Dear Brothers and Sisters of the ILA:
Last Labor Day 2020 I commented how different the celebration of the holiday was compared to previous years. We celebrated and continue to do so, the unselfish commitment of front-line workers throughout the country, including, of course, our own longshore workers. Longshore workers and our brothers and sisters in health care; public safety; teamsters; food workers; and plant workers have kept the country from total collapse. We hoped in 2020 we could return to our traditional methods of celebrating the holiday. But here we are a year later worrying about the “pandemic of the unvaccinated” as the variant penetrates even those of us who are vaccinated.
The good news is we have a Presidential administration that is the most pro-worker administration since FDR and the “New Deal”. A National Labor Relations Board that supports the pro-worker purpose of the law that created it. Reversal of the anti-worker; anti-labor rulings from the past administration will not be easy, but at least we are comforted by the notion this administration does care about our jobs, our livelihood, our healthcare, our security. Labor is once again respected in the White House. We have challenges in Congress and our state governments. Forces continue to stymie progress and attempt to thwart democracy. We must remain vigilant and strong. 2022 will be a difficult political year. We cannot let our victory of the presidency be ruined by complacency at the polls next year. Right now, efforts continue to make it harder for us to vote and exercise our democratic rights.
Labor Day allows us to be reminded and reflect on our success and our goals as working men and women of the ILA. Let us honor ourselves this Labor Day 2021. Let us look to a brighter, healthy future. Have a happy, safe Labor Day.
Fraternally,
Alan A. Robb
To view the letter, click here.
Leave a Reply