SMART UnionLocal 265 (Carol Stream, Ill.) held its 8th annual picnic and wheels event on September 21, 2024, bringing members and families together for food, solidarity, raffles and giveaways, and more. Along with classic cars, attendees took advantage of a variety of activities: live music, a rock-climbing wall, a bounce house, a reptile show and a tour of the training facility.
On October 25, 2024, William “Bill” Heasley, Local 12 retired past president, Dave “Gomez” Losco, Local 12 retiree, Captain Tim Bradley, a retired iron worker, and camp cook Lois Kolarik achieved a successful black bear hunt in Cameron County, Pennsylvania. Heasley harvested the bear at 9 a.m. on Friday the 25th, the second day of the state’s special firearms season for black bears. Congratulations, all!
With the full-fledged support of SMART Local 18 (Wisconsin) members, signatory mechanical contractor JM Brennan recently raised more than $20,000 for local children with physical disabilities — putting the principles of our union into practice.
The effort started in 2022, when operations staff at JM Brennan — which is based in Milwaukee and Madison — started brainstorming ways to reinvigorate the company’s motorcycle poker run, at that point dormant for many years.
“The initial intent was to have this event and bring employees and vendors together,” the contractor wrote. “It turned out to be much more.”
Staff researched local charities, searching for an initiative that would benefit from the motorcycle run, and ultimately selected the Children’s Hospital of Milwaukee’s Go Baby Go! program. Go Baby Go!, designed to help kids with physical disabilities, allows young children to gain more independent mobility via custom motorized cars.
“Each car is uniquely designed and fitted for the specific child, allowing them the maximum benefit and experience of motion,” JM Brennan explained. “This is important as wheelchairs will either not work, or will not fit them due to their specific disability.”
In 2022, the event brought 75 riders together to raise $6,000. One year later, with 90 riders participating and additional sponsors, the event raised $12,000. And in 2024, 17 sponsors, 110 riders and 20 volunteers raised $22,000 — which translates into 36 motorized cars for the kids who need them.
A recipient family attended the 2024 ride. Laurie and her son, Emmet, told participants face-to-face just how important Go Baby Go! has been to their family.
“Laurie indicated that the freedom of motion cannot be understated, or even appreciated — and the joy that he experiences,” JM Brennan wrote. “Just like motorcycles bring elation and freedom to riders, Emmet’s car draws a suitable parallel.”
“A notable and profound thank you to Local 18, Steuart Wilson and Craig Wagner, who have been supportive and instrumental from day one,” the contractor concluded.
Throughout 2024, SMART Local 25 (Northern New Jersey) supported a variety of pro-worker candidates on labor walks, spreading the word about the importance of voting union.
On November 11, 2024, SMART Local 66 (Seattle, Wash.) presented honorary membership to Mary Fosse, a state House representative from Washington’s 38th District.
“In her time in the Washington State Legislature, and in her service on the Everett City Council beforehand, Mary Fosse has tirelessly championed workers,” explained Business Agent Sam Hem. “Her policy advocacy spans a number of worker issues and includes requiring labor standards on publicly funded projects; expanding apprenticeship pathways into the trades; construction site safety; addressing barriers to childcare for apprentices; clean energy, union job creation; unemployment insurance access; and extending the working families tax credit.”
Local 66’s bylaws state: “From time to time the International may wish to honor an individual who has a sustained record of supporting the labor movement and exemplifies dedicated public service by granting him or her an honorary membership of this Association.”
In the judgment of Local 66, Fosse’s dedication to workers’ rights and Washington’s workforce merited just that.
“In honor of the work she has already accomplished, and looking forward to the work we will continue to accomplish together, it was the pleasure of the Northwest Regional Council and SMART Local 66 to welcome Representative Fosse as an honorary member of the International Association of Sheet Metal, Air, Rail and Transportation Workers,” Hem concluded.
The SMART Army showed out in force for kids in Bradley County, Tennessee, last October: Local 5 members partnered with the local chapter of Sleep in Heavenly Peace, building 30 beds for children who need a safe place to sleep.
SHP’s mission is that “no kid sleeps on the floor in our town” — with the help of Local 5, that dream moved one step closer towards reality.
