Double Down on International Worker Solidarity!

One of the most important ways we’ve built international solidarity over the past 30 years is our Worker-to-Worker Exchange Program. Unfortunately, we had to put the program on hold during the COVID-19 pandemic. In 2024, Worker-to-Worker Exchange is back — and we need your help to meet a $5,000 fundraising match and make it better than ever.

UE in Solidarity with Striking Public-Sector Workers in Quebec

420,000 public-sector workers — including members of UE’s close ally the Confédération des Syndicats Nationaux (CSN) — began a one-week strike across the province of Quebec today. UE’s officers wrote in a solidarity letter to the CSN that “Public sector workers are the backbone of our communities, maintaining our infrastructure and public spaces, teaching our […]

International Guests at UE Convention: “Our solidarity is without borders”

On Tuesday afternoon of the 78th UE Convention, convention delegates were joined by international guests from Japan, Mexico, and Quebec. Takeshi Takeshita and Keisuke Fuse, both deputy secretaries-general of Japan’s militant labor federation Zenroren, described the “long history of friendship and solidarity” between Zenroren and UE. That history included Zenroren taking action to put pressure on Japanese multinationals such as Kobe Steel and Hishi Plastics when their workers in the U.S. sought to join UE.

UE Represented at Union Conventions in Brazil, Quebec

In a return to pre-pandemic practices, UE was delighted to accept invitations to the national conventions of two of our international allies this May. Retired UE General President Peter Knowlton represented UE at a meeting of Confederação Nacional dos Metalúrgicos (CNM-CUT) in Brazil, and Kari Thompson, UE’s Director of International Strategies, attended the Confédération des syndicats nationaux (CSN) Congress in Montréal, Quebec.

Crossborder Mural Project Documentary Now Available on YouTube

Earlier this year, the Chicago-based labor television show Labor Beat posted their 1997 documentary about the cross-border mural project organized by UE and our Mexican partners the Frente Auténtico del Trabajo (FAT) on YouTube. The documentary, which runs approximately half an hour, follows the creation of two labor murals, one at the FAT headquarters in Mexico City, the other at the UE Hall in Chicago.

World of Labor: Half a Million Strike in United Kingdom Despite Attacks on Rights

Economic conditions have sent workers in numerous sectors on strike across the United Kingdom for the past several months, culminating in a February 1 strike of over 500,000 workers, including teachers, civil servants, and university and railroad workers. During the day of industrial action, union leaders delivered petitions signed by more than a quarter of a million […]

UE Young Activists meet with members of the Frente Auténtico del Trabajo

UE Plans Return to In-Person International Exchanges in 2023

In a “Giving Tuesday” email to supporters of UE’s international solidarity work, UE Director of International Strategies Kari Thompson announced that “In 2023, we are planning to return to in-person member exchanges with workers in other countries, if health conditions continue to allow.”

Unifor National President Lana Payne at a CUPE press conference with placard reading Respect Charter Rights Repeat Bill 28

Ontario Workers Defeat Anti-Strike Legislation

Earlier this week, workers in Ontario won an inspiring victory against their right-wing government. Premiere Doug Ford attempted use legislation to impose a contract on 55,000 education workers and revoke their right to strike. Those workers went on strike anyway, receiving support from the rest of the province’s labor movement (including important support from UE’s close Canadian ally Unifor), and on Monday Ford’s government announced it would withdraw the bill.