Telling Labor’s Story

Unions have a great and proud story to tell. Unfortunately, deep-pocketed anti-worker forces have created an entire industry designed to undermine unions by attacking the dedication and integrity of union members. We’re sick of these hurtful lies, and we’re fighting back, now more than ever. We’re showcasing the enormous contributions that union workers make to our state and their communities, and we’re combating misconceptions about unions.

Through our communications program:

  • We reach out to the media and the public with the real-life stories of union members and the difference they make in people’s lives. Union members are our “everyday heroes,” from teaching and coaching our children to protecting our streets to caring for the sick and elderly. We have won positive coverage for unions and union members on television, radio, and blog postings, including repeat appearances by President Robert Haynes on Keller @ Large, WRKO, and the Jeff Santos Show, on Boston’s Talk Revolution. We also receive regular coverage in the Boston Globe, Boston Herald, State House News Service, and many regional daily newspapers.
  • We’re setting the record straight with facts and research that debunk the falsehoods spread by anti-worker propaganda specialists. For example, we make sure labor’s side of the story is conveyed in media coverage, especially on complex issues such as Social Security, pensions, free trade, job creation, and the minimum wage.
  • We’re “taking back Labor Day.” Every year around Labor Day, anti-worker, anti-labor attacks proliferate in the press, whether in negative news articles or venomous op-eds. The Massachusetts AFL-CIO has launched an annual public education and public relations campaign to bring back the true meaning of Labor Day: honoring the history of the labor movement and the generations of brave workers who sacrificed to build this country.
  • We’re constantly improving our website (www.massaflio.org) to bring visitors more engaging, more informative, and more timely news, stories, videos, and audio clips about the Massachusetts labor movement and the people who make it so special. The website has become a “one-stop shop” for workers, politicians, community groups, and the press to learn about and hear from the labor movement and union workers. Our website hits have skyrocketed, increasing 325 percent since 2006 and increasing each month. The Massachusetts AFL-CIO website now ranks among the most prominent and most-viewed sites of any state federation or central labor council in the nation.
  • We’re educating and informing union members and our allies through our Weekly Labor Reader. Filled with timely news, issue updates, and event listings, this free electronic newsletter has become essential reading for the Massachusetts labor community. Sign up at http://www.massaflcio.org
  • We’re preserving and encouraging labor studies for students and workers. Too often, labor’s story remains untold in America’s classrooms and workplaces. We collaborate with the University of Massachusetts to provide quality labor studies programs, including undergraduate and graduate degrees in labor studies, plus labor extension services that provide union members with top-notch training in union governance, leadership and administration. And since 1999, the Massachusetts AFL-CIO has organized union sponsorship of the Tsongas Industrial History Center program in the Boott Cotton Mills Museum in Lowell, Massachusetts. The program allows kids to be immersed in the experience of a worker on the line during the Industrial Revolution at the turn of the century, and to see the plight of the workers of that time. Nearly 40 unions join the Massachusetts AFL-CIO in sponsoring this experience for students from elementary and middle school classes from across the Commonwealth.
  • We actively support the Labor Guild. Since the 1940s, the Labor Guild of the Archdiocese of Boston has been a place where union leaders and members could learn about labor issues. Today, the Guild is a center for unionists, managers, arbitrators, mediators, academics, attorneys, and government administrators. It offers union election administration services; operates a conference center that provides a neutral setting for negotiations and arbitrations; and holds labor- management classes in topics such as conflict resolution and labor law. We continue to enthusiastically support and publicize the Guild’s valuable work.

For a labor news round-up, visit: www.massaflcio.org/news