August 29, 2025 • 11 mins
As Chair of the Senate Labor Committee, Senator Robert Peters knows how vital workers are to our state’s success. From the Haymarket Riots to today’s workforce development, Illinois has always been at the heart of America’s labor movement. In this Labor Day episode of Sound of the State, he shares why Illinois is leading the way in labor rights and equity.
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Episode Transcript
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Speaker 1 (00:00):
Welcome to this episode of the Sound of the State
podcast from the Illinois Senate Democratic Caucus. I'm Colbio, joined
on Zoom today by State Senator Robert Peters of Chicago,
talking about a day widely recognized as the unofficial end
of summer, but which has a deeper meaning to the
American economy and the American worker. Of course, referring to
Labor Day, it's more than just a day for cookouts
(00:20):
and perhaps lamenting the inevitable changing of the seasons. It's
a day to honor the hardworking people who drive our economy.
Senator Peters is the chair of the Senate to Labor Committee,
and we'll get it to some of the advances we've
made as a state in labor policy, as well as
how Illinois is emerging as a national leader in workforce development.
Senator Peters, welcome back to the podcast. I've hit the
(00:40):
edges about what Labor Day is. Take us some more
in depth about what the day represents, why we celebrate it,
and why the Illinois workforce is so vital.
Speaker 2 (00:49):
Labor Day is an annual celebration, particularly of the labor movement.
We have two days that are generally seen as days
to celebrate labor and working class folks. One of them
is May Day, which is famous to be May first,
and the other one that particularly for the United States
the American worker, is Labor Day. It is something that
was born out of years of organizing and work that
(01:11):
happened in terms of workers' rights in the late nineteenth century.
And in fact it's because of so much workers' rights
organizing that happened, particularly in the Chicago area. It's important
to think about what really builds this country, and particularly
in the twentieth century, in the twenty first century, has
been the working class of this country, especially coming out
of chattel slavery. Just the role of the working class
(01:32):
and an industrial and post industrial world has been so
important the key. And at the same time they've experienced
many challenges. It wasn't too long ago that children were
being used as labor. It wasn't too long ago that
people were working ridiculous hours. It wasn't too long ago
that people were experiencing very unsafe workplace conditions, people losing limbs,
(01:53):
and as you know, people who were working in places
like the stockyards who were struggling to get by while
also the food coming out of the stockyards was contaminated
because of workers who were overworked and abused. And so
the important of the American workers that they helped build
this country and they helped give us, particularly labor unions,
give us the eight hour workday for the forty hour
work week ended child labor. Labor played an important role
(02:16):
in the Civil rights movement. It was because of folks
in union who back the civil rights movement nobody else did.
And so that relationship between racial and economic justice is
pretty deep, and Illinois has been at the forefront of
much of that work, from the folks who were the
murders of the haymarket riots, to people who organized workplaces
(02:36):
in the steel mills and the stockyards, to people today
who continue to fight back and make Illinois a special
place when it comes to worker protections.
Speaker 1 (02:45):
Senator, I've mentioned one of your titles, the chair of
the Senate the Labor Committee. What inspired you to become
so intrinsically involved in labor policy specifically.
Speaker 2 (02:53):
My dad was a young person who worked when it
came to steel in manufacturing. My family has long history
terms of working class struggle in Illinois, both in terms
of my adoptive family and also in my biological family,
family that came up from the South to try to
find opportunity here and struggled, and we're deeply entrenched in
the working class. My uncle was a bricklayer who lost
(03:15):
his job during the Great Recession and went from a
place of extreme comfort to a place where he was
struggling after the Great Recession. And so when I think
about where we act as a country, it's going to
be important for us to lift up the rights of
the working class, and particularly the multiracial, multi generational working class.
And right now, in this moment, in this time, we
really need to reignite a sense of solidarity move us
(03:37):
from a place of isolation. How we do that is
by investing in the working class.
Speaker 1 (03:42):
We took a big step last year for the first
time in nearly seventy five years, to strengthen protections for
youth in the workforce, thanks to an overhaul of the
state's child labor law, which you spearheaded through Senate Bill
thirty six forty six. Now, for our listeners, we do
invite you to listen to a previous conversation Senator Peters
and I had with Illinois AFLCIO President Tim Dray and
others that we released as an episode in the Sound
(04:03):
of the State on May fifteenth of last year. But
for our conversation today's Senator Peters, can you give us
a brief rundown of the updates we made with that
legislation and why you chose to sponsor it.
