Jun 22, 2023 | Politics & Legislative News
The IAM wrapped up its annual legislative conference this week to strategize and make their voices heard in Washington, DC. Nearly 350 IAM delegates attended this year’s event and participated in legislative plenaries, and heard from a range of speakers, including elected officials and allies.
“We are here because what happens in Washington, DC and in State Houses across the country affects everything about our lives and our union,” said IAM International President Robert Martinez Jr. “ We’re here to protect our right to form a union; We’re here to defend our right to negotiate industry-leading contracts; And we’re to fight for the right of every working man and woman to live the American Dream!”
WATCH: IAM International President Robert Martinez, Jr. Opening 2023 IAM Legislative Conference
Nearly 350 IAM delegates from across the country who were gathered at the 2023 Legislative Conference, had the opportunity to visit dozens of lawmakers and asked them to address important priorities to protect working people.
“The only game is the economy, and legislative policies are the rules to that game,” said IAM National Political and Legislative Director Hasan Solomon during the closing plenary. “Those rules are written right next door in the Capitol.”
“Unfortunately, during the last administration, the rules were written for Wall Street to win and for workers to lose. How do we change those rules so that we, as workers, win and have shared prosperity? You all are doing it this week. You are taking the Machinists Union’s message right to the Capitol,” continued Solomon.
PHOTOS: 2023 IAM Legislative Conference
During their meetings, IAM delegates emphasized key federal issues critical to our members, such as:
- The Rail Safety Act
- The PRO Act
- Organizing efforts for Delta Air Lines workers
- National Defense Authorization Act
- Buy American and Made in America policies
- Fair Trade
WATCH: 2023 IAM Legislative Conference Day 3: Powerful Elected Officials Pledge Support to IAM
These are some of the members of Congress and allies who provided remarks and shared their message of support for working families on Day 3 of the Legislative Conference:
- Rep. Joe Courtney (D-CT)
- Rep. Nikki Budzinski (D-IL)
- Rep. Rick Larsen (D-WA)
- Rep. Brendan Boyle (D-PA)
- U.S. Sen. Raphael Warnock (D-GA)
- Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY)
- Democratic Whip Katherine Clark (D-MA)
- Rep. Jan Schakowsky (D-IL)
See social media coverage below (Thread):
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Jun 20, 2023 | Politics & Legislative News
The 2023 IAM Legislative Conference in the nation’s capital began on Monday, June 19. The conference includes nearly 350 delegates representing districts and locals across the United States.
The first day included speeches of IAM International President Robert Martinez Jr., as well as IAM National Political and Legislative Director Hasan Solomon, who welcomed delegates and set the tone for this week’s agenda.
“We are here this week because we know that our work fighting for what’s right never ends,” said IAM International President Robert Martinez, Jr. “We are here to hold our elected officials accountable and let them know that you either stand with us or you stand against us!”
WATCH: IAM International President Robert Martinez, Jr. Opening 2023 IAM Legislative Conference
This important event provided an opportunity for IAM delegates to have their voices heard in the halls of Congress as they met with their congressional representatives to address critical issues affecting working Americans.
“If you want health care, you need a union; if you want a pension, you need a union,” said IAM National Political and Legislative Director Hasan Solomon as he addressed delegates of the 2023 Legislative Conference. “We are here to speak truth to power!”
PHOTOS: 2023 IAM Legislative Conference
The first two days of the 2023 IAM Legislative Conference included important speakers such as:
- Robert Martinez Jr., IAM International President
- Hasan Solomon, IAM National Political and Legislative Director
- Greg Regan, AFL-CIO Transportation Trades Department President
- Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-MD)
- Carla Siegel, IAM General Counsel
- Randy Erwin, NFFE-IAM Federal District 1 National President
- Rep. Gerry Connolly (D-VA)
- Rep. Steven Horsford (D-NV)
- Rep. Linda Sánchez (D-CA)
- Stephen Benjamin, Office of Public Engagement, The White House, Senior Advisor and Director
- Josh Hartford, IAM Special Assistant to the International President for the IAM Rail Division
- David Arouca, TCU/IAM National Legislative Director
View Tweet Thread for all Social Updates
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Jun 15, 2023 | Politics & Legislative News
IAM International President Robert Martinez, Jr. sent a letter to members of Congress urging them to pass a 2023 Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) Reauthorization Act that prioritizes strong labor standards and ensures airline worker safety.
A successful worker-focused FAA reauthorization bill must include provisions such as:
- Fair and Open Skies Act to ensure that any authorizations issued by the Secretary of Transportation to foreign air carriers do not undermine labor rights or safety standards.
- Does not include any measures to amend the Airline Deregulation Act (ADA) that would limit or prohibit states and localities from including airline workers in labor protections extended to other workforces.
- Safe Aircraft Maintenance Standards Act, which would strengthen FAA oversight of commercial airline repair facilities outside the United States.
- Clarify the FAA’s authority to enforce the Employee Assault and Prevention Plan, which would hold airlines accountable if they fail to submit those plans.
