The Labor Movement Is Giddy About Tim Walz Becoming Harris' VP Pick

Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz has been a strong supporter of unions and workers’ rights. Labor leaders see his elevation as a signal that Democrats are serious about empowering the working class.

By Mindy Isser August 6, 2024



https://inthesetimes.com/article/tim-walz-vice-president-labor-movement-unions

Since President Joe Biden dropped out of the race on July 21 and endorsed Vice President Kamala Harris, politicians, pundits and many voters have been speculating on who Harris would choose as her running mate. On Tuesday the guessing game ended, as Harris announced Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz as the second half of the Democratic presidential ticket.

Harris’ choice may signify a nod to those on the left wing of the party, who down the stretch were heavily pushing for Walz publicly and on social media — or, more likely, internal polling simply showed him as the best candidate to go toe-to-toe with J.D. Vance, Donald Trump’s Republican vice presidential nominee. Either way, the addition of Walz to the Democratic ticket can help union leaders, members and working families breathe a sigh of relief: his personal history and policy choices have shown him to be a friend to unions.

While there has been much for the Left to criticize about Biden’s tenure as President — namely his support for Israel’s brutal assault on Gaza — his administration delivered for working people in the United States. Biden has been widely seen as ​“the most pro-union president” in this country’s history, appointing Jennifer Abruzzo, a union-side lawyer, to the General Counsel of the National Labor Relations Board. He encouraged Amazon workers in Alabama to unionize in 2021, and became the first president to walk on a picket line when he joined United Auto Workers (UAW) members on strike at the Big Three in 2023. His administration also banned certain non-compete clauses, expanded eligibility for overtime pay, and used executive orders to ensure that federal construction projects have project labor agreements which require the hiring of unionized workers. The Biden team also protected millions of workers’ pensions, including those of Teamsters.

And while it became clear over the summer that Biden needed to step down if the Democrats wanted any chance of defeating Trump in November, some voters had concerns about Harris’ commitment to the labor movement. Her brother-in-law, Tony West, has been the chief legal officer at Uber, and is now taking an unpaid leave to advise the Harris campaign until the election. Union members and supporters may worry that West and Uber’s influence could affect Harris’ position on issues such as labor law reform, and specifically supporting the omnibus Protecting the Right to Organize (PRO) Act, which would correctly classify ​“independent contractors,” such as Uber drivers, as employees who are legally able to unionize. Harris has attempted to ease these concerns by saying that she would sign the PRO Act into law as president, and has herself been a supporter of labor unions, including the powerful Service Employees International Union (SEIU).

FULL story at link above.