September 5, 2025 • 22 mins
Leslie welcomes back Fred Redmond, Secretary-Treasurer of the 63 unions and 15 million members of the AFL-CIO. In 2022, he was unanimously elected to the position as the highest ranking African American officer in the history of America’s labor movement.
Secretary Redmond shares how he and the AFL-CIO just wrapped up their nationwide “It’s Better in a Union: Fighting for Freedom, Fairness and Security” bus tour. While big corporations profit off the backs of working people and politicians continue to raise costs and cut essential lifesaving services, the labor movement traveled the country providing voice to and building power with workers in the lead up to Labor Day.
Mr. Redmond also blasts the new Trump administration's Union-busting executive order, which was issued right before Labor Day.
The new order rips away collective bargaining rights from workers at NASA, the International Trade Association, the NWS, and more.
The website for the AFL-CIO is AFLCIO.org and their handle on Blue Sky is @AFLCIO.org. Their handle on Facebook, Instagram and X is @AFLCIO. Fred's handle on X is @STRedmond.
Secretary Redmond shares how he and the AFL-CIO just wrapped up their nationwide “It’s Better in a Union: Fighting for Freedom, Fairness and Security” bus tour. While big corporations profit off the backs of working people and politicians continue to raise costs and cut essential lifesaving services, the labor movement traveled the country providing voice to and building power with workers in the lead up to Labor Day.
Mr. Redmond also blasts the new Trump administration's Union-busting executive order, which was issued right before Labor Day.
The new order rips away collective bargaining rights from workers at NASA, the International Trade Association, the NWS, and more.
The website for the AFL-CIO is AFLCIO.org and their handle on Blue Sky is @AFLCIO.org. Their handle on Facebook, Instagram and X is @AFLCIO. Fred's handle on X is @STRedmond.
Mark as Played
Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
We are back.
Speaker 2 (00:01):
When I say we me Leslie Marshall, how you doing,
Welcome back. We also have Fred Redman, Mister Redmond, a
Secretary Treasurer of the sixty three unions and fifteen million members.
Whenever I think I have a lot of my plate
of the afl CIO. And you know what, if you
didn't know what they were doing, there's no way you don't.
Speaker 3 (00:20):
Now.
Speaker 2 (00:21):
I see Secretary Treasurer Redman, and I see President Shuler
everywhere all the time. You know, I turn on CNA
and one of those everywhere, I see them everywhere. In
twenty twenty two, he was unanimously elected to the position
as the highest ranking African American officer in the history
of the labor movement in the United States of America,
(00:42):
and his paths to the federation's second highest office well it.
He began back in seventy three. Nineteen seventy three, went
to work at Reynolds Medals Company in Chicago, became a
member of the United steel Workers USW, and we got
to meet him back then. There he was active in
his local union almost immediately. He served as shop steward
and eventually he became vice president. He served three terms
(01:02):
as local president and in twenty twenty one was elected
president of the Trade Union Confederation of the Americas. That
is not only a prestigious post, it's an international post.
Check out the afl CIO. They're doing so much. Their
website is aflcio dot org. They handle on Blue Skies
at aflcio dot org, their handle on Facebook, Instagram and
(01:23):
x is at aflcio. And Secretary Treasurer Redmond is his
handle on x is at St Redmond. Well, Secretary Redmond,
good to have you with us. There's so much to
talk about. You just wrapped up the afl CIO wrapped.
It's a Better Union nationwide bus tour.
Speaker 3 (01:46):
Tell us about this.
Speaker 2 (01:47):
It was twenty six states, forty plus cities. What was
the goal, what was the message?
Speaker 1 (01:53):
Well, thank you, Leslie.