- Ramp Worker Safety Call to Action to study and find solutions to improve safety for airline ramp workers.
- Protection from Abusive Passengers Act, which would direct the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) to create and manage a program that bars passengers who are fined or convicted of serious physical violence against airline personnel from flying.
- Cabin Air Safety Act, which would protect airline pilots, flight attendants, and passengers from toxic cabin air.
“The time is now for Congress to draft and pass an FAA reauthorization package that acknowledges today’s growing demand to protect workers from physical harm and ensure labor standards are a priority,” said Martinez in the letter.
The IAM’s reasonable demands come as a response to the latest increases of U.S. air travel, and the unfortunate series of airline worker assaults and deaths in recent years.
The IAM will continue to advocate for a strong and enforceable pro-workers FAA bill to protect the interests of its more than 100,000 IAM air transport members and the communities they serve.
Click here to read the full letter.
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Jun 1, 2023 | Politics & Legislative News
Retired IAM General Secretary-Treasurer and current Alliance for Retired Americans President Robert Roach Jr. testified on Capitol Hill for adequate funding for Social Security that could help to prevent identity fraud.
The May 24 subcommittee hearing included testimonies on Social Security identity theft and long-term solutions to this problem.
“Members of the Alliance and Americans nationwide are concerned about the threat of identity theft,” said Roach during his testimony. “If the Social Security Administration, which is already short staffed, was forced to cut its budget, the agency’s work to protect Americans from Social Security number identity theft and other fraud would be hampered.”
Millions of Social Security beneficiaries depend on this benefit program as part of their income and any funding cuts could be detrimental to their livelihoods.
“The importance of Social Security cannot be overstated,” said Roach. “The decline of traditional pension plans and decades of stagnant or declining real wages have made it harder for individuals to save for retirement and Social Security has become a larger part of Americans’ retirement income.”
Throughout the years, active and retired IAM members have advocated for increasing earned Social Security benefits and for measures that secure its solvency.
The Social Security Administration must have adequate funding to stay afloat but also to strengthen its capabilities to combat identity fraud and other issues as they arise.
Watch Robert Roach’s testimony here.
The Alliance for Retired Americans is a grassroots advocacy organization with 4.4 million members. Founded by the AFL-CIO in 2001, the alliance now has 39 state alliances and members in every state.
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May 23, 2023 | Politics & Legislative News
WASHINGTON, May 23, 2023 – IAM International President Robert Martinez Jr. wrote a letter to members of the U.S. Senate urging support for the Bipartisan Railway Safety Act as amended and passed out of the Senate Commerce Committee.
The letter supports the legislation that would improve freight rail safety in the U.S. The IAM believes this common-sense legislation will create several essential safety improvements to the nation’s railways while providing significant work-life improvements for our Carmen and Machinists’ crafts.
“We support the Railway Safety Act because it will dramatically enhance rail safety in a number of ways,” IAM International President Robert Martinez Jr. wrote in the letter. “For our members specifically, the bill prohibits the railroads from placing impossible time constraints on rail car and locomotive inspectors, as detailed in the Wall Street Journal’s front page expose on March 30, 2023. The bill would also require more frequent locomotive and rail car safety inspections, while ensuring that these inspections are performed as intended and by highly trained and qualified personnel.”
The IAM was founded as a railroad union in 1888, and represents more than 35,000 railroad workers across the country. These members include the IAM’s original craft, the locomotive Machinists, and various rail crafts represented by our merged affiliated, the Transportation Communications Union (TCU/IAM) and their Brotherhood of Railway Carmen Division (BRC).
Read the complete letter here.
The International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers is one of North America’s largest and most diverse industrial trade unions, representing approximately 600,000 active and retired members in the aerospace, defense, airlines, railroad, transit, healthcare, automotive, and other industries.
goIAM.org | @MachinistsUnion
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May 8, 2023 | Politics & Legislative News
The time has come again for our members to express your voice in who our union endorses for U.S. president. Your IAM Executive Council recently met and strongly supported continuing this process and ensuring that the IAM’s endorsement represents the will of the membership.
Beginning now, all IAM members in good standing can register to vote in the IAM’s U.S. presidential endorsement election at iamvoting.org.
After the registration process, every IAM member who registered will be given an opportunity to vote online for who should receive the union’s endorsement for president, regardless of political party. The IAM’s State Council Presidents will then vote between the top vote-getting candidates chosen by the membership from each party after the membership voting concludes.
Our great union represents working people from all walks of life, and our endorsement process reflects that diversity. Our endorsement process guarantees that all IAM members have a voice.
This work will help ensure that the candidate we endorse is committed to fighting for the interests of our members. I am also pleased that this process focuses on the most important issues facing our members, such as passing the Protecting the Right to Organize (PRO) Act, Buy American, transportation, fair trade, defense funding, retirement security, healthcare, prescription drug costs and more.
So, please make sure your voice is heard and register to vote in the IAM’s endorsement process at iamvoting.org.
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