Labor groups begin to unite behind Harris’ campaign — but some holdouts remain

Many of America’s largest labor unions have now announced their support for Kamala Harris’ presidential bid, as the vice president ramps up his campaign for the Democratic nomination.

However, some remarkable union resilience still suggests Harris still has some work to do to win over other working-class voters.

On Monday, the American Federation of Labor and Congress of Industrial Organizations (AFL-CIO), the largest union federation in the United States and a longtime supporter of President Joe Biden, announced its support for Harris.

“From day one, Vice President Kamala Harris has been a true partner in leading the most pro-labor administration in history,” said AFL-CIO President Liz Shuler. “At every step of his distinguished career in public office, he has proven to be a principled and tenacious fighter for working people and a visionary leader we can hope for. From Wall Street and corporate greed to leading efforts to expand child care and support vulnerable workers, he has shown time and time again that he is on our side.

Shuler added: “With Kamala Harris in the White House, we will continue to build on the strong legacy of the Biden-Harris administration to create good union jobs, grow the labor movement and make our economy work for all of us.”

Several other unions have also announced their support, including the Service Employees International Union (SEIU), the United Food and Commercial Workers International Union (UFCW), the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME), the American Federation of Teachers (AFT) , the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers and the United Steel Workers (USW).

The Biden-Harris administration has received steady support from unions and labor groups over the past few years and has sought to reciprocate. In the highest-profile show of support, Biden became the first president to cross the picket line During the United Auto Workers strike against the Big Three automakers last fall.

But the UAW is one of the groups that has yet to officially announce its support for Harris’ bid for the White House. He published one on Sunday statement He praised Biden’s leadership during his administration but refrained from endorsing Harris.

“The path forward is clear: we will defeat Donald Trump and his billionaire agenda and elect a champion for the working class to the highest office in this country,” the statement read.

A UAW representative did not immediately return a request for comment Tuesday morning.

Republican candidate Donald Trump has sought to undermine the leadership of the UAW, publicly calling for the ouster of its leader, Shawn Fain.

During his acceptance speech in Milwaukee last week, Trump claimed that without proofChina plans to build car manufacturing facilities in Mexico at the expense of assembly lines in the United States, he said.

“The United Auto Workers should be ashamed of themselves for allowing this to happen, and the leader of the United Auto Workers should be fired immediately,” Trump said, adding, “Every auto worker, union and union member should vote for Donald Trump because we’re going to bring back auto manufacturing.” and we’ll get it back soon.”

Dozens of auto manufacturing plants remain in the United States, most of them located in the Southern states and the Midwest.

Trump also tried to capitalize on the UAW’s concerns about the national transition to electric cars — which union will refuse to publicly endorse Biden’s 2024 candidacy.

“The federal government is spending billions on the electric vehicle transition with no need and no commitment to workers,” Fein said last spring, according to CNBC. “The EV transition is at serious risk of becoming a race to the bottom. We want to see the national leadership rely on this before making any commitments.”

According to Brian Rothenberg, the UAW’s former communications director and now a partner at the firm Triumph Communications, the UAW has historically seen a steady 60-40 split between members who support Democrats and Republicans.

While UAW members are concerned about the EV transition, he said, there are other concerns about workplace safety and, in particular, the impact of Project 2025, a conservative plan that calls for measures to weaken public sector unions.

“It’s probably a bigger issue for them than it is for the rest of the country,” Rothenberg said.

UAW members attended and participated in Trump events in Michigan. CNBC reported last year.

Last weekend, Trump and running mate JD Vance appeared at a rally in Grand Rapids, Michigan to drum up support in the crucial swing state.

While UAW leadership has at least officially rejected Trump, another major union player has made it clear that the president’s endorsement is up for grabs.

Sean O’Brien, Head of Teams Union, delivered an impassioned speech against corporate interests at the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee last week this led some commentators to question whether labor was now as fully united behind the Democrats as it had traditionally been.

“I refuse to continue doing what my predecessors did,” O’Brien said. “Today, Teamsters are here to say we are not affiliated with anyone or any party. We will create an agenda and work with a bipartisan coalition that is committed to doing something real for the American worker. I don’t care if we are criticized. The first Teamster in our 121-year history to speak at the Republican National Convention It’s an honor to be.”

After the speech, a since-deleted post on the official Teamsters account on X revealed internal outrage over O’Brien’s appearance.

“Unions have nothing to gain from supporting the racist, misogynist and anti-trans policies of the far right, regardless of how people like Senator Hawley try to tie such bigotry to a cynical pro-labor message,” the Teamsters account says in X. , citing Republican Sen. Josh Hawley of Missouri, who then added, “You don’t unite a diverse working class by mocking its diversity.”

In a statement, a representative of the Teamsters group said He invited Harris to the round tableand noted that his presidential approval is traditionally announced after the congresses of political parties.

“We are on schedule and continue to engage our members in this process,” the spokesperson said.

Democrats will hold a convention in Chicago next month.

While generally pro-labor, Biden seeks to increase manufacturing jobs and improve workers’ bargaining power by banning non-compete agreements and active union membership. there is stayed on a historic downward trend during his reign.

While Republicans have begun to more aggressively pursue the working class and factory workers, there are ongoing efforts to abolish the National Labor Relations Board, the government agency responsible for resolving labor disputes.

The biggest supporter of this initiative is Elon MuskThe head of Tesla, who pledged his full support to Trump.

Musk, who received praise from Trump at a Michigan rally, was sanctioned by the NLRB in 2018 for tweeting: “There is nothing stopping the Tesla team at our factory from voting… So why pay union dues and give up nothing on stock options ? “

Recently Tesla it happened In May, the subject of an NLRB complaint accused the company of discouraging employees from “joining, joining or assisting a union, or engaging in other concerted activities.” A preliminary hearing on that dispute is scheduled for this month.

A Tesla representative could not be reached for comment.