Texas AFL-CIO

THE VOICE OF LABOR IN TEXAS

We are teachers, firefighters and farm workers, actors and engineers, pilots and public employees, painters and plumbers, steelworkers and screenwriters, doctors and nurses, stagehands, electricians and more. We believe that people who work make Texas work and that together, we are better.

 

237,000+

460+

20,000+

Affiliated MembersAffiliates & LocalsActivists

 

What We Care About

Immigration

Since our nation’s founding, immigrants and refugees have enriched the fabric of our communities, our workforce and our labor movement.

Related Action

Pledge to Stand United

Pledge to oppose the "show me your papers" law, SB 4 - which will drive immigrant workers further into the shadows. Immigrants will be more afraid to speak up when employers manipulate and exploit them, which will drive down standards for all Texans. Working people are stronger when we stand together.

Take the Pledge

Better Pay and Benefits

There is something fundamentally wrong with our economy. The rich keep getting richer while working people are working longer hours just to make ends meet. Despite year after year of increased productivity, we are not sharing in the fruits of our labor.
Related Action

Sign the Petition: Raise the Wage in Texas

The state minimum wage of $7.25 an hour condemns hundreds of thousands of working people to poverty, costs taxpayers and shuts out business customers. It is high time for Texas to join 29 other states in raising the minimum wage above a federal level that has become a victim of congressional gridlock after decades of bipartisan support for a decent wage floor.

Sign the Petition

Trade/Manufacturing

A strong manufacturing sector is essential to our nation’s economic success and to our ability to raise wages and provide family-supporting jobs. But decades of devastating trade policy and attacks on unions have taken their toll.

Related Action

NAFTA Needs to Work for Working People

Renegotiations of the failed North American Free Trade Agreement are underway and the recently released objectives are vague and unambitious. Sign the petition calling for a new NAFTA that prioritizes working people.

Add Your Name

Workplace Rights

We are at a moment when a fighting union organization could kindle the imagination of millions of workers and inspire a new labor movement.

Related Action

Support Working People’s Freedom!

Working people must come together to defend our rights and fight for a fair economy that works for everyone.

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Get Involved. We Need Your Voice

Every Texan who is willing to work hard and do their part deserves a fair shot to get ahead. 

It's time we hold politicians accountable and demand they stand up for policies that help working families.

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Labor 2018

We are building political power for working families

Join the Fight

Sign the 2018 Union Pledge

Take Action

Our Campaigns

Featured Stories

Statement: Texas AFL-CIO Announces 2018 Field Program

Continuing on the success of their 2017 legislative issues door-to-door field program, the Texas AFL-CIO announced the launch of their 2018 Neighborhood Field Program.

Right-Wing Playbook for Persuading Workers to Drop Union Members After Janus Is Published

The Guardian obtained an anti-union toolkit already being used by the billionaire-backed anti-union apparatus ahead of the U.S.

‘We Are All Immigrants’

Tefere Gebre came to the United States in 1984 as a teenager. He and four friends had left their home in war-torn Ethiopia and walked nearly 500 miles across the desert to a refugee camp in Sudan.

This Is How You Really Appreciate Teachers

When it comes to appreciating educators, please heed an old expression: Walk the walk, don’t just talk the talk.

Recent News

Let’s Deliver the Mail, Not Myths

President Trump’s attention of late has been focused in part on the United States Postal Service and Amazon, resulting in a new executive order calling for an evaluation of USPS finances. This is a good opportunity to underscore some important facts regarding the Postal Service, a national treasure belonging to all the people of the United States.

Rebuilding Schools, Bridges—and Lives

It only takes a moment talking to Emily Galvin, an apprentice with Ironworkers Local 7 in Boston, to grasp how her first year learning the skilled trades has transformed her life. For one, she has a fresh understanding of the anatomy of a city—of roads, bridges and buildings. She’s taking classes in structural steel, tension, rebar and labor history. “I love how we use mats of rebar,” Ms. Galvin says, “to make reinforced concrete for floors or knee-walls, like for a parking garage.”

Nurses Need Workplace Protections and Respect

Happy nurses week! It’s the time of year when our employers honor us for the hard work we do every day, healing and saving lives. While we hear the words of gratitude that come our way this time of year, we also know what would REALLY make nurses feel appreciated by our employers: workplace protections, dignity, and respect.

To that end, NNU’s mighty nurses marked the week by standing up, loud and proud, for a healthier workplace and a healthier world. Check out how we celebrated, nurse-power style:

Candidate Wins Approval to Use Campaign Funds for Child Care

The Federal Election Commission on Thursday gave a woman candidate running for Congress the green light to use portions of her campaign funds to pay for child care.

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Mike King • IBEW 520

I'm proud to be Union. I believe in solidarity for all workers.

Areli Zarate • Texas AFT 2048

Our union has kept me going. It has given me hope.

Paul Arebalo • IATSE 205

Being in a union means I have a voice. Whether it's regarding safety, pay or even work practices, my voice will be heard and that's one of the greatest rights I can think of.

Kristie Veit • CWA 6137

Being a union member is one of the most treasured privileges I have in my life. Working with and for a group of folks who want to promote and develope workers rights is an amazing experience.

Cheryl Eliano • AFGE District 10

The labor movement means solidarity.

Rebecca Stamm • AFSCME

Being a union member is one of the most treasured privileges I have in my life. Working with and for a group of folks who want to promote and develope workers rights is an amazing experience.

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Our Campaigns

Read the Report

Death on the Job: The Toll of Neglect, 2018

PowerTools

A resource for union members and organizers.

Defend and Resist

A toolkit for organizers and advocates on workplace raids and audits.