LIUNA’s John Penn inducted into Illinois Union Hall of Honor

Chicago – Labor

ers International Union of North American (LIUNA)

Vice President John Penn has been in ducted into the Il linois Labor History Society’s Union Hall of Honor. Penn, of Bloomington, Ill., also serves as LIUNA’s Midwest regional manager.

Penn joined Bloomington La borer’s Local 362 in 1965. He served in the U.S. Air Force and was elected the local union’s secretary-treasur er. He became the Local’s business manager in 1976. In 1994, he was elected Great Plains Laborers District Council business manager and assumed his national position in 2008. He was re-elected to that position in 2011, 2016 and 2021.

Penn has also served on sev eral community boards, including United Way of McLean County, Children’s Christmas Party for Unemployed Families, Illinois Special Olympics state board, McLean County Promise Council, Bloomington-Normal Advance ment, Economic Development Council, Labor Day Parade co-chair, and he was the local Democratic

chair for 38 years.

LABOR EDUCATION

This year’s theme for the Union Hall of Honor is Labor Education. Penn currently serves on LIUNA’s National Education and Training Fund, the Laborers Health and Safety Fund, the Illinois Laborers and Contractors Joint Apprentice ship and Training Program, the Midwest Region LIUNA Health and Safety Fund and the Railroad Train ing and Education Fund.

Others being inducted include retired University of Illinois La bor Education Program director Ronald Peters, the late Dr. William Pelz, who taught history at Elgin Community College and served on the ILHS board, and the late Karen Lewis, former Chicago Teachers’ Union president.

The Illinois Labor History Soci ety is the nation’s oldest popular labor history organization that was founded in 1970, and is the organi zation’s premier annual event. The organization sponsors publications, workshops, tours and labor history special events. There are currently 109 honorees in the Union Hall of Honor, which started in 1981.

AFGE-backed bill granting full retirement benefits to first responders and law enforcement officers injured on the job to become law

The American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE) is applauding U.S. Senate passage of an AFGE-backed bill that would allow law enforcement personnel and first responders to keep their full retirement benefits if they’re injured on the job and return to the federal workforce in another capacity. The bill, which passed the House in July, now heads to President Biden for his signature.

“This law will bring much needed benefits to federal first responders who protect and serve the Ameri can public,” said AFGE President Everett Kelley.

Because of the dangerous nature of their jobs, federal responders and law enforcement personnel such as customs and border protection officers, fire fighters, air traffic con trollers, nuclear materials couriers, members of the Capitol Police, and others are required to retire at the age of 57. Employees in these jobs, known as “6c” occupations, are entitled to retire after serving for 20 years and reaching age 50.

Their accelerated retirement system also requires them to pay a higher percentage of their salary into their retirement than other fed eral workers making their payments over the course of 30 years. The

6c personnel’s annuity amount is therefore calculated at a higher rate But if they get injured on the job and cannot complete their manda tory 20 years of service, the money they have paid into early retirement disappears even if they continue to serve in a non-6c position.

The First Responders Fair Re turn for Employees on Their Initial Retirement Earned (RETIRE) Act would address that inequity by allowing these law enforcement of ficers and first responders to receive retirement benefits in the same man ner as if they had not been disabled.

The bill also allows these em ployees to receive a refund of their contributions if they’re separated from service before they’re entitled to their retirement benefits.

AFGE thanked House Subcommit tee on Government Operations Chair

Jon Tester (D-Mont.) for introduc ing the bill in the House and Senate respectively. AGFE also thanked members of Congress who support first responders and law enforcement officers and the work they do.

“This is a long time coming,” said AFGE Firefighter Steering Commit tee Chair Kurt Rhodes. “Our first responders put their life on the line on a daily basis. In the past if they got injured and could not continue to perform the duties of a first re sponder, they were moved to jobs that did not qualify for our special retirement. They would lose all the extra retirement they paid into the program. With the passage of this bill, they keep the special retire ment and finish out their career in another job.”

Ed Finkelstein Publisher Emeritus

Tim Rowden Managing Editor

PENN

Gerry Connolly (D-Va.) and Senate Veterans Affairs Committee Chair

This Week In

Labor History

DECEMBER 5

1911 – Unionists John T. and James B. McNamara are sentenced to 15 years and life, respectively, after confessing to dynamiting the Los Angeles Times building during a drive to unionize the metal trades in the city. They placed the bomb in an alley next to the building, set to detonate when they thought the building would be empty; it went off early, and an unanticipated gas explosion and fire did the real damage, killing twenty people. The newspaper was strongly conserva tive and anti-union.

1955 – Ending a 20-year split, the two largest labor federations in the U.S. merge to form the AFL-CIO, with a membership estimated at 15 million.

1999 – AFL-CIO President John Sweeney welcomes the collapse of World Trade Organization talks in Seattle, declaring, “No deal is better than a bad deal.”

2008 – The U.S. Department of Labor reports employers slashed 533,000 jobs the month before — the most in 34 years — as the Great Re cession surged. The unemployment rolls had risen for seven months before that and were to continue to soar for another 10 months before topping 10 percent and beginning to level off late the following year.

DECEMBER 6

1869 – African-American del egates meet in Washington, D.C., to form the Colored National Labor Union as a branch of the all-White National Labor Union created three years earlier. Unlike the NLU, the CNLU welcomed members of all races. Isaac Myers was the CNLU’s founding president; Frederick Douglass became president in 1872.

1844 – The Washington Monu ment is completed in Washing ton, D.C. On the interior of the monument are 193 commemorative stones, donated by numerous gov ernments and organizations from all over the world; one of them is from the Int’l Typographical Union, founded in 1852. In 1986 the ITU merged into the Communications Workers of America.

1907 – A total of 361 coal miners die at Monongah, W.Va., in nation’s worst mining disaster.

1961 – Int’l Glove Workers Union of America merges into Amalgam ated Clothing Workers.

1977 – United Mine Workers begin what is to become a 110-day national coal strike.

DECEMBER 7

1888 – Heywood Broun born in New York City. Journalist, colum nist and co-founder, in 1933, of The Newspaper Guild.

1896 – Steam boiler operators from 11 cities across the country meet in Chicago to form the Na tional Union of Steam Engineers of America, the forerunner to the Int’l Union of Operating Engineers. Each of the men represented a local union of 40 members or fewer.

1931 – More than 1,600 protesters staged a national hunger march on Washington, D.C., to present de mands for unemployment insurance.

1982 – United Hatters, Cap & Mil linery Workers Int’l Union merges into Amalgamated Clothing & Textile Workers Union.

2009 – Delegates to the founding convention of the National Nurses United (NNU) in Phoenix, Ariz., unanimously endorse the creation of the largest union and profession al organization of registered nurses in U.S. history. The 150,000-member union is the product of a merger of three groups.

DECEMBER 8

1886 – Twenty-five unions found the American Federation of Labor (AFL) in Columbus, Ohio; Cigar maker’s union leader Samuel Gomp ers is elected president. The AFL’s founding document’s preamble reads: “A struggle is going on in all of the civilized world between oppres sors and oppressed of all countries, between capitalist and laborer...”

