1.     We will Fight for Union Democracy and Transparency at all levels. 

What does this mean?

a.     This means asserting and defending the rights of our affiliate unions to be free from National AFL-CIO overreach. The September letter from the AFL-CIO to the SF Labor Council which stated that the SFLC was not to entertain “resolutions of an international nature on issues that which the National AFL-CIO has already taken a position on” goes contrary to the history of the SF Labor Council and it violates the rights of its affiliate unions to be able to express their points of view in a unified manner on matters that are important to them. 

b.     This means that we will push for decisions to be ultimately made at the SFLC meetings by its highest governing body, the delegate assembly, as stated in our constitution and that space and time will be allowed for discussion of the issues and educational forums with the different points of views will be organized in order to provide our members with the most complete information. No more running the SFLC from the EC.  The EC serves the council, not the other way around.

c.     This means that we will fight to have members themselves decide what committees, if any, they want to belong to instead of depending upon the EC’s or Chair’s decision to assign members to committees.

d.     This means that we will fight so that when proposals or resolutions are sent to a committee, that the committees be given reasonable deadlines to complete its purpose in relation to the resolution or proposal in question and to provide regular reports to the delegate body of its progress and if such deadlines expire, without the matter being resolved in a satisfactory manner, that the delegate body be the one in charge of taking up the issue, discussing it and taking a vote.  No more sending “sending proposals to committee to die”. 

e.     This means that all members have the right to introduce legislative and political issues to the COPE meetings and to have these issues heard, discussed and voted on by the delegate body. Consensus on issues is not required in order for the issues to be heard, discussed and voted on.

f.      This means that we will push the SFLC EC to petition the National AFL-CIO for a change to our Constitution whereby every member of a California AFL-CIO Union will have a single and equal vote concerning the election of officers. Elections would continue to be held every two years at our State Convention. A concerted effort should be made to reach out to our rank & file members in order to invite their participation and in order for them to become educated on the issues, the candidates, and ultimately place a vote in favor of those candidates they feel best represent the interests of the Labor Movement. By conducting elections in this way, we will also be able to build a stronger and more representative presence of our members at our Conventions. The leadership of the AFL-CIO is elected by a limited number of delegates. The rank & file of our Unions have little to no direct say in who will be in these leadership positions. In many past elections, the rank & file are not even knowledgeable about who is running, what the issues are, and what is at stake concerning the direction of the Labor Movement. This is not acceptable.

2.     Education is vital for a well-informed labor movement.

This education is achieved thru active participation in the struggles and in the dissemination of these struggles as well as thru seminars, webinars, panel discussions, social media, murals and street theater etc. Labor Education should include the rights of workers of color, low wage workers, women’s rights, LGBT rights, the right to live and work in a safe, clean environment and climate change/Just Transition issues as well as academic freedom and 1^st amendment rights and the right to be free of government or corporate surveillance. Labor Education should seek to link the struggles of workers internationally and oppose militarism and war.

a.     We will fight to have an active Labor Education Committee which will promote Labor education on worker’s rights, about the labor struggles happening locally, nationally and internationally and help obtain funding to support labor programming which uplifts and disseminates the voices of rank and file workers. The activities of the Labor Education committee should be regularly posted on the SFLC website, announced with enough time in advance and the SFLC will lend its zoom and other resources such as space and the dissemination via SFLC email to all its contacts in order to guarantee broad participation and success. We need to have an education campaign against systemic racism in public and private employment and have regular panels with workers who are fighting racism, sexism, homophobia, anti-Semitism, xenophobia on the job. It will also educate about the dangers of fascism and why this must be fought by our unions ad working people.

b.     This means that the SFLC will help defend City College of San Francisco, SF State University, and the University of California against privatization forces by mobilizing its affiliate members and providing more advance notice to its affiliate members of labor actions or events and creating strong links with the Labor Studies Departments and the unions representing the workers at each public education institution. 

c.     The SFLC should play a more prominent role in promoting Labor Studies by engaging its affiliate members with informative videos, webinars, and panel discussions on labor issues to be aired or disseminated at regular union meetings, conventions, etc and by engaging educators and media specialists to help produce age-appropriate videos and/or street theater on labor history, to help encourage children’s sense of pride in belonging to unions and adolescents’ with guidance as they enter the workforce.  

d.     SFLC should seek to work with and support existing entities of artists, producers, and educators that are already doing the work of Labor education via Labor Radio programs, Labor Festivals, and Theater presentations that highlight the lives and struggles of the past and present workers and unions. 

e.     SFLC should defend the murals and buildings that are important in telling the story of the labor movement and/or were created during a historical period of labor unrest where workers played a central role in achieving victories that have improved the quality of life of communities, families, and children. 

F. The SFLC must revitalize its website to provide information first about all the labor and working-class struggles in San Francisco, the State, Country & World. This website should be multi-media with the voices of our members and their issues in every union. We will support and develop a San Francisco labor channel which will include live programming of press conferences, rallies, and picket lines that get our voices out and break the media blockade.

3.     Without worker power, we will achieve nothing. Power comes only from organizing workers and uniting for the same goal. The SFLC should play a more prominent role in organizing its affiliate members to provide more support to each other during labor actions; in creating labor/community alliances, and in standing together and on the side of workers when faced with privatization forces trying to divide us. 

a.     SFLC should provide its delegate members a contact list including emails of its delegate members (allowing for members to opt-out if they want) to facilitate direct communication in providing support for actions.

b.     SFLC should use its power to call the media and frame the narrative in order to garner public support for the workers at the picket lines, etc.

c.     The SFLC should create an Anti-Privatization and Anti-outsourcing Committee that includes unions from both the public and private sectors to unite and fight the privatization forces that are defunding, disenfranchising and deregulating the public commons, infrastructure, human resources, and ecosystem.

     The SFLC should stand by the saying, An Injury to One is an Injury to All and should not endorse development projects that would favor one union at the expense of another union and to be willing to hold town hall meetings with communities to express our position clearly.

E. We support independent labor political action and independent labor and worker candidates. We cannot be beholden to the pro-privatization agenda of the Democratic Party. The privatization of public services and two-tier contracts in public services and education undermine our unions and are an example of union-busting. We support an SF charter amendment and change in the California State constitution to outlaw the privatization of public work by government agencies that can be done by public workers. There are thousands of outsourced workers in San Francisco doing public work at slave labor wages. Our education plan combined with united action and solidarity can put working people in the driver’s seat.

e. The SFLC should wholeheartedly embrace the science behind climate change as well as the struggle for a Just Transition, because the challenge facing humanity today means that we must mobilize and support the unions to fight for retraining into union jobs that will support a sustainable future for the planet and working families.