p2016 header graphic

November 18, 2015


TO:     Hillary for America Supporters
FR:     Amanda Renteria, Political Director
            Nikki Budzinski, Labor Outreach Director
RE:    Hitting Our First Goal for Labor Support
DT:     Wednesday, November 18
 
From all across the country, Hillary Clinton’s campaign has received the endorsement from unions representing working men and women of all backgrounds – from machinists and nurses to welders and teachers.
 
With the latest unions that have joined our campaign, we have reached a tremendous milestone in our support from labor – unions representing over 10 million members have now endorsed Hillary Clinton for President.  Yesterday’s endorsement from SEIU – whose membership ranks at 2 million – helped the campaign reach the 10 million goal before the end of the year.
 
This powerful statement is a testament to her record fighting for working families, their confidence that she will improve the lives of the middle class, fight for the protection of collective bargaining rights and that she is the strongest candidate to ensure the next president will fight for the rights of working men and women. These endorsements are a critical addition to the campaigns efforts to mobilize, energize and turn out voters, first in the early primary states and then throughout the primary calendar. It’s a critical advantage that expands the depth, breadth, and scope of the Clinton campaign’s significant outreach, grassroots and field presence.
 
The Unions for Hillary Clinton: 10 Million Members Strong
 
·         11/17: SEIU – 2 Million Members
·         10/31: International Longshoreman Association – 65,000 Members
·         10/28: International Union of Operating Engineers (IUOE)  - 400,000 Members
·         10/23: The American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME) – 1.6 Million
·         10/14: International Union of Painters and Allied Trades – 160,000 Members
·         10/3: The National Education Association (NEA) – 3 Million Members
·         9/29: The Operative Plasterers’ and Cement Masons’ International Association (OPCMIA) – 40,000 Members
·         9/22: United Brotherhood of Carpenters and Joiners of America – 500,000 Members
·         9/17: United Union of Roofers, Waterproofers and Allied Workers – 22,000 Members
·         9/14: The United Association of Journeymen and Apprentices of the Plumbing and Pipefitting Industry – 340,000
·         9/9: The International Union of Bricklayers and Allied Craftworkers – 75,000 Members
·         8/14: The International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers – 650,000 Members
·         7/11: The American Federation of Teachers – 1.6 Million Members
 
The Shared Agenda
 
Hillary Clinton and the 10 million union members who support her campaign share a pro-worker and pro-union agenda that will raise the wages of working people and the middle class, improving the lives of millions of Americans and their families. This includes fighting back against attacks on unions’ and workers’ ability to collectively bargain and join a union.  Hillary has a plan to get incomes rising again across the board, not just for those at the top, starting with increasing job-creating federal investment in areas like infrastructure, clean energy, and basic research. This includes a focus on investing in communities of color and hard-hit areas such as coalfield communities struggling with a changing energy sector. Second, she will make sure work pays by raising the minimum wage, ensuring women get equal pay, and fighting for the right of workers to collectively bargain for wage increases and better benefits. Third, she will make our tax system fairer, ensuring the wealthiest pay their share to make our country and our economy strong, and she has pledged not to raise taxes on the middle class. Fourth, Hillary will promote policies that help Americans balance work and family, including universal pre-K, paid family leave, and earned sick days policies. And finally, she will invest in the next generation of workers by making college affordable, stopping student debt from holding young people back, and investing in high-quality apprenticeship programs.
 
Beyond those issues, Hillary Clinton has proposed an ambitious and progressive agenda that also includes comprehensive immigration reform, tough steps to rein in Wall Street and reform the financial system, and ending the era of mass incarceration by reforming the criminal justice system.
 
The Clinton Record
 
Hillary Clinton has an unrivaled record of over 40 years fighting for working men and women.  Hillary has a 94% lifetime voting record with the AFL-CIO.  She was an original sponsor of the Employee Free Choice Act to empower workers to make vital decisions that affect union formation. She co-sponsored Ted Kennedy’s Overtime Compensation Protection Act to oppose the Bush Administration's harmful overtime regulations from going into effect and was an original co-sponsor of the Zadroga Act, which provided critical access to health care to first and second responders that provided service at Ground Zero.
 
Clinton has a consistent record as a champion of the right to organize and collective bargaining. She visited a picket line for the New York State Nurses Association, stood with UAW members on strike and with writers on strike against CBS. In this campaign, she has spoken out repeatedly against coal companies that are attempting to use bankruptcy proceedings to shirk their health care and pension obligations to their workers and retirees.
 
The working men and women of labor know that with Hillary Clinton they will always have a seat at the table – and now there are 10 million chairs.
 
 
 
###
 
For Planning Purposes, November 18, 2015