1962 – One-hundred-fourteenday newspaper strike begins, New York City.

1993 – President Bill Clinton signs The North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA).

2001 – Nearly 230 jailed teachers — about one-fourth of the 1,000-mem ber Middletown Township, N.J., staff — are ordered freed after they and their colleagues agree to end a nine-day strike and go into media tion with the local school board.

ILLINOIS CENTRAL BODIES

Operating Engineers 520 Meetings are held at 7 p.m. on the second Friday of the month at the IUOE Local 520 Hall, 520 Engineer Rd., Granite City, IL 62040.

Operators Local 399 Third Tuesday of each month at 6:30 p.m. at 24 East Ferguson, Wood River, Ill.

Painters District Council 58

Collinsville, Ill. 62234.

BOARD OF BUSINESS AGENTS: Second Thursday of each month, 10 a.m. at IBEW Local 309 Hall.

Egyptian Building and Construction Trades Council

Second Wednesday, 10 a.m. (unless notified) at IBEW Local 702 at 106 N. Monroe St., West Frankfort, Ill.

LOCAL UNIONS

Plumbers & Gasfitters Local 360 Union meetings are held at 7 p.m. on the 2nd Wednesday of each month at the Knights of Columbus Council 1712, One Columbus Plaza, Collinsville, IL 62234.

Plumbers and Pipefitters Local 101 Union Meetings will be held on the 4th Wednesday of the month except December, which will be held on the 3rd Wednesday. The meetings will be held at the Local 101 Hall located at 8 Premier Drive in Belleville, IL 62220 at 7:30 p.m.

Plumbers and Pipefitters Local 160 Union meetings are on the second Friday of the month at 8 p.m. at the hall, 901 Mulberry Street, Murphysboro, Ill. 62966.

2009 – Faced with a national unemployment rate of 10 percent, President Barack Obama outlines new multibillion-dollar stimulus and jobs proposals, saying the country must continue to “spend our way out of this recession” until more Americans are back at work. Joblessness had soared six percent in the final two years of George W. Bush’s presidency.

DECEMBER 9

2001 – Ratification of a new Labor agreement at Titan Tire of Natchez, Miss., ends the longest strike in the history of the U.S. tire industry, which began May 1, 1998, at the company’s Des Moines, Iowa, plant.

DECEMBER 10

1906 – First sit-down strike in U.S. called by IWW at General Electric in Schenectady, N.Y.

Political Humor

Borowitz Report

A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the News

White Nationalists give Mar-aLago Restaurant disappointing one-star reviews on Tripadvisor

Palm Beach – In the latest setback for Donald J. Trump, the restaurant at his Florida club, Mar-a-Lago, has received an ava lanche of scathing Tripadvisor reviews from white nationalists.

Although the publicity surrounding Trump’s recent dinner with Kanye West and Nick Fuentes seemed likely to boost the club’s popularity with anti-Semitic foodies, the one-star reviews from neo-Nazis suggest otherwise.

One Tripadvisor reviewer, using the handle JosephGoebbels2024, echoed the opinions of other white-nationalist commenters when he complained that the Mar-a-Lago restaurant had “slow service,” “drab decor,” and “too many ethnic dishes.”

According to a source close to Trump, the former president was shaken by the one-star reviews. “He kind of assumed that, no mat ter what, the white supremacists would be with him,” the source said. “He had no idea they were such picky eaters.”

1948 – Int’l Human Rights Day, commemorating the signing at the United Nations of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, which states, in part: “Everyone has the right to form and join trade unions for the protection of his interests.”

1956 – American Federation of Teachers Local 89 in Atlanta, Geor gia, disaffiliates from the national union because of an AFT directive that all its locals integrate. A year later, the AFT expelled all locals that refused to do so.

1970 – Cesar Chavez jailed for 14 days for refusing to end United Farm Workers’ lettuce boycott.

DECEMBER 11

1886 – A small group of Black farmers organize the Colored Farmers’ National Alliance and Cooperative Union in Houston County, Texas. They had been barred from membership in the allWhite Southern Farmers’ Alliance. Through intensive organizing, along with merging with another Black farmers group, the renamed Colored Alliance by 1891 claimed a membership of 1.2 million.

1951 – Ten days after an Illinois State mine inspector approved coal dust removal techniques at New Orient mine in West Frankfort, the mine exploded, apparently due to accumulated methane gas, killing 119 workers.

1968 – The U.S. Department of Labor announces that the nation’s un employment rate had dropped to 3.3 percent, the lowest mark in 15 years. 1995 – Forty thousand workers go on general strike in London, Ontario, population 300,000 — pro testing cuts in social services.

2012 – Michigan becomes the 24th state to adopt so-called “right-towork” legislation. The Republicandominated state Senate introduced two measures — one covering private workers, the other cover ing public workers — by surprise five days earlier and immediately voted their passage; the Republican House approved them five days later (the fastest it legally could) and the Republican governor immediately signed both bills.

(Compiled by David Prosten, founder Union Communication Services)

SIBA Leadership Development Council gives toys and $1,650 in donations to Caritas Family Solutions

of

$1,650

of a

Union retirees can make a difference for all retirees, workers

Join the Missouri Alliance for Retired Americans, the best $10 you’ll ever invest in yourself and community

If you are a Union retiree, you need to be a member of the Mis souri Alliance of Retired Americans (MO ARA).

That was the appeal made at a special MO ARA luncheon meeting Nov. 30 at the Machinists District 9 hall where more than 50 retir ees from a host of unions joined together to talk about the value of retirees being involved in local po litical and community issues to not only benefit themselves and other union retirees, but retired workers across the spectrum.

Mike Louis, MO ARA president (retired Missouri State Labor Council president), stressed the value of the retirees’ experience and expertise in building bridges to their friends and other retired union members and spouses to encourage their involvement and membership in the organization. The cost: only $10 annually.

YOU CAN MAKE A DIFFERENCE

He pointed out how state laws being passed in Jefferson City can positively – and negatively – impact retirees, making the point that retirees need to have more input

into those decisions while they are in the formation stages.

“A strong Alliance can have a major impact on legislators, but they have to hear from us, and the way to do that is through your membership and involvement in the Missouri ARA chapter,” Louis stressed.

He also noted that the MO ARA is here to help retirees who have issues. “If someone is in jeopardy, we’re here to help,” he said. Louis can be reached by phone or text at 314-378-8198 or email at mikeza xbi@hotmail.com

YOU CAN MAKE A DIFFERENCE

“Too often people don’t know what they’re talking about,” said Teamsters Local 600 Retiree Club president Ron Gushleff, Sr., refer ring to politicos who make deci sions without really listening to their constituents. “They need to hear from retirees, and we need to get out and vote to make sure our voices are heard” by those who are for and against our issues and who too often take retirees for granted.

As an example of why voting is critical, Gushleff pointed out that in the recent U.S. Senate race, Demo crat Trudy Bush Valentine lost by 274,761 votes. Contrast that with the fact that in St. Louis County, 273,484 registered voters DID NOT vote.

In the city of St. Louis, 100,572

registered voters DID NOT vote.

