The words solidarity, workers’ rights and fight for all workers brought Delegates to their feet on Wednesday at the 24th Constitutional Convention as they heard from a series of speakers including keynote speaker, AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka.
Trumka expressed his support for TWU and motivated the crowd to continue to strengthen the labor movement by making one where real solidarity exists. He also spoke about building power for the working people while referencing the work of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and the history of TWU.
“Build with me a new legacy, new heritage, a new movement of, by, and for the working people,” said Trumka to the roars of a cheering delegation.
Those on the global solidarity front, Tony Sheldon, National Secretary of the TWU Australia; and Joe O’Flynn, General Secretary of SIPTU (Services, Industrial, Professional and Technical Union) also spoke about the injustices all workers face around the globe.
“We have a right to be upset and be angry, we have the right to say people in our communities deserve better,” said Sheldon. “We have a right to be angry at companies that want to deny us a future.”
Each stressed that we are all facing the same fight, despite where we are in the world, as corporations share the same agenda and motivations- to increase their profits at the expense of the worker.
The same was said from Jimmy C. Curry, President of the Oklahoma AFL-CIO and TWU member, about ALEC and laws implemented to weaken unions.
Lead Negotiator of TWU Local 577 Debra Peterson-Barber also addressed the Delegates about the two- year battle the Flight Attendants of Allegiant are having to land a contract.
“I am representing a group without a union contract,” said Peterson-Barber. “Allegiant is the most profitable airline in world and the flight attendants just took a pay cut.”
The Delegates passed Resolution 25 in support of the Allegiant Flight attendant and will join them at Thursday’s rally at Allegiant Headquarters.
Other resolutions passed by the delegates were: Resolution 3, On Balancing the TWU International’s Budget and Resolution 5, Organizing: Growing the TWU.
And in the words of Tony Sheldon as we globally unite, “United together, we are invincible.”