UPDATE 7-27: Labor 2010 Activist Trainings in Phoenix and Tucson have been postponed; if you are interested in attending, please contact Beverly Fox-Miller (Phoenix) or Laura Hogan (Tucson).
Brothers and sisters,
This month, we're taking our fight for Good Jobs Now to the streets as we kick-off our Labor 2010 program. We'll be working to elect Arizona AFL-CIO endorsed candidates who will defend working families at the state capitol and in Congress. We simply cannot take any more of the failed leadership of of Governor Jan Brewer, who cut healthcare for thousands of families, put teachers and other state employees out of work, and has done nothing to create good jobs in Arizona. Those are the real issues that this election will be about, and our candidate for Governor, Terry Goddard, will deliver real results for you.
Please check your inboxes for these weekly updates on our campaign's progress and for important information about upcoming union member-to-member walks and phonebanks. I hope to see you at our Labor 2010 Activist Trainings later this month!
Yours in the cause,
Rebekah Friend
Executive Director, Secretary/Treasurer
Arizona AFL-CIO
P.S. Be sure to register to vote for the important Primary Election coming up soon.
Labor 2010 Newsletter: Week of July 12 Highlights
- Labor 2010 Kick-Offs in Phoenix and Tucson
- Meet your new Field Directors!
- IMPORTANT: Essential Activist Trainings this month
- Fighting the Good Fight: News updates
- Voter Registration Deadline Soon
Labor 2010 Kicks-Off in Phoenix and Tucson
To change the nation's economic policies, we have to change the policymakers - that was the message of this year's Labor 2010 Kick-Offs in Phoenix and Tucson. The events introduced labor leaders to our endorsed candidates, and laid out the plan of attack in the 2010 elections.
In Tucson, Corporation Commissioner Sandra Kennedy acknowledged Labor's key role in electing Terry Goddard governor this November. Rodney Glassman, candidate for U.S. Senate, received large applause when he told the crowd that Arizonans are crying out for action on jobs and that he'll fight for their needs. On the plan for victory in 2010, Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords told everyone, "This is not rocket science. We know how to win elections. We know that it takes hard work, phone calls and door knocks."
Rep. Giffords, Commissioner Kennedy, and Glassman at the Tucson Labor 2010 Kickoff
In Phoenix, Congressman Ed Pastor opened the program, calling for Labor's support once again in electing a Governor who will support working families. Attorney General Terry Goddard pledged that job creation would be his top priority once in the Governor's office.
Representative Ed Pastor and Attorney General Terry Goddard
Rebekah Friend, Executive Director of the Arizona AFL-CIO, seconded that commitment. "We're going to make this election about the issues working families care about most: jobs, jobs, jobs," she said. The Arizona AFL-CIO will be activating union members across the state to turn out at the polls.
For more pictures and photo albums, follow the Arizona AFL-CIO on Facebook.
Unions represented at Labor 2010 Kick-Offs:
AARA
AEA
AFA/CWA
AFGE
AFSCME
AFT
APRI
ATU
BLET
CWA
IAM
IATSE
IBB
IBEW
IBT
IUOE
LiUNA
NALC
NWU
UA
UAW
USW
UTU
Thank you to all the endorsed candidates who attended!
See the full list of Arizona AFL-CIO endorsements here.
Meet your Arizona AFL-CIO Field Organizers!
The Labor Kick-Offs in Phoenix and Tucson were organized in large part by two new Field Directors for the state. In May, Beverly Fox-Miller started as the Maricopa Area Labor Federation (MALF) Field Director, and Laura Hogan began work as Field Director for the Pima Area Labor Federation (PALF).
Beverly Fox-Miller has deep roots in labor, having been an IBEW member for over 25 years. She previously served as Field Director of the Arizona Democratic Party. Beverly also founded the Greater Eastern Maricopa Democrats (GEMDEMS) and was inducted into the Arizona Democratic Party Hall of Fame in 2009.