And to add to that discomforting lack of interest, there are another 100,000 voting age residents in St. Louis County and 45,000 in St. Louis City that are NOT EVEN REGIS TERED to vote, and at least half to three-quarters of them were likely Democratic votes.

“We need to get Democrats out to vote. It’s important to vote,” he stressed, making the point that re tirees could make a difference in the turnout by voting themselves and getting their friends and neighbors to vote as well.

“Join your union’s retiree club and the Missouri ARA,” he stressed. “Retirees can make a difference.”

UNIONS FIGHT FOR MEMBERS AND RETIREES

St. Louis County Executive Sam Page welcomed retirees and said the importance of workers being educated about the issues and people that make local govern ments work.

Unions not only fight for issues for their members and retirees, their actions create better wages, benefits and working conditions for ALL workers, he said

“It’s important to know what’s going on in your government, to let you vote to express your agree ment or disagreement with your representatives,” Page said.

RETIREES VOTING is vital to good public policy decisions, and it’s critical that “savvy seniors VOTE,” was the key message on a tee shirt for the more than 50 retirees at the holiday gathering Nov. 30 sponsored by the Missouri Alliance of Retired Americans at Machinists District 9 building. Stressing the importance of retiree involvement was Missouri ARA President Mike Louis (center) and Teamsters Local 600 retiree club President Ron Gushleff, Sr. – Labor Tribune photos

THE SOUTHERN ILLINOIS BUILDERS ASSOCIATION recently held its Fall Industry Reception and Annual Meeting. In conjunction with the event, the Leadership Development Council held a toy drive with all donations and proceeds to benefit Caritas Family Solutions of Belleville, a nonprofit social services agency that works to meet the physical, social, and emotional needs of vulnerable people in southern Illinois, from before birth through the golden years. Donors received a ticket for each $1 donated, and for each donation

toy, donors received 20 tickets for a chance to win one

the five baskets that were available. The basket themes included: a Sunset Hills Golf Basket; a Far Oaks & Stonewolf Golf Basket; St. Louis Cardinals Basket; a Booze Basket and a Lotto Scratch Off tree. Fifty toys were collected along with

in donations which were presented to Caritas Family Solutions at the Southern Illinois Builders Association office.The Southern Illinois Builders Association is a trade association of contractors representing approximately 500 commercial and industrial building, highway and utility construction contractors throughout southern Illinois.

Show Me $15 celebrates 10-year anniversary of fast food workers striking for higher wages with ‘teach-ins’ at St. Louis-area eateries

Mother Jones Museum looking for volunteers

The Friends of Mother Jones Museum, located in the Mt. Olive, Ill. City Hall building at 215 East Main St., is searching for volunteers to assist with promoting, improving, or simply maintaining the museum honoring the legendary Irish firebrand Mother Jones, who is buried in nearby Union Miners Cemetery (UMC), the only union-owned cemetery in the United States.

“Our current board is shrinking as our volunteer base ages, and our challenges mount,” said Board Chair Jule Caveny. “We are sad to report that as our former active volunteers can no longer assist, nobody has stepped up to take their place. We are approaching a point

where we will no longer be able to properly honor Mother Jones, who asked to be buried in UMC due to an 1898 gun battle in Virden, IL, where lockedout UMWA members died in a gun battle with mine guards. When her casket arrived in 1930, it was greeted by 50,000 kindred spirits. We need some of that energy and adoration of her to con tinue today.”

Interested parties are asked to at tend the next meeting of the Friends of Mother Jones Museum Board at noon, Dec. 11, inside city hall.

For more information, please contact James Goltz at 618 585 4400 or email at jimgoltz@madison telco.com

ST. LOUIS – Show Me $15 celebrated the 10th anniversary of its campaign Nov. 30 when fast

New York walked off the job and went on strike for higher wages and the right to form a union. To

the

the organization held “teach-ins” at St. Louis fast food restaurants where workers made history by going on strike

worker safety and to oppose sexual harassment. Show Me $15 representatives talked about the benefits of joining a union inside the restaurants and the results of some of the strikes. Representatives were joined by Jobs with Justice and other labor allies at the stores, which included several McDonald’s and the Jimmy John’s at 1631 S. Broadway. Stanley Jackson, Show Me $15 community coordinator, said the action was meant to look at where the organization began and recommit itself

McCallum

From page 2

of today’s globally interconnected web requires that all the inputs of a particular commodity or service stay operational as long as possible, which helped disperse the virus. Supercoordinated, high-tech systems of production, transportation, and distribution of goods and services were almost overnight transformed into arteries of disease transmission. Global capitalism literally made us sick. Capitalist society made sure that millions of workers faced the ultimate dilemma: your money or your life.

White supremacy, nationalism, individualism, all key ingredients of the American creed, are obstacles to unity among working people. The pandemic changed some of that. As janitors lay in makeshift freezer morgues outside the hospitals they used to work in, while the owners of the hospitals were sheltering in sec ond homes in Fort Lauderdale, it was hard not to see the world as structured first and foremost by class power.

When employers control access

to healthcare, workers either lose it when they lose their job or are more easily bullied into working in dangerous situations to keep it. When only half the working population has a right to sufficient paid sick leave, the other half lives and works at the behest of others. When the working poor are denied the right to Medicaid, they are the captive subjects of a ruling elite. These developments are the inevi table outcome of a system where one class places profits over people.

If the pandemic has shown us anything, it’s that we need an alternative. The real antidote to the deadly failings of capitalism is socialism. To get there, workers will need to create a crisis for capital. The insurgent workers’ move ments of the 1930s offer a glimpse of what this could look like. Large and unruly strikes swept through the country’s basic industries, chal lenging the authority of our most powerful capitalists. Strikes shut down production in automobile

factories, steel mills, coal mines, and transportation hubs, forc ing employers to negotiate and, eventually, President Franklin D. Roosevelt to intervene. Liberals look back in awe at what the New Deal accomplished, but they forget it was a compromise with the left flank of the Labor Movement. To day, Labor can’t wait for legislation to ease its woes. The unrest during the pandemic was inspiring but fell far short of what is needed to force real change. History holds lessons for charting Labor’s future.

It was tempting to view the pan demic as a sequel to previous crises. But the pandemic is more likely to be a prequel to whatever climate change and capitalist globalization bring us next. The risk, then, is not that we repeat the mistakes of the past, but that we transmit our vulnerabilities into the future. What happens next is up to us.

(Jamie K. McCallum is a professor of sociology at Middlebury College in Middlebury, Ver., and the author of “Worked Over: How Round-theClock Work Is Killing the American Dream.”)

food workers in

honor

milestone,

for higher wages and

to the struggle for dignity, respect, higher wages and union rights – Philip Deitch photo

ILLINOIS

The five largest projects support ed by formula funds in Illinois are:

• Interchange reconstruction and bridge replacement reconstruction on I-57 at I-74 Interchange – $107.5 million.

• Reconstruction, designed overlay, bridge deck overlay and repair on I-74 from US 150 W of Danville to the Vermilion River in Danville – $62.7 million.

• Pavement reconstruction and bridge repairs on I-57 from Jeffer son County Line to north of Illinois

161 – $59.1 million.

