King
County Labor CouncilKing
County Labor Council
On Labor Day
and every day, KCLC is working hard to make things better
We’ve all heard talk about the ‘new
labor movement’ lately — not your father’s labor movement —
all-inclusive, progressive, committed to organizing for workers’ rights. While
the national AFL-CIO has been actively encouraging these ideals among
international unions and labor councils throughout our country, how many have
actually embraced them and changed the way they do business?
The King County Labor Council, AFL-CIO, has. We want you to know that we’re proud to be at the forefront of the ‘new labor movement,’ which truly does exist and is growing every day. We’d like to share some of the ways we have grown and changed and, if you haven’t already become an activist, you will hopefully see a spot for yourself — a way to get involved to help make King County a better place to live and work.
Community Involvement
We know that healthy
communities lead to happy workers. Community involvement is a priority for us, a
goal we’re always working toward. The planned activities surrounding WTO
presented an invaluable opportunity to form partnerships with community based
organizations and individuals concerned about global issues.
Our involvement continues on many levels. Environmental groups and labor fought Kaiser Aluminum together. Labor is visible and vocal at annual events such as Capitol Hill’s Pride Parade and Freedom Rally and the Martin Luther King Jr. community celebration in the Central District. Regular meetings with the Washington Association of Churches and the Church Council of Greater Seattle keep lines of communication open between labor and the religious community. A tangible result of this connection was our participation in a national project that included labor/faith services in more than 120 cities nationwide over Labor Day weekend.
Educational offerings
The active KCLC Education Committee has worked hard to develop and present
Common Sense Economics trainings, informational sessions for KCLC delegates and
other special sessions. The delegate orientation sessions inform delegates about
the workings of the council, the various committees and their activities and the
Union Cities program. (If you’re a KCLC delegate, old or new, please make room
in your schedule to attend an upcoming orientation session.)
The Education Committee sponsored a booth at the Labor Day Celebration to give children the chance to learn the basics about workers’ rights and democracy. Savvy under-age voters weighed in on the presidential race and other important issues of the day at a polling place especially for them. Since
the kids cast their ballots by dropping dried beans into clear plastic tubes attached to the booth, observers could see instant poll results.
More than 100 young people visited the Education Committee display, where kids and adults alike had a chance to win prizes by answering quiz questions about the global economy and workers’ issues.
Working with elected officials
Our efforts to stay in contact
with elected officials have really paid off. By getting to know candidates
during the COPE interview process, supporting candidates who believe in workers’
rights and keeping lines of communication open after election, we’re working
with elected officials for the benefit of workers. For example, many have urged
the Pacific Science Center to honor the wishes of a majority of their workers to
join SEIU Local 6. Letters supporting the workers have been sent to the Science
Center by Seattle’s Mayor Schell, King County Executive Sims, King County
Councilmember Phillips, Seattle City Councilmembers Nicastro, Wills and Licata,
and U.S. Representatives McDermott and Inslee.
King County Labor Agency
The community services division
of KCLC offers many services, including a food bank, giving assistance to union
members in need, building wheelchair ramps and providing school supplies and
holiday gifts for children whose parents are facing tough times.
Worker Center
The economic and workforce
development division of KCLC assists dislocated workers, develops relationships
with schools and community colleges and promotes worker training that will lead
to living-wage jobs.
So how can you get involved?
It’s easy! You can contact us
at (206) 441-8510 for general information, or e-mail us at kclc@igc.org. To find
out about a committee, or to sign up for a delegate training, call Verlene
Wilder at (206) 441-7102. The Labor Agency is always in need of volunteers and
can be reached at (206) 448-9277. There are numerous volunteer opportunities
during election season as phone banks and leafleting pick up, which can be
accessed by calling our general number listed above. We hope to see you soon!
Executive
Secretary's Report
Primary election results prove it’s
time to think big and act big!
I ’m big on seizing opportunities and I smell several coming our way fast. We’ve been saying "Gorton’s Gotta Go!" for a while now, and guess what? We can make it so! In the U.S. Senate primary election, Democratic candidates received 52% of the total vote, while Republican candidates received 47%.
We’ve also got a swell chance of helping Democrats deliver the legislature from the stalemates and gridlock of the past two years. I’m talking about the difference between playing defense or moving an assertive workers’ legislative agenda. This is BIG.
And how about the prospect of beating I-745? Don’t make the mistake of believing that defeating I-745 is just a defensive move. Yes, we need to defend against the narrow, backwards initiative that would limit our transportation crisis solutions. But by defeating I-745, we’ll also deliver a big setback to Tim Eyman and his anti-worker agenda. The momentum for multi-modal transportation solutions will be re-established.
We have many advantages this year:
1) Election results and polls prove the
public is aligning with our issues.
2) We’re deploying an increasingly sophisticated get out the vote (GOTV)
campaign in partnership with the Washington State Labor Council.
3) We’ve signed up thousands of our members for permanent absentee ballots.
So what’s needed? More education. Studies prove that union members find the most credible information about candidates comes from their unions. That’s encouraging. But studies also show that the method matters. By far, the most credible message is when a union member gets leafleted at work. Mailings are good — leaflets at work are much more powerful.
We can beat Gorton, Eyman, anti-worker Republicans, charter school nonsense and get Al Gore elected as President. We have an aggressive plan to engage in worksite leafleting this year as never before.
Please prioritize this in your local union. Our leaflets are grounded in our members’ issues. They’re professionally produced, issue-oriented and full-color.
Sisters and brothers, it is time to seize this opportunity — think big, act big! Call our political organizer, Kat Overman, at (206) 441-3473 to coordinate worksite leafleting!
Weiss, Hart join
Worker Center
The Worker Center, AFL-CIO, is proud to
announce that Joan Weiss has been selected to fill the position of Labor Liaison
for King County’s Community and Technical Colleges. This project is funded by
a grant from the State of Washington. Joan joined the Worker Center this summer
as a School-to-Work Labor Liaison. She was previously an organizer for SEIU
District 925 and brings with her over 15 years of experience in our state’s
higher education system.
Joan will be responsible for expanding labor’s participation on the various committees at the colleges and developing an on-going communication link between the AFL-CIO and King County’s 11 community and technical colleges.
"We need to get more unionists involved with the colleges because their programs train many future workers and thousands of future union members. This is work where member activism will make a difference and improve the quality of our region’s training programs," Joan observed. "Don’t be surprised when I ask you to get involved," she added.
We are also pleased to announce that Karen Hart joined the Worker Center as the Project Director for Youth @ Work, Aware & Safe. This project is funded by a Washington State Labor and Industries grant. Karen has over 10 years experience as a union and community organizer and has been a Seattle high school teacher for the past five years.
Karen will be responsible for introducing a youth-oriented worker safety and health curriculum to educators and administrators. With 80% or more of our youth aged 14 to 19 currently working, such training becomes as necessary as math and English.
Please help us welcome them both!