On September 17, 2024, Acting Secretary Julie Su and the U.S. Department of Labor honored nine labor unions by inducting them into the department’s Century of Service Honor Roll of American Labor Organizations. These unions collectively represent nearly three million members, retirees, and their families who have championed workers' rights for over a century.
The newly inducted organizations are the American Train Dispatchers Association; Fraternal Order of Police; International Association of Fire Fighters; International Federation of Professional and Technical Engineers; National Alliance of Postal and Federal Employees; National Federation of Federal Employees; National Postal Mail Handlers Union; Service Employees International Union; and United Union of Roofers, Waterproofers and Allied Workers.
Acting Secretary Julie Su acknowledged the significant contributions these unions have made to society: “For over 100 years, these unions have made our communities strong by delivering the mail, keeping us safe, making sure our trains and planes are running, delivering federal services, caring for our loved ones, building our homes, and then protecting them from fires, and leading the charge for social, economic and racial justice,” she stated. “The work done by these unions doesn’t just write a chapter in the story of labor. It is the spine of the book in a story that continues to be written.”
Following the induction ceremony, Acting Secretary Su moderated a panel discussion focused on the future of the labor movement. The conversation addressed how to enhance worker equity to form a multiracial, multicultural, multilingual, multigenerational movement benefiting all workers. Commitments discussed included increasing women's representation in building trades and forming committees for underrepresented workers within local unions.
Panelists at the event included:
- AFL-CIO President Liz Shuler
- AFL-CIO Secretary-Treasurer Fred Redmond
- Service Employees International Union President April Verrett
- International Union of Painters and Allied Trades General Vice President Liz McElroy
- United Brotherhood of Carpenters’ Sisters in the Brotherhood Director Sandra Rodriguez
A video featuring workers across America sharing their aspirations for the future of the labor movement was also presented.