• Rubblization and overlay with culvert removal and replacement and bridge deck replacement on I-70 from east of I-57 interchange to the Cumberland County Line – $46.8 million.

• Standard overlay, patching, drain age, improvements and bridge deck sealing on I-57 from south of I-294 (Tri-State Tollway) to Halstad St. –$41.8 million.

To view the full national and state project data, visit: artbahighway dashboard.org

QUITE AN ACCOMPLISHMENT

“That’s quite an accomplish ment,” said Gaal, who serves as director for the Missouri Works Initiative’s Worker Wellness Pro gram and has worked with the BUD program since it began St. Louis.

“I wrote about this program as my master’s degree thesis back in 1992, and it’s really cool to see something come alive. We’ve put a lot of people to work in careers, not just jobs.”

EARLY BEGININGS

The BUD program was originally created by the St. Louis Building Trades Council to increase con struction trade participation among traditionally under-represented groups, including minorities and women. It provides pre-apprentices with the opportunity to visit at local building trade unions to give them hands-on basic training and a feel for each of the trades.

Since then, the BUD program has had a 92 percent graduation rate,

and of those who have graduated, 79.2 percent are minorities and 26.5 percent are women.

MISSOURI WORKS INITIATIVE

Based on the success of the BUD program and with the sponsorship and support of the Missouri AFLCIO, the Missouri Works Initiative last year took over the work of replicating the St. Louis program’s training and recruiting model statewide. The initiative launched the Missouri Apprenticeship Readi ness program – similar to the BUD program – this year in Kansas City and Springfield.

“There are a lot of good people who have stuck with this program for a really long time,” Gaal said.

“The bottom line is we’re helping people, and we need help because there’s a workplace shortage.”

FOR MORE INFORMATION

For more information, visit mo worksinitiative.org

Notices

From page 5

Workers Local 1 First Friday, 7 p.m. at the Hoisting Engineers Hall, 3449 Hollenberg. Executive Board meets at 3325 Hollenberg on first Friday at 10 a.m.

Ironworkers Local 396 Union meetings on the last Friday of each month at 8 p.m. at the Union Hall, 2500 59th St., St. Louis, MO 63110.

Laborers Local 110 4532 S Lindbergh Blvd, St. Louis, MO 63127

Plumbers and Pipefitters Local 562 Second Wednesday of each month, 6 p.m., Pipefitters’ Auditorium, 12385 Larimore Rd.

Roofers Local 2 The regular meetings of Roofers’ Local 2 are held on the first Wednesday of each month at 7 p.m. in the Roofers’ Hall, 45 Worthington Access Drive, Maryland Heights, MO 63043. The Executive Board will meet at 6:30 p.m. Tuesday before the regular monthly meeting.

Sprinkler Fitters and Apprentices Local 268 Regular meetings at 5 p.m. second Thursday of month at the Union Hall, 1544 S. Third St., St. Louis, MO 63104.

St. Louis Theatrical Brotherhood Local 6 I.A.T.S.E.

Regular monthly meetings are held on the first Tuesday of the month at 5:30 p.m. at 1611 S. Broadway.

Teamsters Joint Council 13

Teamsters Local 688 4349 Woodson Rd, St. Louis, MO 63134

Tile-Marble Setters & Finishers, Mosaic & Terrazzo Workers & Finishers Local 18 MO Meets at 5:30 p.m. the first Wednesday of the month at ADC Union Hall, 1670 Fenpark, Fenton, MO 63026.

Utility Workers Local 335 74 Woodstream, Moscow Mills, MO 63362

State, business, Labor agreement eliminates Illinois’ unemployment insurance loan balance

Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker has brokered an agreement with busi ness and Labor to eliminate the state’s unemployment insurance loan balance and provide security for unemployment.

The state had been forced to bor row $4.5 billion from the federal government to provide economic relief to the unprecedented number of unemployed workers throughout the pandemic, many of them union members. Two prior payments have been made using the American Res cue Plan Act funds and state funds to reduce the balance to its current level.

The agreement among repre sentatives from business, Labor, the General Assembly and the state will pay off the remaining $1.36 billion for the unemployment insurance trust fund and $450 mil

lion to replenish the fund for the future, after the massive impact of the COVID-19 pandemic that put millions out of work. The funding comes from surplus state funds and a dropping unemployment rate – 4.1 percent in October.

Pritzker called it a “historic state investment” that eliminates the last of the state’s $4.5 billion debt incurred through the pandemic and saves millions in interest.

“The people of our state deserve a secure future, one that supports working families and continues to make Illinois a great place to live,” said Lt. Gov. Juliana Stratton.

Rob Karr, president of the Illi nois Retail Merchants Association, said the pandemic created “un precedented challenges” for the unemployment system across the

nation. He extended appreciation to Organized Labor, the governor and the state for resolving the debt.

Karr told the Associated Press that the deal will save business own ers $900 million in unemployment taxes over the next five years.

Pat Devaney, secretary-treasurer of the Illinois AFL-CIO, told the As sociated Press that the agreement increases the amount of money for unemployment including larger payments by employers over the next five years. “All the modeling I have seen under this proposal shows positive balances that will help us endure even if we enter a recession in the near future or down the road,” Devaney said.

The governor’s office also said that 770,000 new jobs have been created in Illinois since the lows

Job growth continues to be strong

Unemployment is slightly up in Il linois as of November, but job growth continues to be strong.

The unemployment rate is now 4.6 percent according to the Illinois Depart ment of Employment Security, based on preliminary data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics and released just before the Thanksgiving holiday.

The industry sectors with the larg est gains in employment include: trade transportation and utilities; leisure and hospitality; manufacturing; and profes sional and business services. The largest declines were in government and information services.

“Over the past year, Illinois has continued to exhibit positive long-term

of the pandemic recession and has surpassed $1 trillion in gross

UNIONS CREATE PROSPERITY IN

ELECTRICAL

LOCAL UNION #309, AFL-CIO Collinsville, Illinois and Vicinity Office: 2000 Mall Street (Route 157) Collinsville, Ill. 62234

Michael Stuart, President Dustin Grice, Vice President Carlos Perez, Recording Secretary David Rhymer, Treasurer Tim Evans, Business Manager Examining Board Members

North, Swansea, Il. 62226

Kapp Business Agent

employment trends, with considerable improvement in the state’s unemployment rate and the addition of nearly 192,000 new jobs,” said Sylvia Garcia, director of the Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity.“DCEO continues to support economic recovery throughout the state through marquee economic development programs that attract job creators, help Illinois businesses grow, and support job-seekers through state wide resources and programs.”

The unemployment rate is slightly lower than it was at this time one year ago, when approximately 5.3 percent were out of work. The statistics indicate 17 consecutive months of job growth as of October 2022.

national product for the first time in its history.

Greg

million votes to Bailey’s 1.7 million in final but unofficial results.

SURPRISE UPSETS

Two surprise upsets unseated Labor-backed Democrats, however. State Sen. Kris Tharp, who had been appointed to take Rachelle Aud Crowe’s seat when she ac cepted appointment as a U.S. at torney, lost a narrow race to Erica Conway Harriss (R-Edwardsville). Tharp, a captain with the Madison County Sheriff’s Department, lost by fewer than 2,000 votes, according to the Belleville News-Democrat. He had served less than a year in the legislature.