Speaker 4 (01:55):
It's a pleagure to be with you for the last
couple of months. Last Sol two and a half month,
myself and President Schuler and many of our national presidents
from our executive councils, we decided to go around the
country and to really really have a conversation with workers
around the country. And you know, our tour has really
(02:17):
given workers an opportunity to share their thoughts, their frustrations,
their anger, and a lot of cases with this administration
and the situation that's happening with workers. So you know,
I was all in all, the tour's been successful. We've
been amplifying the voice of workers around this country, and
(02:39):
you know, they have really been expressing themselves in terms
of how do they feel about this attack on collective
bargaining where we have seen over a million government workers
lose their collective bargaining rights. They have some serious concerns
about cuts to medicaid, they have serious concerns about the
(03:00):
elimination of the Department of Education, and workers are concerned.
They're pissed off, you know, and what the tour was
designed to do was to amplify their voices and to
make sure that we're giving workers a platform to really
really state their frustrations.
Speaker 2 (03:19):
You know what I have to say, I commend you,
a President Schuler, for doing this. It's one thing to
take a phone call, to get a message, to read
an email, to have a poll, but to really get
out there to take the time face to face, shake
some hands, looking eyes, really listen to what people are doing.
It's grassroots. It's very successful for many politicians. We saw
(03:41):
AOC do it, Mondomnie is doing it in New York.
And your organizational mobilization was specifically for three areas, and
I wanted you maybe to tell us why these three
areas and the frustration of union workers are the millions
of the a fl CIO And this was for freedom, fairness,
us and security. Talk to us about freedom, talk to
(04:03):
us about fairness, and talk to us about security and
the concerns that the afl CIO millions of members have
throughout this country.
Speaker 4 (04:10):
Well, we titled our bus towards Freedom, Fairness and Security.
When we talk about freedom, we're talking about the freedom
to join the union, of freedom to participate in collective bargaining,
a free we're talking about the freedom to make sure
that the government is working for them. And when we
(04:31):
talk about fairness, you know, we're talking about building a economy,
an economic position where workers are put at first, not
the economy that's being constructed today by billionaires four billionaires.
And when we talk about fairness, we're not only talking
about a fair tax code, but we're talking about fairness
(04:54):
in the workplace where workers can have the protections of
OSHA and government agencies to provide for their safety on
the job. We're talking about fairness for workers to be
able to share and the wealth that they help to create.
And when we talk about security, we're basically focused on
retirement security, whereas after workers work all their lives to
(05:18):
provide for their families, that one day they can retire
with the dignity and self respect that they deserve. And
what we're finding under this administration is those three topics, okay,
are really on the jeopardy with the policy that's coming
out of the White House. I mean, the attacks on Medicaid,
(05:39):
the attacks on you know, which is going to raise
insurance rates throughout this country, the attacks on OSHA, the
elimination of certain departments in OSHA that provide for workers
health and safety on the job. So fairness, freedom and
security is the things that we've been focusing on. And
(06:00):
it's bus on its bus tour.
Speaker 2 (06:03):
You know, speak to me Secretary Redmond about the frustration
because you know, we've talked for years and there is
a constant threat and frustration about big corporation. It's profiting
off the backs of working people. Is it fair to
say this administration and specifically policies within this administration continue
to raise cost more, which give corporations a green light
(06:26):
to profit more off the backs of working people and
to cut things that are essential life saving services. You know,
are you know, is this part of the gripes and
you know part of what they're pissed off.
Speaker 4 (06:39):
About, Oh, without a doubt, And you know what we're
saying through this administration, you know, the issue of income inequality.
You know, we're we're living in a time leslie where
the average CEO, the top one hundred CEOs in this country, okay,
based on numbers from the four than five hundred companies
(07:02):
you know, make two hundred and eighty five times what
their average worker makes. And that's unacceptable. I mean, you know,
workers are working harder and harder every day. The only
thing they're asking is to have a share in the
wealth that they help to create. And what we're seeing is,
particularly with these attacks on collective bargaining, is that workers
(07:24):
are being squeezed. Their voices are being silent. And one
thing about the freedom, Fairness and security busts to it
that we did. We're giving workers a voice where a
lot of their representatives in Congress have refused. The whole
town halls to hear their voices. So, you know, we
see that workers are feeling different than throughout my history
(07:48):
and the union then they've ever felt. I mean, these
issues have always been out there, but they've been so
exacerbated by this administration and its policies that workers are understanding, okay,
that we're shifting, slowly, shifting from a democracy to an
autocracy where only a few get to share in the
(08:09):
wealth of this country while the rest of us, you know,
is suffering.
