This year our Legislative-Political Conference and first ever Presidents’ Meeting will not simply be business as usual. We will be discussing ways to fortify our union but also be on offense with new movement building plans that can directly build power for our members at work, our families and our communities.
In addition we will have an extensive discussion about funding our union for local and international strength now and for years to come. Our Executive Board will present data and some possibilities but the purpose of this discussion is to have the opportunity to brainstorm, discuss and record different options and ideas that we can consider and debate over the next fourteen months until our April 2013 Convention.
Perhaps even more importantly, on Thursday morning, we will have major presentations from inside and outside our union on the state of the movement and possibilities for change. On Tuesday and Wednesday, there will be opportunities for presidents and other participants to discuss and plan 2012 political action and movement building for the long run.
As we have discussed for several years, the right side of our triangle--community and political action--is more critical than ever given the challenges in the US, Canada, Puerto Rico and around the globe. Internal debate and a continuing focus on our bargaining are both critical, but without real leadership in building a new movement for democracy and economic justice, it is hard to imagine that we will be able to advance our standard of living or our voice on the job.