Also unseated was State Rep. LaToya Greenwood (D-East St. Louis), an upset that surprised local Labor leaders.

Scot Luchtefeld, chair of the Southwestern Illinois Central Labor Council, said: “We lost a great state representative who voted 100 percent for Labor issues.

The gentleman who was elected… we’ll be lucky to get 30 percent.”

Luchtefeld said there was a “smear campaign” of ads alleging that Greenwood was responsible for ris ing utility bills. “People believed the lies, and they put it out right before the election,” he said.

GOP state Rep. Amy Elik defeated Labor-backed challenger Joe Silk wood in the 111th District, while Labor-supported state Rep. Katie Stuart easily held off her GOP chal lenger, Jennifer Korte.

At the federal level, U.S. Sen. Tammy Duckworth easily retained her seat for the Democrats, and the state congressional delegation is now 14-3 Democratic, with Nikki Budzinski (D-Springfield) flipping the 13th Congressional seat that had been held by the GOP for decades.

Budzinski defeated Republican

heiress Regan Deering 56 percent to 44 percent. Budzinski was a national political director for the United Food and Commercial Workers Union in Washington D.C. before running for Congress. She succeeds the GOP’s Rodney Davis, a five-term Congressman who lost his primary run against Deering.

LABOR ISSUES

Labor issues had come up several times in the Congressional race, after Deering said she believes the minimum wage should be lowered and “doesn’t believe we need to enshrine union power” when asked about the Workers Rights Amend ment. In reply, Budzinski said she was proud to have worked in the Labor Movement and said it was “disappointing but not surprising” to hear Deering’s comments. “She inherited millions and couldn’t know the struggles of working people,” Budzinski said.

On election night, Budzinski said it was her “greatest honor to have the opportunity to represent the working families and communi

ties of central and southern Illinois” in Congress. She said her win was possible because of the women trail blazers ahead of her. “We need more women in public service, and I’m proud to help pave the way for future generations of women leaders,” she said.

The Champaign-Urbana NewsGazette pointed out that Budzinski will be the first woman to represent Champaign County in 190 years since the county was incorporated.

Meanwhile, incumbent Republi can U.S. Rep. Mary Miller defeated Democrat Paul Lange 71 to 28 per cent to hold the 15th Congressional District, and U.S. Rep. Mike Bost defeated Homer “Chip” Markel in the 12th Congressional District by a similar margin of 75 to 25 percent.

Luchtefeld said he believes there is a “stigma” against Democrats in some areas of southern Illinois, and it was reflected in the mixed results of the election.

WE DO NOT PATRONIZE

“We won a lot of seats we were going for and lost some, unfortu nately,” he said. “This area is getting redder, and we are voting against ourselves.”

Luchtefeld put some of the blame on the campaign mailer designed to look like a newspaper that hit mailboxes right before the election.

MADISON COUNTY

In Madison County, 10-year incumbent county clerk Debbie Ming-Mendoza was defeated by Republican Linda Andreas, and Republicans will hold 18 of 26 seats on the county board, a reversal over the last several years for a county government that was Democratcontrolled from World War II until 2016.

Among the judicial races, all three Labor-backed Democrats running for circuit judge were de feated by Republican candidates in the new 1st Subcircuit. Democrats Ebony Huddleston, John Barry Julian and Associate Judge Ryan Jumper were each endorsed by multiple Labor organizations.

Greater

Madison County Federation of Labor, Southwestern Illinois Central Labor Council, Southwestern Illinois Building Trades

AUTO DEALERS

Auffenberg Ford, Belleville — IAM District 9.

Meyer Honda, O’Fallon — IAM District 9

Van’s Yamaha, 1811 N. Market, Sparta — Sheet Metal Workers Local 268.

AUTO SERVICES

111 Auto Salvage, 3450 Highway 111, Pontoon Beach — IBEW 309.

Auto Tire, 4410 W. Center Drive, Alton, IL — Laborers 218 & IBEW 649

Auto Zone, 918 Lincoln Highway, Fairview Heights — Cement Masons 90 and Laborers 670.

Caulk Auto Body, Edwardsville — Carpenters' DC

Cheapies Tires, 3204 E. Broadway, Alton IBEW 649.

Classic Auto Body, 1421 N Illinois Street, Swansea — SWILBTC

Extreme Auto Collision, St. Jacob — Carpenters DC.

Fox Transmission and Auto Repair, 613 S. Market, Waterloo — Laborers Local 196.

Freer Auto Body, 4512 N. Alby Street, Godfrey — IBEW 649.

Zamarione’s Car Washes (doing business as Danny’s Car Wash), all three locations in Collinsville — Carpenters 295.

BUILDING SUPPLIES/ EQUIPMENT

Anthony Supply Co., 425 E. Harris Ave., Greenville — Ironworkers Local 392.

Fischer Lumber Co., 210 N. Shamrock, E. Alton — Teamsters 525.

Lowe’s Inc., Homer Adams Parkway, Alton — Painters District Council 58

Luby Equipment, Route 157, Caseyville

— Sheet Metal Workers Local 268

Menards, 1179 Central Park Drive –O’Fallon — IBEW 309.

Rehkemper and Son Truss Components, 17817 St. Rose Rd., St. Rose — Carpenters District Council.

Springfield Electric Supply Co., 22 Gateway Commerce Center Drive W. #100, Edwardsville — IBEW 649

Swansea Electric Supply, 200 N. Belt West, Seansea — IBEW 309

DISCOUNT STORES

Dollar General, Route 50, Trenton — Laborers 670.

Dollar General, corner of Route 50 and Lawn St., O'Fallon — Laborers 670.

Meyer Appliances, 13 N. Missouri Ave., Belleville — UFCW 881.

ENTERTAINMENT

Bowl Haven Lanes, 3003 Humbert Rd., Alton — Painters District Council 58.

Hibbett Sports, 1555 Vaughn Rd. Wood River — IBEW 649.

Stonebridge Golf Course, 7700 Stonebridge Golf Drive, Maryville — Carpenters Local 295.

The Edge, 701 S. Belt West, Belleville, IL — Laborers 459.

Villa Marie Winery, 6633 E. Main St., Maryville — Southwestern Illinois Building and Construction Trades Council.

FINANCIAL/INSURANCE

Country Financial, 115 S. Main St., Edwardsville — Laborers 397.

Title Max, all locations in Southern Illinois — IBEW 309.

Title Max, 3675 Nameoki Rd., Granite City — Carpenters Local 633.

FITNESS

Club Fitness, 1953 W. Hwy. 50, Fairview Heights — Carpenters’ Dist. Council.

FOOD/BAKERIES

Aldi, Vandalia St., Collinsville — UFCW 229R and UFCW 881.

Edible Arrangements, 107 N. Bluff Rd., Collinsville — IBEW Local 309.

Hansen Packing and Good Buddy's Meat Market, 807 State Hwy. 16, Jerseyville — IBEW 649

Huck’s Convenience Store, State Route 16, Jerseyville — Painters Dist. Council 58.

