Leaders of several of America’s largest labor unions are scheduled to speak during primetime at the Democratic National Convention in Chicago on Monday as Democrats continue their political outreach to key voters.
At least seven union representatives are scheduled to speak on stage at the convention Monday, according to details first shared with CBS News, including United Automobile Workers (UAW) President Shawn Fain, Service Employees International Union (SEIU) President April Verrett and American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME) President Lee Saunders.
Also scheduled to speak on Monday are Laborers of America (LIUNA) President Brent Booker, International Union of Electrical Workers (IBEW) President Kenneth W. Cooper, Communication Workers of America (CWA) President Claude Cummings and American Federation of Labor-CIO (AFL-CIO) President Liz Shuler.
One notable union leader who will not speak in Chicago is Teamsters President Sean O’Brien, who has asked for time to speak at both the Republican and Democratic national conventions. Speaking at the RNC in Milwaukee Earlier this year, convention officials said he would not speak in Chicago.
The Teamsters supported Biden’s 2020 campaign but have remained neutral this cycle. The Teamsters will be on stage at the DNC, but O’Brien will not speak, according to a source familiar with the convention plans.
On Saturday, the Teamsters and Harris agreed to hold roundtable discussions in the future, similar to when Trump and Biden were candidates.
There will also be speeches on Monday from several labor congressional allies, including Massachusetts Sen. Elizabeth Warren, New York Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Michigan Sen. Gary Peters.
A recent survey found that 2.7 million union members live in key battleground states where Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Donald Trump are virtually tied. CBS News Poll.
According to a CBS News exit poll, 56% of union members supported Biden in 2020, but the general union membership Express concern Trump is eating away at Democratic support in union halls.
The Harris-Walls campaign hopes that union leaders’ popular support and aggressive get-out-the-vote tactics will resonate with rank-and-file members who take a neutral stance.
“This campaign has generated dozens of union endorsements, which is more than just words in a press release; it’s a demonstration of real organizing power,” Harris-Wales campaign manager Julie Chavez Rodriguez wrote in a memo to unions.
Harris quickly won endorsements from most major labor unions after announcing her candidacy. She and her running mate, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz (a former union teacher), spoke at a UAW event in Michigan last week as part of a battleground tour. Walz also spoke separately at the AFSCME convention in Los Angeles.
Harris’s campaign cited her pro-labor record, including her signing of an order addressing wage theft by employers as California attorney general and her pivotal role as vice president in passing the American Rescue Plan, including the Butch Lewis Act of 2021, which provided emergency funding for some pension plans.
“(Harris) has had workers’ backs throughout her career, from the picket line to the Senate floor, protecting pensions, fighting for the rights of home care workers, and standing up to corporate greed,” Schuler said in a statement. “The labor movement is more powerful than ever before to push back against the Harris-Walz agenda that puts workers first and the Trump Project 2025 agenda that attacks our unions and everything we stand for.”
The party’s theme for Monday, “For the People,” was also dedicated to Mr. Biden, who will deliver the keynote speech and has long supported unions.
Several unions, including SEIU and the AFL-CIO, the nation’s largest union federation, have poured hundreds of millions of dollars into the campaign and canvassed door to door in support of Harris-Wales.
The influential Las Vegas group Culinary Union Local 226 also plans to campaign for Harris in Nevada. The group has supported her. Announce the push It would eliminate the tip tax and raise the federal minimum wage. Trump first proposed a similar plan in June, but the Culinary Union denounced it as “a wild campaign promise from a convicted felon.”
Chicago’s rich union history was a key factor in hosting the Democratic National Convention, where two major venues were promoted as bringing together members from 30 unions.
“Chicago is the home of the American labor movement, and this DNC is union-strong,” said Bob Reiter, president of the Chicago Federation of Labor. “From the labor peace agreement negotiated with the DNC and the host committee to the incredible workforce that keeps Chicago ticking every day, we are thrilled to welcome delegates from across the country to the Windy City.”