“The nonprofit was very pleased and wants to partner with us again,” reported Local 5 Organizer Hunter Gossett.
Great work, brothers and sisters!
SMART Local 20’s Youth-to-Youth program paid dividends in Indianapolis, Ind., in early December 2024, where members and officers worked to highlight alleged anti-union behavior and win hundreds of thousands in backpay from Performance Mechanical Contracting, Inc (PMC). After the local filed four unfair labor practice charges with the National Labor Relations Board, the NLRB secured a settlement agreement with the contractor that saw PMC pay $459,758 to fired Local 20 workers.
The campaign began when PMC started hiring sheet metal workers. As part of Local 20’s organizing efforts, Local 20 Business Manager Trent Todd explained, eight members in the local’s Youth-to-Youth program applied to work at the company — and declared their union affiliation ahead of time. Those workers were not hired by the company. However, Todd added, two members that did not announce their Local 20 membership were hired. After starting at PMC, the members stated their union affiliation, and they were fired.
Local 20 acted swiftly, filing a complaint that, according to the NLRB, “alleged that the employer unlawfully refused to hire or consider for hire eight applicants and fired two employees because they engaged in union activities, interrogated employees and promulgated an unlawful rule.”
And in December, the NLRB announced the settlement. Along with backpay, PMC agreed to cease and desist from unlawful conduct and to post, read and email a notice of employee rights to its workers.
“Every worker in this country has the right to organize a union, and we at Local 20 will always fight to defend that right,” Todd said. “I am proud of the work our organizing department performed on this campaign. PMC illegally refused to hire qualified applicants because of their union affiliation. This settlement is evidence that rank-and-file organizing has a direct impact on our industry.”
“It is unlawful for an employer to refuse to hire applicants — or fire workers — because of their support for a union,” said [NLRB] Region 25 Regional Director Patricia Nachand in the NLRB’s press release. “I’m proud of Region 25 staff for securing this strong settlement that makes whole the victims of the unfair labor practices.”
On January 28, news broke that President Donald Trump fired National Labor Relations Board General Counsel Jennifer Abruzzo and NLRB member Gwynne Wilcox. SMART General President Michael Coleman issued the following statement in response:
“From day one, General Counsel Jennifer Abruzzo made it her mission at the National Labor Relations Board to fight for working Americans. In the past, SMART members and organizing workers in this country could only hope for an impartial figure in the NLRB’s general counsel position. With Abruzzo, the American working class had a champion — someone who spent her entire career advocating for workers and advancing their rights to unionize. She was, is and always will be a true friend of the American worker, and she will be sorely missed.”
General President Coleman added:
“General Counsel Abruzzo’s firing was a blow, but an expected one. The firing of NLRB member Gwynne Wilcox is something else entirely — an unprecedented move that makes it impossible for the NLRB to perform its core duties, leaving American workers in limbo. At this time, the board cannot issue decisions, including routine-but-vital cases alleging violations of labor law and workers’ rights. Make no mistake: This move hurts American workers.”
The labor movement and the fight for civil rights have always been inextricably connected. Unions like SMART are organizations made up of working-class people from all backgrounds, races, gender identities and places of origin, fighting for fairness at work and a life with dignity; just like the civil rights movement, union members band together to fight for justice and equality for all.
SMART members from across North America demonstrated that in January, attending the AFL-CIO’s Martin Luther King Conference for Civil and Human Rights in Austin, Texas — building comradery with fellow trade unionists, engaging in a community service project and strategizing for a future that puts the working class first.
The SMART RISE Committee (Representation, Integrity, Support, Empowerment), formed in late 2023, provides a space for celebrating the experiences and addressing the needs of underrepresented members of our union. The committee also supports our recruitment and retention efforts within underrepresented communities, helping SMART grow our market share in previously untapped areas.
It was only fitting, then, that the Martin Luther King Conference brought RISE Committee members to Austin to build power. Dr. King famously spoke about the importance of trade unionism in the fight for racial justice, proclaiming: “…the labor-hater and labor-baiter is virtually always a twin-headed creature spewing anti-Negro epithets from one mouth and anti-labor propaganda from the other mouth.”