Keller Farms, 435 S. Bluff Rd., Collinsville — Ironworkers 392.

Mallo’s Pastries, 17 N. 14th St., Belleville — Bakers Union.

Wonder Bread Store, 1800 S. Belt West, Belleville — Painters District Council 58.

FURNITURE

Weekends Only, 51 Commerce Lane, Fairview Heights — Cement Masons 90.

National Rent-to-Own, all southern Illinois locations — Carpenters’ District Council of Greater St. Louis and Vicinity.

Peerless Furniture and Leather Gallery, 6312 N. Illinois St., Fairview Heights — Painters Dist. Council 58.

GAS OUTLETS

CFM Shell stations (all locations in Illinois)

— Painters District Council 58.

Phillips 66, Collinsville Mini Mart & Gas, 601 W. Main St., Collinsville — Painters Dist. Council 58.

Phillips 66, 4217 Old Missouri Avenue, Alorton — IBEW 309.

HEALTH

The Medicine Shoppe, 621 S. Second, Greenville — Carpenters 1535.

Moody’s Pharmacy, 157 W. Broadway, Sparta — Sheet Metal Workers Local 268.

Multi Care Specialist & Dr. Eavenson DC Professional Center, 3986 Maryville Rd., Granite City — Laborers 397.

Suncatchers Tan, 107 N. Bluff Rd., Collinsville — IBEW Local 309.

HOME SERVICES

Archway Cooling and Heating Inc., 620 E. Grant, Belleville — Sheet Metal Workers Local 268.

Barrett Sheet Metal, Alton — Sheet Metal Workers Local 268.

Boushard (John) Home Remodeling, 2 Kelly Drive, Granite City — Carpenters 633.

Koesterer Heating and Cooling Inc., 3371 Highway 162, Granite City — Sheet Metal Workers 268.

Marshall Wireless, 1750 Homer Adams Parkway, Alton — IBEW 649

Marshall Wireless, 1931 Vaughn Rd., Wood River — IBEW 649.

Sigman Heating & Air Conditioning, 3101 S. Belt West, Belleville — Sheet Metal Workers 268.

Terry’s Outdoor Services, State Highway 15, Alorton — Carpenters Local 169.

Viviano Heating and Air Conditioning, 201 W. Main, Collinsville — Sheet Metal Workers Local 268.

Webb Heating & Air Conditioning, Energy — Sheet Metal Workers 268.

Weeke Sales & Service Inc., 501 Front St., Okawville — Sheet Metal Workers 268.

Wilson and Son Heating and Air Conditioning, Route 4, Sparta — Sheet Metal Workers Local 268.

HOTELS/MOTELS

Holiday Inn Express, 2020 Formosa Rd., Troy — Painters District Council 58

Springfield Crowne Plaza Hotel, 3000 S. Dirksen Pkway, Springfield and Central Illinois — Building and Construction Trades Council

LAW/TAX SERVICES

Leskera Law Firm, 120 E. Church, Collinsville — Carpenters Local 295

MISCELLANEOUS

Air Force Storage, 8601 E. Highway 50, O’Fallon — Cement Masons 90.

BIN 51 Wine and Spirits, 200 S. Buchanan, Edwardsville — Laborers 397.

Cassens Live Bait, P.O. Box 119, Grafton — IBEW Local 649.

Edison's Entertainment Center, 2477 S. State Rte 157., Edwardsville — OPCM 90.

G&M Scrap Metal, 185 Lincoln St., Bethalto — IBEW 649

Gent Funeral Home, 2409 State Street, Alton — IBEW 649.

Hansen Packing and Good Buddy's Meat Market, 807 State Highway 16, Jerseyville — IBEW 649.

Melville Dairy, 2904 W. Delmar Avenue, Godfrey — IBEW 649.

Midwest Motor Sports, #1 Fun Lane, Hartford — IBEW 649

Pride of Illinois, 926 McDonough Lake Road, Collinsville — IBEW 309.

Red Sky Wireless, 1855 Vaugh Rd., Wood River — IBEW 649

Salvator Cincotta Photography, 224 W. State St., O'Fallon — Carpenters’ Dist. Council

Schwarzkopf Printing, 4121 Humbert Rd., Alton — Laborers 218.

Snyder (Robien ) Inc., 203 E. Ferguson Ave., Wood River — Laborers 338

Toddle Towne Learning Center, Pontoon Road, Granite City — Laborers 397.

Vandalia Bus Lines, 312 W. Morris Street, Caseyville, IL — Iron Workers 392.

RESTAURANTS

Bluff City Grill, 424 E. Broadway, Suite 106, Alton — Carpenters Local 664.

Bob Evans, 600 Bluff Rd., Collinsville — UA 360.

Bossanova Martini Lounge, 112 W. 3rd Street– Alton — IBEW 649.

Chipotle Mexican Grill, 2200 Troy Road, Edwardsville — IBEW 309.

Crystal Garden Banquet and Event Center, 1230 University Drive, Edwardsville — Laborers Local 397.

Denny’s Restaurant, Hwy. 111 and Timberlake Drive, Pontoon Beach — Carpenters 633.

Denny’s, 522 Ramada Blvd., Collinsville Painters Dist. Council 58.

Dewey’s Pizza, 112 Vandalia, Edwardsville — Laborers 397.

Hick’s Bar-B-Q, 609 S. Illinois St., Belleville — Carpenters’ Dist. Council.

Hokkaido Buffet & Grill, 4580 N. Illinois St., Swansea — IBEW 309.

Horseshoe Sports Bar, 410 St6. Louis Rd., Collinsville — Laborers 44.

IHOP Restaurant, 601 Carlyle Ave., Belleville — Painters Dist. Council 58 Imo's Pizza, 654 N. Market St., Waterloo — STL-KC CRC

Joe’s Pizza and Pasta, 114 N Main Street, Brighton – IBEW 649

K&G's Sports Bar & Banquet Center, 5050 Nameoki Road, Granite City –Laborers 397.

Mazzio’s Italian Eatery, North Town Shopping Center, Highland — Carpenters Local 1535.

Mungo’s Italian Eatery, (Collinsville and O'Fallon) — IBEW 309.

Panda Express, Wal-Mart Shopping Center, Hightway 50, O'Fallon — SWILBTC

Recess Brewing, 307 Main Street, Edwardsville — Laborers 397.

Red Lobster, 170 E. Beltline Parkway, Alton — Laborers 218

Riviera Maya Restaurant, 2704 Corner Court, Alton — IBEW 649

Ruby Tuesday, Litchfield — IBEW 309.

Shogun Japanese Steakhouse, 2723 Corner Ct., Alton — IBEW 649, Carpenters Local 664.

Sloan's Pub House, 119 W. Main Street, Collinsville — IBEW 309.

Stubborn German Brewing Company, 119 S. Main Street, Waterloo — IBEW 309.

Tequila Mexican Restaurant, 835 N. Market St., Waterloo — STL-KC CRC

Valentine’s Restaurant, 205 S. State St., Freeburg — Carpenters 480.

