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Pa. BLET announces support in campaign efforts
The chairman of the Pa. Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen, Ken Kertesz, said his members have already expressed interest in supporting Working America. "We plan to stand shoulder-to-shoulder with our labor brothers and sisters in the coming year to make sure this effort is a success." Recently, AFL-CIO President John Sweeney reported on the contribution of Working America members to the gains that labor-endorsed Democrats made in off-year races. In Kentucky and Virginia, Democrats captured the governorship and took over the control of the state Senate. Further, a survey by Peter D. Hart Research Associates found that 77 percent of the regular union household members and 79 percent of the Working America family members voted in 2007. The survey further indicated that economic issues stressed by the unions were particularly important influences on these voters. A Hart Poll of Working America members in the 2006 election found that 74 percent had supported Democratic candidates for the Senate and 73 percent supported Democratic candidates for the House. In several swing districts, the labor vote clearly made the difference. Buoyed by such results, labor plans have been established to continue expanding the program. Working America, which started in Florida and Missouri and then added Ohio, Pennsylvania and Minnesota, is now operating in Washington, Oregon, Iowa, Michigan, and other states as well. On a typical evening, about 150 paid organizers go door to door in working-class communities, often in the suburbs and exurbs. Using lists of union members, the organizers skip the households that are already unionized and knock on the doors of their neighbors. The message: We know you're not part of a union, but you probably have the same concerns we do about jobs and schools and health care. We work on all those issues. Would you like to become an individual member of the AFL-CIO? Approximately two out of three people the organizers talk to, join. Once new members join, they write letters to Members of Congress or officials on an issue the labor federation is lobbying. Dues are voluntary, but have totaled more than $1 million, with most of the funding for Working America coming from the AFL-CIO. The Pennsylvania Legislative Board of the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen (BLET) represents some 1300 employees of Class I Freight Railroads: Norfolk Southern, Canadian Pacific, Canadian National and CSXT, as well as passenger trains Amtrak and Septa. The Pa. BLET merged with the International Brotherhood of Teamsters and is also a member of the Pa. AFL-CIO. More information on the Pa. BLET can be found by going to its website at: www.pslb-blet.org. For more information regarding this news release, please contact Jamie Fulginiti at 717-975-2148 or jfulginiti@hersheyphilbin.com. |