“[We’re] building worker power and [learning about] the whole message of Dr. King — civil rights along with economic justice,” explained RISE Committee member and Local 71 Director of Membership Development Andre Mayes.
The conference kicked off on Thursday, January 9. The opening session, featuring AFL-CIO President Liz Shuler, Texas AFL-CIO President Rick Levy and Texas AFL-CIO Secretary-Treasurer Leonard Aguilar, offered attendees words of resilience and motivation from a state that has been, politically, a bastion of anti-unionism.
Texas is the place, Levy said, where the government relentlessly union busts, attacks immigrant workers and tries to deprive people of their rights. It’s the place where the anti-union playbook of division has been constantly employed. But, Aguilar noted, we can fight that division: “The one thing we have in common across this land is our labor.” Levy echoed that sentiment, telling attendees what they already knew: We can defeat anti-worker attacks through our collective solidarity.
“Let’s commit ourselves together to the struggle for labor rights … civil rights … and to the fundamental ideal that there is no difference between those two fights,” he declared.
Shuler connected the themes emphasized by the two Texas labor leaders with the labor movement’s broader struggle. Anti-worker forces are conducting an all-out assault on everything SMART and fellow unions have fought for: worker safety laws and regulations, project labor agreements, Social Security and more, she said. Our greatest weapon in response is solidarity — symbolized, she noted, by the Service Employees International Union’s historic reaffiliation with the AFL-CIO, announced just one day prior.
“They want us to believe an immigrant worker making minimum wage is the source of our problems, not the CEO who handed himself more money than we will ever see in our lifetimes,” Shuler said. “They are terrified of what happens when we come together.”
SEIU President April Verrett then took the stage to hammer home the message that, together, we can fight to win economic justice for workers. Whether public sector service employees or construction workers, she said, “we can no longer be satisfied with the status quo,” adding: “It is going to take every single one of us to make a powerful, collective demand.”
Members also heard from AFL-CIO Secretary-Treasurer Fred Redmond, SEIU Secretary-Treasurer Rocio Saenz, AFGE President Everett Kelley and AFT President Randi Weingarten during a Thursday afternoon session on “Bending the Arc: The Labor Movement’s Fight for Justice.” Speakers discussed how unions’ fight for power and safety in the workplace is by no means limited to jobsite advocacy: Unions promote the rights and dignity of working-class people on and off the job, from government employees taking care of our veterans to SMART production workers putting together HVAC systems for hospitals. Any attack on one of us is an attack on all, and we cannot let our movement be divided in the years to come.
Growing solidarity, putting it into action
Friday brought SMART members and fellow unionists together for a day of theory and practice. After a morning spent in session, the afternoon put workers into action, packing books for local kids and sending letters to legislators.
The day kicked off with the morning’s keynote speaker, Rep. Jasmine Crockett. The second-term United States representative fights hard for constituents in Texas’s 30th District — but, she noted, she works in Congress as an ally to ALL workers.
“I am here to be a representative of your voices. … Your presence here today tells me that you understand the importance of a movement … and what we can do united,” she declared.
Crockett has spent much of her career fighting against deregulation, attacks on worker safety and anti-union actors. She leaned on her experience to talk about the importance of focusing on the issues that matter to working people — at a time when some pundits were trying to blame the California wildfires on DEI programs, Crockett said, “this is your time to rise.” She urged attendees to mobilize, organize new and existing members, and make politicians uncomfortable as we work to prioritize working people:
“I want you beating down the doors of the U.S. House and the U.S. Senate.”
The labor movement spans every industry, with members ranging from sheet metal workers and freight railroaders to teachers, nurses, museum workers and beyond. What brings us together is our common fight for worker power and a just society — a fact highlighted during Friday morning’s panel, “Where Do We Go from Here? Advancing Dr. King’s Vision of a Unified Movement and the Guarantee of Economic Justice for All.”
Panelists Stacey Gates Davis, president of the Chicago Teachers Union; SEIU Texas President Elsa Flores; Brent Booker, general president of LIUNA; and Demond Drummer, director of strategy at The New School’s Institute on Race, Power and Political Economy, dove into a range of topics, from the radical labor action that helped end slavery, to the importance of building solidarity and coalitions across our movement, to the impact that the economy has on every other facet of our lives.
