Labor for Bernie (includes action items at the top)

Grass Roots Labor Initiatives -growing fast!

Please "sign" this letter: http://www.laborforbernie.org/#letter

Please visit this page: https://www.facebook.com/LaborForBernie


Story One

Over 1000 local union leaders and members back Bernie Sanders for President
Steve Early June 25, 2015

(sorry if this was posted already)


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Initiated by trade unionists who have worked closely with Senator Sanders for many years, the Labor for Bernie network includes elected officers, shop stewards, organizers, and rank-and-file members from all 50 states and 57 different labor organizations.

More than a third of these Sanders supporters belong to building trades' unions, (with 137 coming from the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers alone). Other unions that showed significant membership support for Sanders’ presidential campaign include the Communications Workers of America, American Federation of Teachers, the National Education Association, Service Employees International Union, International Union of Operating Engineers, United Auto Workers, and International Brotherhood of Teamsters.

his diverse group of labor activists signed an on-line statement embracing Sanders as the only declared candidate, in either major party, “who challenges the billionaires who are trying to steal our pensions, our jobs, our homes, and what's left of our democracy.” The entire list of union supporters may be viewed on the new Labor for Bernie website at www.laborforbernie.org.

With more endorsers signing up every day, the Labor for Bernie network is urging the AFL-CIO, its affiliated national unions, and major unaffiliated labor organizations (NEA, SEIU, and IBT) to sponsor candidate forums and debates, at the grassroots level, before making any presidential endorsement decision of their own.

Bernie's Labor Backing Keeps Growing
June 29, 2015


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In These Times reports that nearly 2,000 union members have signed the letter already. The Cedar Rapids Gazette reported on June 26 that 14 Iowa labor leaders were among them.

Mario Vasquez, the article’s author, also notes that AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka said in late May that the organization had not yet endorsed a presidential candidate.

Labor for Bernie was not the only sign of growing labor support for Bernie’s candidacy. The Vermont NEA, which is that state’s largest union, endorsed Bernie’s candidacy on June 24. State NEA President Martha Allen said that “Bernie’s core values are in line with ours: he is pro-family, pro-worker, pro-education and pro-labor and we believe the time has come for his vision to become a national reality.”

“School teachers and educators are real American heroes,” Bernie said in response. “I am honored to have their backing.”

In addition, the executive board of the South Carolina AFL-CIO recently passed a resolution supporting Bernie’s candidacy.