Waffle House, 505 N. Bluff Rd., Collinsville — IBEW 309.

Zapata's Mexican Restaurant, 8 Eastport Plaza, Collinsville — Bricklayers Local 8.

LUCHTEFELD

BUDZINSKI

‘22 CHEVY SILVERADO 1500 W/T. CREW CAB, red, only 1,700 miles, $40,950; Call Bommarito Ford, Hazelwood MO 314-731-1222. DB

‘22 CHEVY TRAVERSE 1LZ. Load ed, 14k miles, white. $48,339: Johnny Londoff Chevrolet 314837-1800. DB

‘21 CHEVY EQUINOX LT, black, 23k miles, $25,590; Johnny Londoff Chevrolet 314-837-1800. DB

‘21 CHEVY MALIBU LT, 34k miles, $26,550; Call Bommarito Ford, Hazelwood MO 314-731-1222. DB

‘21 FORD BRONCO OUTER BANKS, 4WD, 13k miles; $36,950; Call Bommarito Ford, Hazelwood MO 314-731-1222. DB

‘21 FORD EXPLORER XLT, 4WD, 2.3L, 42k miles, $36,950; Call Bommarito Ford, Hazelwood MO 314-731-1222. DB

‘21 FORD RANGER XLT CREW CAB, 4WD, 2.3L, white, $39,950; Call Bommarito Ford, Hazelwood MO 314-731-1222. DB

‘21 GMC SIERRA 1500 SLT, white, 3.0L turbo diesel, $40,990; Call Tom Suarez at Bob Brockland Buick-GMC 618-281-2288. DB

‘21 JEEP RENEGADE. 80TH AN NIV. EDITION, black, $27,990; Poage Chevrolet Wentzville MO 636-327-6268. DB

‘20 BUICK ENCLAVE ESSENCE, ruby red, $38,990; Call Tom Suarez at Bob Brockland Buick-GMC 618281-2288. DB

‘20 CHEVY BLAZER RS, 35k miles, $42,490; Poage Chevrolet Wentz ville MO 636-327-6268. DB

‘20 CHEVY EQUINOX LT, black, only 6k miles, $31,601; Poage Chevrolet Wentzville MO 636327-6268. DB

‘20 CHEVY EQUINOX LT, charcoal gray, 14k miles, $27,990; Poage Chevrolet Wentzville MO 636327-6268. DB

‘20 CHEVY TRAVERSE 1LT, AWD, Demo, 38k miles, $38,660; Johnny Londoff Chevrolet 314-837-1800. DB

‘20 FORD ESCAPE SE, red, 7k miles, $27,690; Johnny Londoff Chevrolet 314-837-1800. DB

‘20 FORD EXPLORER XLT, 4WD, 24k miles, blue, $39,360; Johnny Londoff Chevrolet 314-837-1800. DB

‘20 FORD EXPLORER XLT, white, 4WD, 27k miles. $37,863; Johnny Londoff Chevrolet 314-837-1800. DB

‘20 FORD FUSION SE, silver, 49k miles, $21,950; Call Bommarito Ford, Hazelwood MO 314-7311222. DB

‘20 GMC SIERRA 1500 SLT CREW CAB, black, 4WD, $54,200; Call Tom Suarez at Bob Brockland BuickGMC 618-281-2288. DB

‘20 GMC TERRAIN SLE, only 26k miles, $28,400; Call Tom Suarez at Bob Brockland Buick-GMC 618281-2288. DB

‘20 JEEP RENEGADE LATITUDE, only 43k miles, $24,904; Poage Chevrolet Wentzville MO 636-327-6268. DB

‘20 RAM 2500HD TRADESMAN, regular cab, 4WD, only 25k miles, $43,900; Call Tom Suarez at Bob Brockland Buick-GMC 618-2812288. DB

‘19 CHEVY COLORADO Z71. CREW CAB, 4WD, black, $32,950; Call Bommarito Ford, Hazelwood MO 314-731-1222. DB

‘19 CHEVY EQUINOX LT, AWD, 32k miles, white, $27,280; Johnny Londoff Chevrolet 314-837-1800. DB

‘19 DODGE DURANGO CITADEL. AWD, 49k miles. $39,890: Johnny Londoff Chevrolet 314-837-1800. DB

‘19 FORD EDGE SEL, AWD, 28k miles, $30,429; Johnny Londoff Chevrolet 314-837-1800. DB

‘19 FORD EDGE SEL/AWD, blue, 30k miles, $28,960; Johnny Londoff Chevrolet 314-837-1800. DB

‘19 FORD FLEX SEL, AWD, only 34k miles, $28,998; Johnny Londoff Chevrolet 314-837-1800. DB

‘19 FORD FUSION SE, white, 69k miles, $19,950; Call Bommarito Ford, Hazelwood MO 314-731-1222. DB

‘19 JEEP CHEROKEE TRAILHAWK, 4WD, 3.2L, $25,900; Call Tom Su arez at Bob Brockland Buick-GMC 618-281-2288. DB

‘19 RAM 1500 LARAMIE QUAD CAB, 4WD, 5.7L, only 22k miles, $46,950; Call Bommarito Ford, Hazelwood MO 314-731-1222. DB

‘18 CHEVY SILVERADO 1500 LT/ Z71 Double Cab, 5.3L, 4WD, black, $33,990; Johnny Londoff Chevrolet 314-837-1800. DB

‘18 CHEVY TRAVERSE 3LT, black cherry, sharp, $26,202; Johnny Londoff Chevrolet 314-837-1800. DB

‘18 DODGE DURANGO GT, AWD, black, $34,819; Johnny Londoff Chevrolet 314-837-1800. DB

‘18 DODGE JOURNEY GT, only 41k miles, white, $23,900; Call Tom Suarez at Bob Brockland BuickGMC 618-281-2288. DB

‘18 FORD ESCAPE SE, lightning blue, $19,950; Call Bommarito Ford, Hazelwood MO 314-731-1222. DB

‘18 FORD EXPLORER XLT, 4WD, silver, 3.5L, 32k miles, $27,690; Johnny Londoff Chevrolet 314837-1800. DB

‘18 GMC SIERRA 1500 SLT CREW CAB, 5.3L, 56k miles, $40,990; Call Tom Suarez at Bob Brockland Buick-GMC 618-281-2288. DB

‘18 JEEP WRANGLER UNLIMITED, gray, only 45k miles, $36,990; Poage Chevrolet Wentzville MO 636-327-6268. DB

‘18 JEEP WRANGLER UNLIMITED SPORT, red, 23k miles, $38,990; Poage Chevrolet Wentzville MO 636-327-6268. DB

‘17 BUICK CASCADA PREMIUM, convertible, black, $23,990; Call Tom Suarez at Bob Brockland Buick-GMC 618-281-2288. DB

‘17 JEEP WRANGLER SAHARA UNLIMITED, charcoal gray, 70k miles, $33,400; Call Tom Suarez at Bob Brockland Buick-GMC 618281-2288. DB

‘16 FORD EDGE SEL, black, $18,900; Call Tom Suarez at Bob Brockland Buick-GMC 618-281-2288. DB