Laura Hogan comes to the Pima Area Labor Federation from Arizona List, a grassroots group supporting women running for state and local office in Arizona. As Political Director, she worked on strategic planning, candidate support and targeting for the organization. Hogan has been a political activist since college, holding many volunteer and elected positions in the Arizona Democratic Party. Laura commented, "I was raised in a union family and then married into a union family. For me, accepting this position is coming back to my roots. I welcome the opportunity to pay back the debt I owe to Labor for the advantages I have had in my life."
The Arizona AFL-CIO is lucky to have these two talented people on board for the 2010 elections!
IMPORTANT: Essential Activist Trainings this Month
Don't miss these important events for Labor 2010: whether you're new to politics or a veteran of previous Labor campaigns, these activist trainings will give you the down low on how we'll win in 2010.
Rebekah Friend, AZ AFL-CIO Executive Director, along with Field Directors Laura Hogan and Beverly Fox-Miller, Communications Director Wylie Timmerman, and AFL-CIO National Education & Training Coordinator David Carpio will deliver the activist trainings.
All International Representatives, Local Union Officers, Local Union Coordinators, and union activists are invited.
Subjects that will be covered include:
• Issue Messaging
• Member Mobilization & Communication
• Volunteer Recruitment
• Member-to-Member Contact (door knocking, hand billing, phone calls, etc.)
• AFL-CIO tools (phone lists, flyers, labels, etc.)
Phoenix Activist Training
Time: 9am -2pm
Date: Saturday, July 31, 2010
Location: AZ AFL-CIO Building, Downstairs Conference Room
Address: 3117 N. 16th St. Phoenix, AZ 85016
RSVP to Beverly Fox-Miller
602-631-4488 or bfoxmiller@azaflcio.org
Tucson Activist Training
Time: 9am-2pm
Date: Saturday, July 24, 2010
Location: IBEW 570
Address: 750 S. Tucson Blvd., Tucson, AZ 85719
RSVP to Laura Hogan
520-388-4139 or lhogan@azaflcio.org
Fighting The Good Fight:
Taking Our Message to McCain's Doorstep
In case you missed it, union activists made a big splash in last month's protests outside Senator John McCain's office. Arizona's senior senator has steadfastly refused to extend unemployment benefits for the millions of Americans out of work, despite the fact that the job market has not improved for Arizonans in months.
Unemployed Arizonans and union members picketed outside McCain's Phoenix and Tucson offices with signs reading "Show us the JOBS!" Delegations then conveyed our demands for a jobs bill to his staff, and delivered a letter taking McCain to task for failing Arizonans.
"Show Us the Jobs"; Laura Hogan tells McCain staff to pass jobs bill; workers demand action.
"We need jobs now," said Yolanda, who was laid off from her job this year.
The events drew coverage on major TV stations in the Phoenix and Tucson area, with news stories also highlighting Republican efforts to block unemployment benefits.
UFCW Scores Major Win for Labor in Arizona
A lawsuit launched by the United Food and Commercial Workers (UFCW) Local 99 has blocked an anti-union referendum from reaching the ballot this November. Big business and out-of-state interests launched a cynical attempt to attack the rights of union members at work by combining a harsh anti-union constitutional amendment with an uncontroversial measure ensuring the right to vote a secret ballot in elections- a right already guaranteed by the Arizona Constitution! The referendum, if passed, would not allow majority sign-up in union organizing drives, but instead require NLRB elections that are twice as likely to result in management coercion of employees: certainly not the "democratic" process that secret ballot advocates claim it to be!
Thank you UFCW! An appeal of the decision was heard on the State Supreme Court on Monday, July 12.
Voter Registration Deadline Nears
You've read about the Arizona AFL-CIO endorsed candidates? Now it's time to vote!
Voter registration for the crucial August 24th Primary Election ends soon; register to vote online at servicearizona.com.