Violence and social disruption are the result of an economy where 90% of economic growth goes to the richest 1%, Drummer said; we are living in a “call to action” moment for organized labor. Panelists reminded attendees that “labor issues” don’t exist in a silo — union organizing is also public safety organizing, racial justice organizing, immigrant justice organizing.
United States Representative Greg Casar — a pro-worker champion who has stood with SMART on the PRO Act, legislation related to heat protection and more — addressed the conference in the afternoon, talking about the importance of unity between pro-worker politicians and the labor movement. Last year alone, anti-worker legislators fought to take away water breaks on Texas construction jobsites. Together, Casar said, we need to fight back: “We are the labor movement, we are the civil rights movement.”
Organized labor made significant progress in recent years, electing members of Congress who don’t just say the right things but actually act on behalf of SMART members. Nevertheless, Casar warned, there still exists a corporate class that desires a secondary class of workers — people who work more and get paid less, people who will be scared to organize. That’s what we’re fighting against, he said. And make no mistake: When someone else’s rights are suppressed at work, that sets the stage for union workers’ rights to be stripped next.
RISE Committee members then spent the afternoon doing what the SMART Army does best: engaging in community action. The American Federation of Teachers’ “Reading Opens the World” initiative aims to bring books to those who need them most but can’t afford them, helping kids develop literacy and find joy in reading. Attendees at the 2025 Martin Luther King Conference — including the SMART RISE Committee — played their part, sorting, labeling and packing books to distribute to Texas kids before writing letters to U.S. senators in support of our brothers and sisters working public sector jobs.
Looking ahead: plenary sessions and workshops help members strategize
Saturday’s conference itinerary prompted members of the RISE Committee to engage with workers from across North America in plenary sessions and workshops. With a potentially hostile presidential administration and Congress taking power, trade unionists networked, listened, learned and planned to proactively strengthen the bonds of solidarity that are our foundation.
The morning kicked off with a speech from Communications Workers of America (CWA) President Claude Cummings. Gazing out from the podium, Cummings said: “We see the power of a unified labor movement working towards the dream of Dr. King.”
Now as in Dr. King’s day, he explained, pro-union sentiment is seen as a threat by those who want to profit off the backs of the working class. That’s why a unified labor movement is so imperative. The ruling class doesn’t prefer one union over another — they want to dissolve our entire movement.
“No one group is going to succeed while the others are denied justice, are denied the fruits of their labor, are denied basic human rights and dignity. That’s why we fight,” Cummings said, later adding: “We love our families and our country, and we want everyone in our communities to have the freedom to pursue their dreams and live their life.”
The morning concluded with another panel: “Rising Up: The Power of Solidarity and Forging a Winning Coalition.” Like much of the conference, the session focused on how issues that might appear to be separate — immigrants’ rights, reproductive freedom, collective bargaining protections, etc. — are closely tied together. And, panelists noted, a rigorous labor movement is crucial in order to take on these interconnected battles.
Following lunch, members spent the afternoon in breakout workshop sessions. As unions, we need to effectively tell our story of how working people can achieve economic justice and a good life through our movement. With that in mind, SMART members and Martin Luther King Conference attendees spent their chosen workshops focusing on storytelling exercises, solidarity mapping and developing action plans as they pertained to specific subject areas: defending collective bargaining, protecting LGBTQIA+ rights against legislative attacks, advancing the rights and protections of our immigrant union siblings and more.
The night ended with the annual AFL-CIO Civil and Human Rights Awards, honoring union members who have gone above and beyond in the fight for justice and human dignity. The evening program also paid tribute to labor legend Bill Lucy — founder of the Coalition of Black Trade Unionists, longtime AFSCME secretary-treasurer and a fighter for justice throughout his life, including the famous 1968 Memphis sanitation strike and the labor movement’s support of anti-apartheid struggle in South Africa.
RISE Committee meets to secure a greater future for SMART
The RISE Committee wrapped up its weekend in Austin with a committee meeting on Sunday, where members reflected on the conference and went into detail on how to put the committee’s action plan in motion. From International and local union staff to rank-and-file sheet metal workers, these SMART brothers and sisters are tasked with the important work of securing our union’s future by bringing in and retaining workers from all backgrounds. During their meeting, members strategized implementation of a SMART Future Leaders initiative, a RISE cookbook and more.