Speaker 2 (04:13):
For about one hundred years, our child labor laws were
roughly the same. There were strong, but weak in respect
that they were all over the place discombobulated from everything
in terms of law. So what we did is both
strengthen it streamlined, It made it easier, and it was
in response because there were states around us, including Iowa,
that actually weakened child labor laws, and so myself and
working with the Department of Labor in the ANFLCIO, I
(04:34):
was very much invested in saying, hey, we should take
on a law that says Illinois going in the other direction,
how do we modernize our child labor laws, How do
we fit the context of the world we're in now,
how do we make it so it's easier to understand,
and how can we protect children in a twenty first
century context. I was very proud to take on that
bill while the rest of the country is having states
make it so that children are putting more unsafe. Not
(04:56):
only are they working during unsafe work conditions, Illinois is
trying to protect a child it's ability to live their
life while also not putting them in the harms way
when they are in any level of workforce. For example,
we modernize it so it's not just about industrial work,
it's people who work in the service sector. So if
there's young kids work in the service sector, that's now
something that's included. The Department of Labor has more power
(05:16):
to be able to take on any abuses that happen
when it comes to child labor, and I believe we've
created a stronger sense of private right of action when
it comes to labor. There is nearly a series of
things in which we strengthen the Department's ability to administer
and regulate workplace protections, particularly when it comes to children,
while also understandular children who made their families own a
restaurant and they might be engaged in the restaurant, and
(05:38):
making sure to put that in context if they're not
lessarily putting in unsafe conditions, but they're also able to participate,
say in a family restaurant.
Speaker 1 (05:44):
State Senator Robert Peters is with me today, Senator, as
a champion for our state's labor community and workforce. In
your view, what makes Illinois such a great state for labor.
Speaker 2 (05:53):
Just in the fact that every year Illinois finds new
ways to strengthen and protect labor rights. We've increased the
minimum way, which we've strength and collective bargaining, in fact,
we've made it. So that's something that's part of our
constitution with the Worker's Rights Amendment. When we think about
project labor agreements, those things are front and center when
it comes to us making legislation. Illinois is particularly with
many of us in legislator are always thinking first, how
(06:16):
is this going to protect a worker's rights before we
move a bill and a piece of legislation, so that
we don't see it become undone. And to be honest
with you, I think ten fifteen years ago, we were
in a very different place. I think labor was sort
of on a defensive side, and now it's more of
an offensive side of protecting the American worker. And that's
really credit to amazing organizing done by folks like at
the AFLCIO as well as grassroots organizations on the ground
(06:39):
as well as workers' rights community organizations that are doing
work on the ground. And so the combination from things
from the workers center movement, to labor organizing and to
people who are in governing power who put labor at
the front center. Illinois is just in a unique position
compared to almost any other state when it comes to
protecting their workers and when it comes to ensuring workers
(07:00):
are getting good wages, good benefits, and the ability to
bargain at their workplace.
Speaker 1 (07:04):
In addition to all the advantages that we have with
our workforce here in Illinois, Senator Peters, we have a
number of geographic advantages as well. Talk about some of those.
Speaker 2 (07:13):
Every major railroad crosses through Illinois. In fact, in my
Senate district is where every major railroad crosses, so we're
actually at the center of transportation distribution and logistics hub.
So we have massive economic importance for the United States
of America. We have two airports one it's one of
the top three largest airports. We have multiple airports and
places like Rockford and Gary that have relationships with folks
(07:36):
like Amazon or the Fedexes of the world and the
ups Is of the world. We have a very highly
trained workforce that can go into the building trades. We
have a massive service sector and healthcare sector. We have
this economic juggernaut where we're at in Illinois and particularly
with Chicago. And at the same time as having the
economic juggernaut where people and companies can feel like they
(07:58):
can invest in, we also have an amazing workforce that
is extremely protected because of our transportation and logistics. Whether
we're talking about Rockford and Winnepego County, we're talking about
our university hubs like Champagne or Banna, and our directoral
universities including places like Illinois State or SIU Edwardsville and Carbondale.
(08:18):
Because of our worker protections and because of our laws
when it comes to workers in terms of farms, there's
a place for people to be able to get hired
and to get work while also maintaining those protections. So
we have a very diverse economic state from egg to
the transportation distribution space, to building construction, to healthcare and
healthcare services. What I will say is that we're also
(08:40):
at risk of with many of the things coming out
of this administration, to seeing those things take a hit,
and so it is important for us to protect that
economic diversity, protect that robust economic activity, and protect the
workers while also face seeing in upstream battle from an
administration that can be a bit hostile.
Speaker 1 (08:56):
Senator Peters, how have you seen workforce equity in Illinois
evolve in recent years?