‘16 FORD FUSION S, silver, 62k miles, $17,890; Poage Chevrolet Wentzville MO 636-327-6268. DB

‘16 JEEP CHEROKEE LATITUDE, black, $16,800; Call Tom Suarez at Bob Brockland Buick-GMC 618281-2288. DB

‘15 BUICK ENCLAVE, white, leather, $16,200; Call Tom Suarez at Bob Brockland Buick-GMC 618-2812288. DB

‘15 CHEVY EQUINOX 2LT, AWD, black, $10,650; Johnny Londoff Chevrolet 314-837-1800. DB

‘15 DODGE DART GT, white, $11,258; Poage Chevrolet Wentzville MO 636-327-6268. DB

‘14 FORD EDGE LIMITED, loaded, $16,990; Poage Chevrolet Wentz ville MO 636-327-6268. DB

‘14 RAM 1500 LONGHORN EDI TION, Quad Cab, 4WD, $27,890; Johnny Londoff Chevrolet 314837-1800. DB

‘13 FORD EXPLORER LIMITED, loaded, $16,990; Poage Chevrolet Wentzville MO 636-327-6268. DB

‘98 CHEVY Z28, black, only 92k miles, $12,990; Poage Chevrolet Wentzville MO 636-327-6268. DB

‘94 FORD F-150, V-8, auto, 4x4, 8-foot bed, camper shell, duel gas tanks. Transmission and other repairs needed. Under 15,000 miles on replaced block. Newer radiator. As is $3,000 or better. Call 314-202-3005 and for test drive and inspection. LF

BOATS FOR SALE

‘84 20’ BAYLINER CUTTY CABIN and trailer, 350 engine, Pinta outdrive with convertible top, new tires, runs like new, $5,500; 636671-4160. LF

AFL-CIO, TILE, MARBLE, GRANITE, TERRAZZO WORK

ENTRANCE FOYERS, counter tops, indoor and outdoor kitchens, bath rooms, fireplaces and patios. Tile, marble, granite, mosaic, terrazzo and stone veneer. Floors, walls or counter tops, residential or com mercial, in Missouri or Illinois. Use the best and get your job done right the first time. Union craftsmen and contractors. For a list of contractors employing the best skilled hands in the business, call Tile, Marble & Terrazzo Local 18 MO, 314621-5560 or email Mike Weber at local18mo@msn.com. LM

BOOT AND SHOE REPAIR

MISCELLANOUS

IN THE 1960’S JOHN DEERE three speed bike, $900; in the 50’s Coca Cola soda machine, works great, $350; Jack-In-The-Box pinball machine, works great, $800; and many other vintage stuff, 314-7066861. 12-30

HIGH COUNTRY COMPOUND BOW SNIPER, 65% let off sight, Quiver case, shot less than 10 times, like new, $300; call 618-397-1981. 12-24

PRO-FORM TREADMILL, like new, two years old, used less than 20 times, $550 or best offer, call 314838-9122. 12-30

MEN’S 21 SPEED FUJI BICYCLE, excellent condition, garage hanger and helmet included, $100; 314-9101166. 12-30

RECREATIONAL VEHICLES

VETERANS ORGANIZATIONS

GREATER ST. LOUIS HONOR FLIGHT: Dedicated to helping Amer ican Veterans visit their Memorials in Washington, D.C. Serving WWII, Korean War and Vietnam Veterans. Support our mission through your donation, Honor Flight is a non-profit 501(c) (3) organization. Inquiries to: Greater St. Louis Honor Flight, 8050 Watson Road, Ste. 240, St Louis, MO 63119, 314-968-7717. Go to www.gslhonorflight.org for complete information and details.Applications can be completed online. LM

WANT TO BUY

N.R. DAVIS D-BARREL SHOT GUN, Davis Warner Arms Corp, Norwich, Connecticut, USA, B10283, Call 314-329-6150. TF

BEER AND SODA ADVERTISING SIGNS, cans, other, Lemp, Faust, Hyde Park, Falstaff, Griesedieck, Pepsi, Coke, Whistle, 314-5412188. TF

HO SCALE TRAIN COLLECTIONS, small or large, if I miss your call please leave a message, thank you, 314-280-4264. TF

BUYING OLD US COINS, I am a collector not a dealer, call Dan 314835-0022. TF

. LM

HUNTING/FISHING

SEE JOHN AT Bullseye Bait & Tackle for all your fishing supplies, live bait, rods, reels, reel cleaning and repair, bait, worms and more. 266 Fort Zumwalt Square, O’Fallon, MO, 636-281-3524. LM

National survey finds more professionals want a union

Washington – The percentage of non-union professionals who want to form a union in their workplace increased to 65 percent in 2022, ac cording to a survey commissioned by the AFL-CIO Department for Professional Employees (DPE). Additionally, 63 percent of those who would support a union at work said they would talk to their coworkers about forming a union in the next year.

DPE last commissioned a sur vey of non-union professionals’ attitudes towards unions in 2016. Then, 60 percent of professionals surveyed said they would support a proposal for a union.

“Professionals continue to want a union,” said DPE President Jen nifer Dorning. “Even before the pandemic a majority of profes sionals were supportive of forming a union in their workplace, and now, with changes in work and the economy, more professionals recognize the need for a legally protected say in workplace deci sions with a union.”

EVEN HIGHER AMONG SPECIFIC DEMOGRAPHIC GROUPS

For specific demographic groups, support for forming a union was even higher, with 82 percent of Black or African American respon dents and 76 percent of Hispanic or Latino respondents saying they would support a union proposal in their workplace. Young profes sionals also viewed unionizing

more favorably with 74 percent of respondents 18 to 34 years old say ing they would approve of an effort to form a union in their workplace.

EDUCATION AND HEALTHCARE

Professionals employed in educa tion and healthcare had the high est levels of union support among specific occupation groups, with 75 percent of education professionals

and 71 percent of healthcare profes sionals saying they would approve a proposal for a union in their work place. Computer and math profes sionals’ support for joining together in union has increased drastically over the years. DPE first surveyed computer and math professionals in 2005 and found that 33 percent would support a union in their workplace. In 2016, computer and math professionals’ union support increased to 59 percent, and now it has reached 62 percent.

KEY FINDINGS

Other key survey findings in clude:

• 78 percent of professionals would be in favor of joining together in a union to improve salaries and raises.

• Of professionals who were not required to perform in-person work during the first year of the pandemic, 69 percent said it was important that their union would work to improve work from home policies.

• When it came to professionals’

attitudes toward management, nearly 45 percent of respondents were dissatisfied with the salaries paid to executives compared to their own.

• A majority of those surveyed knew at most only a little about unions.

“Worker activism and the many recent organizing wins have helped return unions to the center of the national conversation about how Americans can improve their workplaces and their lives,” said Dorning. “However, too many pro fessionals still don’t know how to take steps to form their own union in their workplace, which means we still have work to do to educate employees about the process of joining together in union and the benefits of a union contract.”

DPE commissioned the research firm Clarity Campaign Labs to conduct the scientific survey of nonunion professionals in late summer 2022. The survey contains responses from a representative sample of over 1,800 non-union professionals from across the U.S.