International Solidarity

When corporate decisions made half a world away can impact jobs and investments with the speed of keystroke, what choice do working people have but to make alliances across national boundaries? When U.S. politicians are beholden to transnational corporations, what choice do U.S. working people have but to make common cause with workers elsewhere in the world?

As globalization draws the world closer together, workers' rights, wages and working conditions are downsized. Global wages are spiraling downward towards the lowest common denominator — countries where workers make as little as a few dollars a day.

Starting from a longstanding commitment to international solidarity, UE believes that more than ever, unions must act and think globally. A real commitment to international labor solidarity means more than just resolutions and meetings. It requires rank-and-file action.

UE has built relationships with labor organizations in a variety of countries. We've made labor history with our pioneering Strategic Organizing Alliance with the Authentic Labor Front, the Frente Autentico del Trabajo (FAT) in Mexico. And, we continue to build new ways to link workers and their unions across borders. Find out about this important work at our UE International Solidarity Website.

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Colombian Workers Fight Anti-Worker Economic Policies, Despite Repression

January 27, 2020

From November 24th to December 4th, 2019, United States Labor Against the War (USLAW) and the Alliance for Global Justice (AfGJ) led a joint labor delegation to Colombia. Participants included union members and staff from UE, National Nurses United, UNITE HERE, the International Union of Painters and Allied Trades, the United Steelworkers, and the National Writers Union. The delegation also included a member of About Face: Veterans Against the War and Latin America solidarity activists.

UE Allies Demand Justice for Mexican Unionists Murdered During NAFTA Renegotiations

November 21, 2019

Retired UE Director of Organization Bob Kingsley joined labor rights activists at the U.S. Capitol on Wednesday, November 20 to demand justice for recently murdered Mexican unionists, and that labor-rights provisions in the renegotiated NAFTA 2.0 be strengthened before it is sent to Congress.

UE Regional President Helps “Forgotten Land” of Puerto Rico to Rise

October 3, 2019

Shortly after UE’s 2017 convention, Hurricane Maria struck Puerto Rico. While most U.S. news outlets lost interest in the story after a month or two, the island has yet to fully recover. In May, Northeast Region President Autumn Martinez spent two weeks on the island as a volunteer, helping to repair homes. The UE NEWS spoke with her in July about her trip and the conditions she found there.

FAT Hosts Forum on Historic Mexican Labor Law Reform

July 29, 2019

On July 5 and 6 the Frente Auténtico del Trabajo (FAT), an independent, democratic Mexican union and one of UE’s closest international allies, hosted a forum in Mexico City entitled “Federal Labor Law Reforms: Perspectives and Challenges” to discuss the labor law reforms enacted on May 1, 2019. Manuel García Urrutia, a former leader of the FAT who now holds a prominent position within the Secretariat of Labor, commented that “many of our dreams have been captured in this law.”

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