Speaker 2 (09:01):
I think Illinois has done a good job of protecting
equity and pushing equity. Credit to folks in labor who
are building organizations to make sure that more people from
all backgrounds are able to join the workforce and particularly
join a union. And the same thing with the legislator.
I mean, as former chair of the Senate Black Caucus,
we've passed bills to make sure that we're looking out
(09:21):
for equity, particularly in the workplace and in other areas
from healthcare to small businesses. And so Illinois has done
a really good job with that. I will again say,
we have some hostility outside of Illinois against the things
that we're doing, and so every day we got to
be vigilant and protecting the games we've made through legislation
and policy amount equity. Our university system, for example, which
(09:42):
are some of the largest employers outside of Chicago, are
huge economic engines, particularly in central Illinois, and we've put
a good amount of investment in there. At the same time,
if you're working on a campus there, or you're building
housing there, or you're part of some development there, you
have a unique level of both protections and investment.
Speaker 1 (09:59):
Illinois was recognized in twenty twenty four Senator as the
top state in the Midwest for workforce development. Can you
explain some of the initiatives that we've put forward that
helped earn that distinction.
Speaker 2 (10:09):
I think one part is that with the governor and
with us as say, we've continued to invest to bring
in more and more businesses and more and more development.
So it's important the fact that we're keeping economic activity going.
At the same time, you've had a lot of investment
in terms of workforce development centers in the sense of
getting more and more people to be able to join
a union. So literally there's just been whether it's hire
(10:31):
three sixty or its universities creating pipelines for people to
join the workforce, or it's bringing in the ribeans and
quantums of the world and battery plants of the world.
And then of course, with SIEGU and the Climate Eguitable
Jobs Act, we've been able to put into renewables from
rooftop solar and community solar to the windmill development, and
(10:52):
in terms of making sure that that goes all over
the state, whether that's going to be in a rural community,
whether the energy and what's being produced there from clean
now she's happening in a working class urban community. There's
been huge investments across the board from a variety of
different parts of the economy that Illinois has invested in
at the same time has made sure that networkforce looks
like the population.
Speaker 1 (11:12):
Serving final thoughts, Senator Peters.
Speaker 2 (11:14):
Labor Day is a historic holiday in between Labor Day
and May Day. Doing whatever we can to look out
for the working class of this country. I think we've
got to celebrate them and continue to push forward on
getting policies done to protect them.
Speaker 1 (11:25):
State Senator Robert Peters of Chicago, representing the thirteenth District,
thank you for joining the podcast today.
Speaker 2 (11:31):
Of course, thanks for having me
Welcome to this episode of the Sound of the State
podcast from the Illinois Senate Democratic Caucus. I'm Colbio, joined
on Zoom today by State Senator Robert Peters of Chicago,
talking about a day widely recognized as the unofficial end
of summer, but which has a deeper meaning to the
American economy and the American worker. Of course, referring to
Labor Day, it's more than just a day for cookouts
(00:20):
and perhaps lamenting the inevitable changing of the seasons. It's
a day to honor the hardworking people who drive our economy.
Senator Peters is the chair of the Senate to Labor Committee,
and we'll get it to some of the advances we've
made as a state in labor policy, as well as
how Illinois is emerging as a national leader in workforce development.
Senator Peters, welcome back to the podcast. I've hit the
(00:40):
edges about what Labor Day is. Take us some more
in depth about what the day represents, why we celebrate it,
and why the Illinois workforce is so vital.
Speaker 2 (00:49):
Labor Day is an annual celebration, particularly of the labor movement.
We have two days that are generally seen as days
to celebrate labor and working class folks. One of them
is May Day, which is famous to be May first,
and the other one that particularly for the United States
the American worker, is Labor Day. It is something that
was born out of years of organizing and work that
(01:11):
happened in terms of workers' rights in the late nineteenth century.
And in fact it's because of so much workers' rights
organizing that happened, particularly in the Chicago area. It's important
to think about what really builds this country, and particularly
in the twentieth century, in the twenty first century, has
been the working class of this country, especially coming out
of chattel slavery. Just the role of the working class
(01:32):
and an industrial and post industrial world has been so
important the key. And at the same time they've experienced
many challenges. It wasn't too long ago that children were
being used as labor. It wasn't too long ago that
people were working ridiculous hours. It wasn't too long ago
that people were experiencing very unsafe workplace conditions, people losing limbs,
(01:53):
and as you know, people who were working in places
like the stockyards who were struggling to get by while
also the food coming out of the stockyards was contaminated
because of workers who were overworked and abused. And so
the important of the American workers that they helped build
this country and they helped give us, particularly labor unions,
give us the eight hour workday for the forty hour
work week ended child labor. Labor played an important role
(02:16):
in the Civil rights movement. It was because of folks
in union who back the civil rights movement nobody else did.