Speaker 3 (08:15):
Yeah.
Speaker 2 (08:15):
Absolutely, to quote President Schuler, she said, working people are
the backbone of this country. We do the things our
community count on at schools and hospitals, factories and construction sites,
small and big businesses.
Speaker 3 (08:26):
Yet too many.
Speaker 2 (08:27):
Families can't keep food on the table, pay the rent
a for child's care. And you were talking Secretary Redman
about you know, Medicare or you know Medicaid. I know,
with the twenty six cities and excuse me, forty six
cities and forty cities in twenty six states joining picket lines, supporting,
organizing campaigns, visiting you know, veterans affairs, Medicaid funded facilities,
(08:49):
and hospitals. Some of these have been decimated gutted entirely
by Doge. These people are terrified about their future and
about their livelihood.
Speaker 3 (09:00):
And you know, these.
Speaker 2 (09:01):
People the only people they have to speak for them
are you guys at the AFLCIO are their union, because
like you said, their government's not listening, they won't take
the time to hear them, and they're not helping them.
Speaker 1 (09:13):
Yeah.
Speaker 4 (09:13):
Well, people got to understand the significance of Medicaid. One
out of every five children is born in the United States.
You know, their birth is covered through Medicaid. I mean,
Medicaid is not some program just for the indigen and
the poor. I mean people who adopt children wars of
the state, those children are on Medicaid. People who have
(09:34):
handicapped children, those children are on Medicaid. And workers throughout
this country know that they know that they're going to
feel this pain by this administration and for what to
give more tax breaks to the richest people in this country.
The billionaires and workers are saying that, you know, this
isn't what they voted for. A lot of our members
(09:56):
voted for this guy, you know, but they didn't vote
for this, know, they didn't. Both the City Department of
Education decimated, They didn't both for that. So workers are
expressing their resentment, their frustrations, you know through these buzz
tours where in a lot of cases, a lot of
places we go in the rare States, a lot of
(10:17):
places we go, you know, they're not afforded an audience
with their congress people.
Speaker 3 (10:22):
And that's that's just unc Yeah, absolutely country.
Speaker 2 (10:25):
But if it took a quick break, we'll be back
with Secretary Treasurer Fred Redman for the afl CIO. Check
out their website aflcio dot org on Blue Sky, follow
at aflcio dot org and on Facebook, Instagram and X
follow at a fl CIO. Secretary Treasurer Redmond is on
X as well at St Redmen. And by the way,
(10:46):
many seniors have many many when you look at their
insurance it's Medicare Medicaid, so you're hurting seniors and disabled,
not just the.
Speaker 3 (10:55):
Poor folks in the country. Will be back right out.
Speaker 2 (11:02):
We are back on Leslie Marshall and we have Secretary
Treasurer Fred Redmond from the afl CIO joining us. Follow
him on X at st Redman and check out on Facebook,
Instagram and X the afl CIO. They have a lot
of information there at a fl CIO also on blue
Sky at aflcio dot org and their website. Like I said,
you want information, or you want to find out you
(11:23):
know a little bit more, you want somebody to back
you as a hard working American. Go to aflcio dot
org for more information. Secretary redmand thank you for holding
welcome back. Well, we have a four day week courtesy
of people that are hard workers. Labor Day wouldn't be
possible without the laborers who've made it possible. Tell us
(11:44):
about the afl CIO workers Labor Day. Workers deserve week
of action.