Committee members considered the conference an overall success.
“I wanted to see how people who have the same ideals or the same drive as us, how we all can come together,” said Dale Clark, Local 24 (Columbus, Ohio) member, International Training Institute OSHA specialist and RISE Committee chair. “And it’s a beautiful thing. It refocused me.”
On January 16, 2025, SMART announced a transformative partnership with TOOTRiS, the nation’s leading provider of on-demand childcare services, to offer childcare benefits to members across the United States. This pioneering collaboration establishes SMART as the first building trades union in the country to adopt wrap-around childcare benefits for its members, with the benefit activating February 1, 2025, for participating sheet metal local unions.
“This partnership sets a new standard for addressing the real-life challenges faced by working families,” said SMART General President Michael Coleman. “We are proud to be the first building trades union in the country to provide access to childcare programs nationwide, ensuring that our members — especially apprentices and young families — have the support they need to thrive in their careers and at home.”
More information is available to SMART members here.
Eligibility requirements:
Please note: The benefit doesn’t cover the cost of childcare but gives members premium access to the most affordable options.
SMART members: If your local union chooses to participate, please keep an eye out for an upcoming email with instructions on how to claim your benefit.
Childcare: key to building our nation
Infrastructure investments and a resurgence in domestic manufacturing have driven huge workforce demands in the United States in recent years. Along with ensuring indoor air quality in schools, hospitals and other buildings, SMART members have been at the forefront of many large infrastructure projects, including the Los Angeles International Airport (LAX) modernization, the Dallas-Fort Worth Terminal Expansion, semiconductor fabrication projects by Micron, TSMC, Intel and others, and many more.
The need for skilled workers continues to rise as projects break ground. However, childcare is frequently cited as one of the most significant barriers to both entering and staying in the building trades, with unpredictable schedules and mobile jobs making ordinary services less accessible. Additionally, childcare costs have surged over 50% in the past decade, and the shortage of providers has made securing care even more difficult. Apprentices and younger members, who are often in the early stages of building their careers and salaries, are particularly vulnerable.
SMART Local 16 (Portland, Ore.) member and Organizer Korri Bus detailed the impact of the childcare crisis on workers in the construction industry during Tradeswomen Build Nations 2023. Bus spoke from personal experience: Despite her love of her craft and dedication to her union, she had to step away from her sheet metal career due to the challenges she faced finding adequate, affordable and accessible childcare.
“Together, let’s build a future where no parent in the trades has to choose between professional commitments and parental responsibilities,” Bus urged TWBN attendees at the time.
Now, through its partnership with TOOTRiS, SMART is poised to do just that. With the newly announced childcare benefit, U.S. members in participating locals gain access to over 200,000 licensed childcare providers nationwide via TOOTRiS’s state-of-the-art platform, including programs offering non-traditional hours, drop-in care and 24/7 availability. TOOTRiS technology — accessible via the TOOTRiS app or online — allows parents to search, compare and enroll in care based on real-time availability tailored to their needs.
Growing our union
SMART’s new childcare benefit aims squarely to strengthen participation in the sheet metal trade, particularly among women and young families.
“TOOTRiS is proud to partner with SMART to tackle the childcare crisis head-on,” said Alessandra Lezama, TOOTRiS CEO and member of the ReadyNation CEO Task Force on Early Childhood. “Parents in the trade industry are the backbone of progress. By providing real-time access to quality childcare solutions, TOOTRiS will empower parents to thrive in their careers while ensuring their children — the future of our economy and country — have the foundation they need to succeed. Together, we’re building stronger families, industries and communities.”
“This partnership addresses a critical gap for families in the trades, enabling parents — especially women — to succeed in careers that were once out of reach due to a lack of childcare,” added Allison Grealis, Women in Manufacturing Association President and Founder). “This is a step forward for support and inclusion in the workforce.”
SMART hosted a webinar with representatives from TOOTRiS and local unions throughout the United States on Wednesday, January 15. Information on the benefit, member resources and more will continue to be shared.