Tag Archive for: Local 4811

,

UAW Members’ Demands Will Shape Next Congress as Union Runs its Most Ambitious Electoral Program in Decades

After months of organizing that began early in the summer, the UAW is on track to knock more than 300,000 doors with UAW members and union households as part of its biggest electoral program in decades.

The UAW is using its membership-focused political program, modeled on the success of the 2023 Stand Up Strike, to reach working-class voters from UAW households in key Senate and House races nationwide. In several key districts where UAW membership exceeds the previous election’s margin of victory, the UAW has more than 130 full-time political organizers in the field and has mobilized thousands of volunteers.

The focus of the program has been empowering members to have honest conversations with UAW families about UAW’s core four issues: wages, healthcare, retirement, and time off. Since launching in July, the member-led program has reached hundreds of thousands of working-class voters across Michigan, Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Iowa, Missouri, California, Nevada, Alaska, Arizona, Washington, North Carolina, Kansas, Texas, Pennsylvania, New York and Maine. The groundwork has been substantial.

By election day, the union projects it will have completed:

  • More than 300,000 doors knocked
  • 750,000 calls made
  • More than 4,000 volunteers recruited

“Our political program is like everything else about the UAW: it’s member-driven,” said UAW President Shawn Fain. “We’ve been flexing our muscle at the bargaining table for the last few years. Now we’re building that same muscle in our politics. This year, our members are leading a bold political program, shaking up the political status quo. We’ll start by electing UAW champions to office – but our members will lead the work that comes after election day to win a working-class agenda in the halls of power.”

Organizing Where Members Can Make the Difference
Michigan and Ohio are central to the effort, reflecting the importance of industrial jobs, economic security, and workers’ rights in the region’s political landscape.

“I have been knocking doors in elections for 25 years, and this one has had more energy than I’ve felt in a long time talking to UAW voters and their families,” said Tielece Perry, UAW Local 7 member from Belleville, MI. “Talking about being able to make ends meet is what we do with our coworkers every time we are bargaining a new union contract, and affordability is by far the number one issue voters care about right now. The UAW has the organizational structure, the relationships across Michigan, and the vision to turn those concerns into collective action — and real votes for our endorsed slate.”

In Ohio, the UAW has committed significant resources to bring Sherrod Brown, a longtime ally of working-class people, back to the Senate. The Union is also working to protect Marcy Kaptur’s seat in District 09, one of the country’s densest UAW districts, where members make up 10% of all voters. Members are also working to flip District 07 for fellow union member Brian Poindexter.

In Lorain County—the only Ohio county to vote for both Sherrod Brown and Donald Trump in 2024—the UAW has added a contentious County Commission race to its campaign. UAW-represented county workers have been on strike since February 18, underscoring the connection between political decisions and workers’ ability to secure fair treatment on the job.

“I’ve been active in CAP for a long time now and this year is different from previous years,” said Kim Daniels, a UAW Local 12 member in Toledo, OH. “For months, our boots have been on the ground throughout the state of Ohio. With our unity and power, Ohio will become the number one state for working-class people. This program will be the driving force for Ohio.”

“I’m really proud to be involved with the UAW’s political program this election cycle,” said Shawn Smith, a UAW Local 677 member in Allentown, PA. “I’ve noticed there’s less negativity towards us at doors, no matter which side someone is on. We all realize we are going in the wrong direction where nothing is affordable anymore. Our UAW program isn’t just about UAW members – it’s about fighting to lift up the entire working-class with candidates like our union brother Bob Brooks in PA-07.”

“Serving on UAW’s release staff this fall has changed my life. For the first time, I know that working people like me and my fellow UAW members can change the course of politics when we organize,” said Sarah Van Dijk, UAW Local 4811 member in San Diego, CA. “We’ve built a GOTV program unlike anything we’ve done before.”

Election Day Is Tuesday. Building Power Doesn’t Stop There.
Conversations at the doors are also helping shape the UAW’s working-class agenda for the new Congress in 2027. The concerns and priorities workers share at the doors are informing the union’s broader political work, strengthening the connection between what working people experience on the job and the decisions made by elected officials.

Following Election Day, the UAW will take the fight for higher wages, affordable healthcare, a secure retirement and more time off directly to Congress and state legislatures. With the power of its members behind it, the union will hold lawmakers accountable and fight for an economy that puts working people first.

Looking ahead to 2028, the UAW is working to build worker power from the shop floor up and fighting to restore the American Dream by ensuring every worker can earn a good living, retire with dignity and have time for family and life outside the job.

