UWUA Joins Unions in Canada and U.S. in North American Solidarity Project

Nearly 150 union leaders from Canada and the U.S. attended the conference. In addition to UWUA, participating unions included the United Electrical, Radio & Machine Workers of America (UE), National Nurses United (NNU), and Unifor Canada. Union observers from Australia, France, and Mexico also attended.

UWUA Joins Unions in Canada and U.S. in North American Solidarity Project

The UWUA sent a 13-strong delegation to the founding conference of the North American Solidarity Project, held in Port Elgin, Ontario from November 9-11, 2018. The Solidarity Project is an informal alliance of unions from throughout the U.S. and Canada, dedicated to finding concrete solutions for labor movement renewal based on shared values, including a commitment to rank-and-file democracy, social unionism, and international solidarity.

The UWUA delegation to the North American Solidarity Project conference included, left to right: Michael Coleman, UWUA National Secretary-Treasurer; Valerie King, UWUA Organizer & UWUA Women’s Caucus Co-Chair; Amber Lalonde, UWUA Young Workers Initiative Committee; Nathan Waters, UWUA Human Rights Committee Chair, Region IV Advisor; James Slevin, President, UWUA Local 1-2; Melissa Sparks, UWUA Young Workers Initiative Committee; Reggie Davis, Senior National Representative; James Harrison, Senior National Representative; Patrick Dillon, President, Michigan State Utility Workers Council; Ursula Grant, UWUA Women’s Caucus Co-Chair; Mark Brooks, Special Counsel to UWUA National President ; Craig Wright, Executive Vice President, Michigan State Utility Workers Council; and Lee Anderson, National Director of Governmental Affairs. Below: Coleman, Dillon, and Slevin.

Nearly 150 union leaders from Canada and the U.S. attended the conference. In addition to UWUA, participating unions included the United Electrical, Radio & Machine Workers of America (UE), National Nurses United (NNU), and Unifor Canada. Union observers from Australia, France, and Mexico also attended.

Delegates participated in a series of lively workshops during the conference, debating topics ranging from how to build effective union political and organizing campaigns; strategies to combat racism and the rise of right-wing governments threatening to undermine decades of hard-won workers’ rights; and how unions can move from defense to offense to build union power and advance working families’ interests.

The other unions attending the conference enthusiastically welcomed the UWUA delegation on the opening day. Throughout the weekend, delegates made plans for future cooperation between unions in the alliance, including for joint meetings of the various unions’ young workers committees, and a sharing of best practices for organizing and political action campaigns.

The participating unions unanimously adopted a joint statement at the closing session, calling for a “commitment to a strong labor movement and solidarity based on values of social unionism and an urgent need for union renewal,” and for a plan of action “where our unions are the counter-balancing force that can lead the fight for the world we want to live in.”