Speaker 4 (11:50):
Well, this Week of Action, it's been a good week
the afl CIO. We sponsored over one thousand events and
around nine hundred cities around the country. And this Worker's
Labor Day Week, it's a celebration of working people and
it's a celebration of the power that we have when
(12:10):
we come together in the union, and we have the
power to take back our country for working people and
not billionaires. So it's about expressing our solidarity because we know,
as leash Shuler stated and you accurately quoted, that workers
built this country and we feel very strongly that workers
(12:32):
deserve an economy a government and a country for the people,
not the billionaires. And in the streets and on the
shop floor and union halls and halls of Congress, this
worker's Labor Day week has shown that the billionaires who
we are and how we fight. I mean, we've been
(12:53):
showing up. We've had huge crowds at these events we've had.
We've been in the rallies, picnics, parades. I'm in New
York today. We're going to have a large parade in
the city of New York tomorrow and workers are turning
out in record numbers.
Speaker 1 (13:09):
You know.
Speaker 4 (13:10):
Speaking to a gentleman in Philadelphia last week and well
Monday during Labor Day, I was in Philadelphia and I
was speaking to a gentleman, a retiree, and he said,
I've never never marched in a Labor Day parade, but
with the situation in this country was too important. And
he brought his wife out, his kids, his grandkids, and
(13:33):
he said, you know, we've got to make sure that
we're showing up, that our voices are being heard because
this cannot be tolerated. People are literally seeing the destruction
of their country. They're recognizing it. Workers recognizing it, and
they're showing up. So it's been a tremendous experience this
Labor Day, this Labor Day Week, and what we've been
(13:54):
doing is just offering the platform for workers to come
out and express their frustration.
Speaker 2 (14:01):
Yeah, you know, again, to quote President Schuler, big corporations
and billionaires like Elon Musk and President Trump launched the
biggest attacks on unions in history because they know that
when we stand together, we have.
Speaker 3 (14:11):
The power to speak out and fight back.
Speaker 2 (14:13):
Interestingly enough, in the first Trump administration, they demonized unions.
Really you would think that unions went to blame for
almost every ill in the United States of America.
Speaker 3 (14:22):
But something good came out of that.
Speaker 2 (14:24):
More and more people unionized, right, Unions became you know,
more popular, more people joined unions. Uh, you know, membership
went up, and it continues to do that. But you need,
you need to treat your workers. You know, you need
to treat your workers better than the CEO. You know,
the people that are rowing the boat need to be,
(14:46):
you know, treated better than the captain, you know who's
you know.
Speaker 3 (14:49):
Standing at the helm.
Speaker 2 (14:50):
And unions get that, and I think most Americans get that,
you know, speaking of the American people are rooting.
Speaker 3 (14:57):
For the workers.
Speaker 2 (14:57):
Right, more than seventy percent of America, nearly nine out
of ten younger people, people younger than thirty support unions,
so they're supporting this fight for freedom, fairness and security.
So in a way, I guess we should thank the
demonization because it's led to people being more supportive of
unions and more people joining unions, which is a good
(15:19):
thing for workers and hopefully in the future a good
thing for the work the working class overall in the fabric.
Speaker 3 (15:25):
Of America, the working fabric of America.
Speaker 1 (15:28):
Right.
Speaker 4 (15:28):
Well, polls up show Leslie, you're exactly right that we're
polling in terms of favorability ratings. We're polling twenty percent
higher in terms of trust than the Democrat or Republican parties.
I mean, people are betting for their you know, self
respect and their freedom, their security, you know, through the
(15:50):
labor movement, because they're realizing that the labor movement is
the voice where workers can really really rally together, show
solidarity and turn this around. So, you know, through the
leadership of President Schuler, you know, we've been very very
conscious of the heartbeat of workers around this country, and
(16:12):
we've been rallying workers around this country.
Speaker 1 (16:14):
If we could get.
