The head of America's largest federation of labour unions has declared a year of "unrelenting attacks on working people" under Donald Trump and is now preparing a major counter-offensive.
Unions Steel for Senate Showdown and 2026 Elections
Liz Shuler, president of the AFL-CIO, stated the organisation is gearing up to challenge what she termed the US President's "Billionaire First" agenda. The strategy involves driving support for candidates in pivotal 2026 elections who will stand with "struggling" Americans.
In a recent interview, Shuler outlined how the federation has fought to restore collective bargaining rights for over 1 million federal workers, rights stripped by Trump's executive orders. This effort saw a significant victory when the House of Representatives passed a bill to restore those rights on 11 December.
"People were pissed," Shuler remarked, accusing the President of overseeing "the biggest attack on unions in our history." The battle now shifts to the Senate in January, where the AFL-CIO is preparing for a hectic fight to pass the bill, coinciding with the threat of another government shutdown.
Capitalising on Trust Amid a Cost-of-Living Crisis
With inflation persistently high, Shuler said affordability is a sharp focus. The federation aims to build momentum into the 2026 midterm elections by connecting with voters on these "kitchen table" issues, using grassroots organising and door-knocking campaigns.
"People are fed up," Shuler asserted. "They're saturated. I think they're distrustful of institutions and the media... there's only one organization left that people do trust, and that's the labour movement."
She highlighted that about 68% of Americans support labour unions according to Gallup, a figure that rises as trust in other institutions wanes. This trust, she argues, must be leveraged to bring balance back to an economy where many are "running up their credit-card debt... just to afford groceries."
A Clear Divide: Billionaires vs. Workers Struggling to Get By
Shuler directly contested Trump's economic narrative, which has downplayed affordability concerns. "That's not what people are experiencing," she said, pointing to rampant issues with housing and healthcare costs. "That is not on the 'Billionaire First' agenda."
She framed the ongoing strike by thousands of Starbucks baristas for a first union contract as a microcosm of this divide. "This strike has really brought it in sharp focus, this divide that we're seeing of an economy that's working for the very rich... and working people are piecing it together," Shuler explained.
Looking ahead, Shuler warned of a perilous future fuelled by inequality and advanced technology like AI, which could widen the gap further. "It's only going to get worse if we don't get the guardrails in place," she said, emphasising the need for working people to have more power to negotiate.
The labour movement's central question for 2026, she concluded, will be a clear one for candidates and officials: "Which side are you on?" The White House was contacted for comment on these allegations.