And so that relationship between racial and economic justice is
pretty deep, and Illinois has been at the forefront of
much of that work, from the folks who were the
murders of the haymarket riots, to people who organized workplaces
(02:36):
in the steel mills and the stockyards, to people today
who continue to fight back and make Illinois a special
place when it comes to worker protections.
Speaker 1 (02:45):
Senator, I've mentioned one of your titles, the chair of
the Senate the Labor Committee. What inspired you to become
so intrinsically involved in labor policy specifically.
Speaker 2 (02:53):
My dad was a young person who worked when it
came to steel in manufacturing. My family has long history
terms of working class struggle in Illinois, both in terms
of my adoptive family and also in my biological family,
family that came up from the South to try to
find opportunity here and struggled, and we're deeply entrenched in
the working class. My uncle was a bricklayer who lost
(03:15):
his job during the Great Recession and went from a
place of extreme comfort to a place where he was
struggling after the Great Recession. And so when I think
about where we act as a country, it's going to
be important for us to lift up the rights of
the working class, and particularly the multiracial, multi generational working class.
And right now, in this moment, in this time, we
really need to reignite a sense of solidarity move us
(03:37):
from a place of isolation. How we do that is
by investing in the working class.
Speaker 1 (03:42):
We took a big step last year for the first
time in nearly seventy five years, to strengthen protections for
youth in the workforce, thanks to an overhaul of the
state's child labor law, which you spearheaded through Senate Bill
thirty six forty six. Now, for our listeners, we do
invite you to listen to a previous conversation Senator Peters
and I had with Illinois AFLCIO President Tim Dray and
others that we released as an episode in the Sound
(04:03):
of the State on May fifteenth of last year. But
for our conversation today's Senator Peters, can you give us
a brief rundown of the updates we made with that
legislation and why you chose to sponsor it.
Speaker 2 (04:13):
For about one hundred years, our child labor laws were
roughly the same. There were strong, but weak in respect
that they were all over the place discombobulated from everything
in terms of law. So what we did is both
strengthen it streamlined, It made it easier, and it was
in response because there were states around us, including Iowa,
that actually weakened child labor laws, and so myself and
working with the Department of Labor in the ANFLCIO, I
(04:34):
was very much invested in saying, hey, we should take
on a law that says Illinois going in the other direction,
how do we modernize our child labor laws, How do
we fit the context of the world we're in now,
how do we make it so it's easier to understand,
and how can we protect children in a twenty first
century context. I was very proud to take on that
bill while the rest of the country is having states
make it so that children are putting more unsafe. Not
(04:56):
only are they working during unsafe work conditions, Illinois is
trying to protect a child it's ability to live their
life while also not putting them in the harms way
when they are in any level of workforce. For example,
we modernize it so it's not just about industrial work,
it's people who work in the service sector. So if
there's young kids work in the service sector, that's now
something that's included. The Department of Labor has more power
(05:16):
to be able to take on any abuses that happen
when it comes to child labor, and I believe we've
created a stronger sense of private right of action when
it comes to labor. There is nearly a series of
things in which we strengthen the Department's ability to administer
and regulate workplace protections, particularly when it comes to children,
while also understandular children who made their families own a
restaurant and they might be engaged in the restaurant, and
(05:38):
making sure to put that in context if they're not
lessarily putting in unsafe conditions, but they're also able to participate,
say in a family restaurant.
Speaker 1 (05:44):
State Senator Robert Peters is with me today, Senator, as
a champion for our state's labor community and workforce. In
your view, what makes Illinois such a great state for labor.
Speaker 2 (05:53):
Just in the fact that every year Illinois finds new
ways to strengthen and protect labor rights. We've increased the
minimum way, which we've strength and collective bargaining, in fact,
we've made it. So that's something that's part of our
constitution with the Worker's Rights Amendment. When we think about
project labor agreements, those things are front and center when
it comes to us making legislation. Illinois is particularly with
many of us in legislator are always thinking first, how
(06:16):
is this going to protect a worker's rights before we
move a bill and a piece of legislation, so that
we don't see it become undone. And to be honest
with you, I think ten fifteen years ago, we were
in a very different place. I think labor was sort
of on a defensive side, and now it's more of
an offensive side of protecting the American worker. And that's
really credit to amazing organizing done by folks like at
the AFLCIO as well as grassroots organizations on the ground
(06:39):
as well as workers' rights community organizations that are doing
work on the ground. And so the combination from things
from the workers center movement, to labor organizing and to
people who are in governing power who put labor at
the front center. Illinois is just in a unique position
compared to almost any other state when it comes to
protecting their workers and when it comes to ensuring workers
(07:00):
are getting good wages, good benefits, and the ability to
bargain at their workplace.