Speaker 4 (16:17):
Organizing elections through the NLRB with this president has deestimated, okay,
But if we could get board elections today, okay, then
we can organize thousands of workers. If we could get
petitions out of the RB. You know, but because of
the situation with the firing of Glenn Wilcox, the lack
of a form, you know, all of those petitions are
(16:39):
on hold. But what workers are realizing is that to
workers solidarity, when workers stand together, and when we really
live through that expression, that injury to one is injury
to all. Workers are realizing that this is a fight
that we all have to engage in. And like the
gentleman told me at the rally, you know, you know
(17:00):
we got to show up. You know, we have to
show up. We have to make sure our voices is
heard and it's threw.
Speaker 2 (17:06):
Out absolutely, especially when you have and not just cuts.
Let's talk about the executive order. Let's talk about union
busting executive orders and issued right before Labor Day. This
is like a middle finger to the workers. Right, there
was a march order that ripped away collective bargaining rights,
(17:27):
which he has now expanded from workers at NASA. The
International Trade Association, the US Patent and Trademark Office, the
National Weather Service, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, the
US Agency Global Media, the Bureau of Reclamation, and others.
And he did this just ahead of Labor Day. Is
this president flipping the bird at unions and workers?
Speaker 1 (17:47):
Well?
Speaker 4 (17:48):
Absolutely. And that's on top of the four hundred thousand
workers whose contracts were counseled at the BA, the EPA,
the us DA. I mean, people that inspect our foods.
Come on, now, okay, I mean these are people who
get it.
Speaker 2 (18:05):
I mean, and I'm not trying to have a pun
here at recipe. It is a recipe for desire. I mean,
come on, whether it's vaccines or or whether it's food
infection or cancer research. This is frightening where we're headed.
It really is, especially for the hard working middle class
American worker.
Speaker 1 (18:23):
Right, this is very frightening.
Speaker 4 (18:25):
And you know, listening to the testimony of Robert Kennedy yesterday,
I mean, it's just it's just devastating to hear that
a person who's a non Baxter, okay, is trying to
justify eliminating vaccines.
Speaker 1 (18:43):
So, I mean, we were whose.
Speaker 2 (18:46):
Six children by the way, you're all vaccinated, are.
Speaker 4 (18:48):
All vaccinating, That's correct. So we're living in very very
difficult times. And the thing that gives holds to people,
you know, I'm proud to say it's the labor movement.
They see us out there, they see fighting. We're fighting
in the courts, we're fighting in the streets. But the
key thing that we're doing is we're organizing workers around
this country. Unionized workers and non union workers are coming
(19:12):
to the labor movement to join into this movement for freedom, fairness,
and security.
Speaker 1 (19:17):
And we're going to keep fighting.
Speaker 4 (19:19):
You know, We're going to continue to fight into the
mid terms and beyond until we can restore a sense
of sanity to our government and make sure that workers
around this country is being treated fairly.
Speaker 1 (19:32):
And look, do you.
Speaker 2 (19:33):
Think that not just you Secretary Treasury were Redmond, but
do you think the workers are surprised at how the
President chose to commemorate Labor Day by specifically, you know,
launching an all out attack on workers and unions, by
you know, expanding this executive order that started back in March.
Speaker 4 (19:53):
Yeah, I think workers are surprised and see it's our
job as a labor movement to really get out there.
Purpose of our bus tour, we're going to keep having
those conversations with workers to do what we call tea
ch hands and really really explain the workers what's happening.
And if workers, if the president, with the stroke of
a pen could eliminate collective bargaining rights for federal employees,
(20:17):
then workers in the private sector, Okay, it's naive if
they think that the same thing cannot happen to them.
That's the message that we're spreading, and that message is
taking root with workers around this country. None of us
is a mune from the attack from this president and
this administration. None of us as workers is a mune
(20:38):
because this president has issued an all out of attack
on working people throughout this country and organized labor.