,

At 37 Actions Across the US, Tens of Thousands Rally to Stop Cuts to Federal Research, Health and Education

Detroit, MI — Thousands of people across the country came together yesterday for Kill the Cuts, a national Day of Action to raise awareness and fight back against the Trump administration’s devastating attacks on research, health, and higher education. The events (see the full list here) were sponsored by a coalition of education, labor and health advocates, including UAW, SEIU, AFSCME, UE, NEA, AFT, CWA, AAUP, HELU, Labor for Higher Education, the Debt Collective, and more.

Researchers and educators who have had their funding cut spoke about the effects this assault on publicly-funded research is having at their institutions and across the country. Below is a collection of remarks and associated photography:

 

“NIH is the bedrock of American health,” said Haley Chatelaine, a postdoctoral fellow at the National Institutes of Health and member of UAW 2750, which represents 5,000 workers there. “I’ve spoken with patients whose lives depended on the groundbreaking research we do. Any delay–whether it’s due to pauses in grant funding or firings of federal workers–puts Americans’ health at risk. That’s why we, the workers who do the research, are standing up to protect it.” (Photos here, credit UAW)

“By cutting funds to lifesaving research and medical care, the Trump administration is abandoning families who are suffering and costing taxpayers billions of dollars,” said Rafael Jaime, president of UAW 4811, which represents 48,000 workers at the University of California. “These cuts are dangerous to our health, and dangerous to our economy.” (Photos here, credit UAW)

“Federal research funding is critical to my research into how neurons in our brains communicate, making it possible to develop better therapeutics for severe health conditions that range from cancer to depression to learning disorders,” said Dagan Marx, a Postdoc at Weill Cornell Medicine and member of the Weill Cornell Medicine Postdocs United-UAW Bargaining Committee. “Recklessly slashing funding that institutions like Weill Cornell depend on for medical breakthroughs and supporting researchers has devastating impacts on our research and our working conditions.” (Photos here, credit New York City Central Labor Council)

“I’m proud to be researching ways to better detect ovarian cancer after losing my mom to the disease two years ago. There are still no routine screening tests for ovarian cancer, which would save lives. Without funding from the NIH, breakthroughs won’t happen and that’s a tremendous loss for research and the general public,” said Mari Hoffman, an Academic Student Employee in Molecular & Cellular Biology at the University of Washington and member of UAW 4121. (Photos here, credit UAW)

 

President Trump has recently issued Executive Orders attacking the NIH, NSF, while dismantling the Department of Education. These attacks jeopardize medical and scientific progress and threaten the jobs of researchers across the country studying critical topics including climate change, renewable energy, cancer, viral pandemics, heart disease, diabetes, and Alzheimer’s. Not only do these attacks impede lifesaving care for millions of Americans, but delays in treatment are projected to cost the public billions of dollars.

More information about the National Day of Action and a list of rally locations can be found at www.killthecuts.org.

,

UAW Region 6 Director Mike Miller Statement on Attacks on Students and Workers at UCLA

Over the last 2 days, the UCLA Administration has condoned the brutal attack of students and workers as they peacefully protested for justice for Palestine. Rather than negotiating with protestors and de-escalating, UCLA Administration’s actions have caused dozens to seek medical attention and hospitalizations, a militarized police presence on campus and the arrest of more than 130 students & workers, including UAW 4811 members. As a former Teaching Assistant, Reader, and Tutor at UCLA, I am outraged by the Administration’s actions – using newly applied standards and force to discriminate against students & workers for their political viewpoints. 

UAW 4811 members have taken swift action to respond, working alongside thousands of other students and workers at UCLA to mobilize for free speech and safety on campus, and to demand justice for Palestine. Today, UAW 4811 members are preparing to file Unfair Labor Practice charges over UC’s actions, and are moving towards a strike authorization vote. This comes less than a week after UAW 872 members at University of Southern California also filed an Unfair Labor Practice over similar failures by the USC Administration.  

As Local 4811 members move towards a strike authorization vote, know that you have the full support of your Region 6 siblings across the West Coast, and your UAW siblings across the continent, as you stand up for your rights and give voice to those impacted by the war in Gaza.  

Our union has taken a clear stance calling for a permanent ceasefire and justice for Palestine. I am proud to work alongside my fellow IEB members and UAW members across the country to continue escalating the call for a ceasefire, and an end to the death, destruction, and human suffering in Palestine.   

UAW members across the country are prepared to do what it takes to win justice for working people across the world, and to secure a permanent ceasefire in Palestine. I am immensely proud of the actions members across Region 6 have been taking for months to fight for peace and justice in Gaza, and to demand action from their employers and elected officials alike. As Brother Shawn Fain said so well yesterday: if you can’t take the outcry, stop supporting this war.  

UAW Logo

UAW SOLIDARITY HOUSE

8000 East Jefferson Avenue
Detroit, Michigan 48214

(313) 926-5000

Connect

Union Plus Logo

Organize

Members