Speaker 1 (07:04):
In addition to all the advantages that we have with
our workforce here in Illinois, Senator Peters, we have a
number of geographic advantages as well. Talk about some of those.
Speaker 2 (07:13):
Every major railroad crosses through Illinois. In fact, in my
Senate district is where every major railroad crosses, so we're
actually at the center of transportation distribution and logistics hub.
So we have massive economic importance for the United States
of America. We have two airports one it's one of
the top three largest airports. We have multiple airports and
places like Rockford and Gary that have relationships with folks
(07:36):
like Amazon or the Fedexes of the world and the
ups Is of the world. We have a very highly
trained workforce that can go into the building trades. We
have a massive service sector and healthcare sector. We have
this economic juggernaut where we're at in Illinois and particularly
with Chicago. And at the same time as having the
economic juggernaut where people and companies can feel like they
(07:58):
can invest in, we also have an amazing workforce that
is extremely protected because of our transportation and logistics. Whether
we're talking about Rockford and Winnepego County, we're talking about
our university hubs like Champagne or Banna, and our directoral
universities including places like Illinois State or SIU Edwardsville and Carbondale.
(08:18):
Because of our worker protections and because of our laws
when it comes to workers in terms of farms, there's
a place for people to be able to get hired
and to get work while also maintaining those protections. So
we have a very diverse economic state from egg to
the transportation distribution space, to building construction, to healthcare and
healthcare services. What I will say is that we're also
(08:40):
at risk of with many of the things coming out
of this administration, to seeing those things take a hit,
and so it is important for us to protect that
economic diversity, protect that robust economic activity, and protect the
workers while also face seeing in upstream battle from an
administration that can be a bit hostile.
Speaker 1 (08:56):
Senator Peters, how have you seen workforce equity in Illinois
evolve in recent years?
Speaker 2 (09:01):
I think Illinois has done a good job of protecting
equity and pushing equity. Credit to folks in labor who
are building organizations to make sure that more people from
all backgrounds are able to join the workforce and particularly
join a union. And the same thing with the legislator.
I mean, as former chair of the Senate Black Caucus,
we've passed bills to make sure that we're looking out
(09:21):
for equity, particularly in the workplace and in other areas
from healthcare to small businesses. And so Illinois has done
a really good job with that. I will again say,
we have some hostility outside of Illinois against the things
that we're doing, and so every day we got to
be vigilant and protecting the games we've made through legislation
and policy amount equity. Our university system, for example, which
(09:42):
are some of the largest employers outside of Chicago, are
huge economic engines, particularly in central Illinois, and we've put
a good amount of investment in there. At the same time,
if you're working on a campus there, or you're building
housing there, or you're part of some development there, you
have a unique level of both protections and investment.
Speaker 1 (09:59):
Illinois was recognized in twenty twenty four Senator as the
top state in the Midwest for workforce development. Can you
explain some of the initiatives that we've put forward that
helped earn that distinction.
Speaker 2 (10:09):
I think one part is that with the governor and
with us as say, we've continued to invest to bring
in more and more businesses and more and more development.
So it's important the fact that we're keeping economic activity going.
At the same time, you've had a lot of investment
in terms of workforce development centers in the sense of
getting more and more people to be able to join
a union. So literally there's just been whether it's hire
(10:31):
three sixty or its universities creating pipelines for people to
join the workforce, or it's bringing in the ribeans and
quantums of the world and battery plants of the world.
And then of course, with SIEGU and the Climate Eguitable
Jobs Act, we've been able to put into renewables from
rooftop solar and community solar to the windmill development, and
(10:52):
in terms of making sure that that goes all over
the state, whether that's going to be in a rural community,
whether the energy and what's being produced there from clean
now she's happening in a working class urban community. There's
been huge investments across the board from a variety of
different parts of the economy that Illinois has invested in
at the same time has made sure that networkforce looks
like the population.
Speaker 1 (11:12):
Serving final thoughts, Senator Peters.
Speaker 2 (11:14):
Labor Day is a historic holiday in between Labor Day
and May Day. Doing whatever we can to look out
for the working class of this country. I think we've
got to celebrate them and continue to push forward on
getting policies done to protect them.
Speaker 1 (11:25):
State Senator Robert Peters of Chicago, representing the thirteenth District,
thank you for joining the podcast today.
Speaker 2 (11:31):
Of course, thanks for having me
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