Report of the Policy Action Committee

The Policy Action Committee of the 79th National Convention moves the following plan of action in the period up to the next national convention.

Aggressive Struggle

  1. Calls on the union at all levels to educate our members about the necessity, effectiveness, and most useful strategies of workplace struggle, including, but not limited to
    1. Collective action for political change;
    2. Building cross-union and community solidarity among the working class
  2. Calls on the union to commit to these principles of education by:
    1. Encouraging members and locals to participate in and/or assist the formation of the Labor Notes troublemaker’s schools;
    2. Submit articles for publication to outlets, including but not limited to Labor Notes and UE News;
    3. Encourage the purchase, subscription, and use of books such as, but not limited to, the Troublemaker’s handbook;
    4. Encourage participation in, supporting of, and joining in worker-forward community organizations such as Jobs with Justice, the Southern Workers Assembly, and the upcoming Labor Notes conferences

Independent Rank-and-File Political Action

  1. Encourages the union at all levels to
    1. Be proactive in researching and engaging with candidates in advance of upcoming elections to ensure political actions protect working people rather than the corporate interests that govern the current U.S. major political parties;
    2. Continue supporting political actions that promote the well-being of workers, such as, but not limited to, Labor for Democracy, the Working Families Party, or a yet to be established program;
    3. Actively support the formation of, or alignment with, an independent working-class political party, organization, or program.
  2. Educate members and their respective communities on workers’ issues and how politicians and political programs can support them.
  3. Urges all locals to develop a set of standards regarding endorsing lawmakers and candidates, such as, but not limited to:
    1. Supporting only lawmakers and candidates who consistently take concrete actions to defend working people;
    2. Provide adequate time and resources to members and locals to research candidates prior to holding a vote on endorsements;
  4. Urges all locals to undertake campaigns to:
    1. Register members and their families to vote;
    2. Encourage participation in all elections, from the local to the national level;
    3. Become involved in working-class movements for economic, racial, and environmental justice through, but not limited to, contacting lawmakers through petitions, letters, phone calls, emails, lobby visits, annual political action days, town hall meetings, rallies, marches, civil disobedience, and involvement in labor councils.