Trumka to White House: Focus on jobs to win in November

http://www.workdayminnesota.org/index.php?news_6_4483

By Mark Gruenberg
20 May 2010

WASHINGTON - AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka says he has been taking a constant labor message to the Obama White House to concentrate on “jobs, jobs and more jobs, if you want to win in November” in its 2010 off-year elections.
But another part of the message – that labor could sit on its hands unless the administration started pushing hard on workers’ issues – is another matter.

In a brief interview after a rally in a Capitol Hill park on May 6, the federation leader said he’s carried that jobs-equals-winning message to the administration at every meeting he’s had, adding the meetings have been frequent.

“When haven’t I told them? I’ve done so every time I’ve been there,” he said.

The saga of labor’s message to the White House arose at the AFL-CIO Executive Council meeting in Orlando in March, as the message had other elements.

After hearing from Vice President Joseph Biden and Labor Secretary Hilda Solis, the council, behind closed doors, spent two hours in an angry session days later. The union leaders said the Obama administration takes support of unions and their members for granted. Not only had the leaders heard the same speeches from Biden and Solis before, they were also upset at the administration on labor-specific issues.

FULL story at link.