Vermont State Labor Council, AFL-CIO

 

Tefere Gebre’s American journey: From refugee camp to labor leader

Gebre was still a boy when he was forced to flee Ethiopia, a country that suffered political turmoil and famine during the 1980s.

Trump’s Power to Fire Federal Workers Curtailed by Judge

A federal district judge in Washington struck down most of the key provisions of three executive orders that

Executive Paywatch: The Gap Between CEO and Worker Compensation Continues to Grow

CEO pay for major companies in the United States rose nearly 6% in the past year, as income inequality and the outsourcing of good-paying American jobs have increased. According to the new AFL-CIO Executive Paywatch, the average CEO of an S&P 500 Index company made $13.94 million in 2017—361 times more money than the average U.S. rank-and-file worker.

‘We Are All Immigrants’

Tefere Gebre came to the United States in 1984 as a teenager. He and four friends had left their home in war-torn Ethiopia and walked nearly 500 miles across the desert to a refugee camp in Sudan.

Mortgages for Union Families

Union Plus Mortgage Company is owned by the AFL-CIO Union Privilege and a group of unions.

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Death on the Job: The Toll of Neglect, 2018

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Defend and Resist

A toolkit for organizers and advocates on workplace raids and audits.

Recent News

Progressive Marriott Union Contract Could Have Ripple Effects

A series of settlements hammered out over the past few weeks between Marriott and its striking workers in Boston and seven other cities are ushering in groundbreaking benefits that could set a precedent not just for the service industry but for workers nationwide.

The Boston agreement, reached after workers spent more than six weeks on the picket lines, marching and chanting in the wind and rain and snow, includes a roughly 20 percent increase in wages over 4½ years, a 37 percent increase in pension contributions, and six weeks of paid maternity leave, plus two weeks for spouses.

The Backlash to the GOP’s Union-Bashing Has Begun in Earnest

Has the Republican Party’s grand experiment in union-busting finally come to an end? Scott Walker, the Republican governor of Wisconsin, rose to national prominence in 2011 when he passed a landmark bill dealing a blow to unions in the state and across the country. With Act 10, Walker stripped public workers of their right to collectively bargain, gutting their salaries, health care, and pensions.

AFL-CIO President: How Working People Defined the Midterm Election

There was plenty of punditry plastered across cable news last week. But, as the dust settles, there is one story that has come to define this election: working people standing together to make a difference. The labor movement unleashed an unprecedented political program this year. Across the country, union members made the difference, fighting for our issues, for union candidates and for our proven allies.

AFL-CIO President 'Applauds' Trump on Trade, But Gives His Record a Thumbs Down

Richard Trumka, president of the U.S.’s largest labor group, AFL-CIO, appreciates President Donald Trump’s stance on trade. However, as it stands now, the president does not have a record that helps workers, according to Trumka.

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Striking Marriott Workers Holding "One Job Should Be Enough" Signs

Stand with Marriott Workers

Thousands of hardworking Marriott workers are on strike because many of its full-time employees aren't able to earn enough to make ends meet. They're taking on one of the world’s most profitable and powerful companies. Stand with them.

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Lyndon Baines Johnson Signs the Medicare Bill

Strengthen Medicare and Medicaid

Tell Congress to repeal the tax cuts for the wealthy and corporations instead of cutting the vital programs that benefit nearly one-third of the U.S. population.

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