Double Union Membership in Central Texas

The only answer to organized money is organized people, and unions are the core of an organized working class. No change — Medicare for All, A Green New Deal, or a justice system — is possible without a strong and mobilized labor movement. Every Democratic candidate for every office should be invested in doubling union membership within their jurisdiction.

Pledges

• We pledge to hire one staff organizer in Texas to focus on labor organizing.
• We will utilize our platform, social media, and paid staff to support any workplace that votes to unionize. We will promote whatever tactics workers use, including public pressure, demonstrations and boycotts, to pressure workplaces to recognize unions and bargain in good faith.
• We will stand in solidarity with and drive turnout for labor actions and demonstrations. We will use our platform to support strike solidarity funds.
• We will work to create stronger ties between immigrant justice movements and organized labor. We will help labor organizations develop bilingual resources and outreach efforts to immigrant communities. We will encourage the creation of immigrant-led unions, and we will mobilize around laws that protect immigrant workers who organize their workplaces from retaliation.
• As we speak to our neighbors, and we will actively encourage teachers to join Education Austin. We will encourage city, state, and municipal workers to join AFSCME. We will listen for every opportunity to promote union drives and apprentice programs.
• We will bring union organizers from around the country into Central Texas. We know there are workers here looking to unionize their workplaces, and we will use our platform and connections to put them in touch with staff organizers.
• As we have with past campaigns, we will continue to go to workplaces and talk with people about their rights as workers. When we hear from workers whose rights are being violated, we will connect workers with agencies to report labor violations as well as resources and organizations like the AFL-CIO.
• Unions should have power, and not just in their workplaces. They should be a leading voice on everything from housing policy to foreign policy. We pledge to continue our regular conversations with union political committees and to encourage union members to participate in their own political committees.