Speaker 1 (20:46):
And we're gearing up and we're preparing for the fight.
Speaker 2 (20:51):
Secretary Redman, sixty seconds left last message. You'd like to
leave the last minute with our viewers and listeners.
Speaker 4 (20:59):
Well, you know, I just want to leave with your
viewers that Look, the numbers are clear, okay.
Speaker 1 (21:07):
Seventy eight thousand.
Speaker 4 (21:08):
That's the number of manufacturing jobs, not including the day's
jobs report. Seventy eight thousand number of manufacturing jobs that
Trump has killed this year nearly two million. It's the
number of unemployment claims that workers have fouled since this
man became president, the largest in the history that we
(21:30):
have seen since twenty seventeen, nearly a million. This number
of federal workers who the Trump administration stripped of their
collective bargaining rights. And forty four percent of parents who
plan to go and plan to go in the debt,
you know, who can't afford to buy their kid school
(21:50):
supplies for this school semester because of the reckless tariffs
that has raised prices on goods throughout this country. So
the message that I want to leave to your view
as this administration is not working for us. It's working
for the billionaires and the CEOs. But we have to
stand together and push back like those who came before us.
Speaker 1 (22:11):
There we followed the.
Speaker 4 (22:12):
Carnegie, the Carnegies, we fought the Fricks, we fought the Melons,
and we are prepared and we're going to continue to
fight Trump until workers see that.
Speaker 1 (22:21):
Just do.
Speaker 3 (22:23):
And we thank you for that to count on you
for that.
Speaker 2 (22:26):
Secretary Treasurer bred Redman of the AFL CIO, please check
out their website aflcio dot org. I'm Blue Sky. Follow
them at aflcio dot org and on Facebook, Instagram and
X follow them at a fl cio. You can also
follow Secretary redmand on X. His handle is at St Redmond.
I'm Listenie Marshall. A shout out to market Marcomaldi, Executive producer,
(22:49):
and thank everybody for watching and for listening our two
guests in this hour, Always more to come here.
Speaker 3 (22:55):
I'm the only truth, democracy and talk
We are back.
Speaker 2 (00:01):
When I say we me Leslie Marshall, how you doing,
Welcome back. We also have Fred Redman, Mister Redmond, a
Secretary Treasurer of the sixty three unions and fifteen million members.
Whenever I think I have a lot of my plate
of the afl CIO. And you know what, if you
didn't know what they were doing, there's no way you don't.
Speaker 3 (00:20):
Now.
Speaker 2 (00:21):
I see Secretary Treasurer Redman, and I see President Shuler
everywhere all the time. You know, I turn on CNA
and one of those everywhere, I see them everywhere. In
twenty twenty two, he was unanimously elected to the position
as the highest ranking African American officer in the history
of the labor movement in the United States of America,
(00:42):
and his paths to the federation's second highest office well it.
He began back in seventy three. Nineteen seventy three, went
to work at Reynolds Medals Company in Chicago, became a
member of the United steel Workers USW, and we got
to meet him back then. There he was active in
his local union almost immediately. He served as shop steward
and eventually he became vice president. He served three terms
(01:02):
as local president and in twenty twenty one was elected
president of the Trade Union Confederation of the Americas. That
is not only a prestigious post, it's an international post.
Check out the afl CIO. They're doing so much. Their
website is aflcio dot org. They handle on Blue Skies
at aflcio dot org, their handle on Facebook, Instagram and
(01:23):
x is at aflcio. And Secretary Treasurer Redmond is his
handle on x is at St Redmond. Well, Secretary Redmond,
good to have you with us. There's so much to
talk about. You just wrapped up the afl CIO wrapped.
It's a Better Union nationwide bus tour.
Speaker 3 (01:46):
Tell us about this.
Speaker 2 (01:47):
It was twenty six states, forty plus cities. What was
the goal, what was the message?
Speaker 1 (01:53):
Well, thank you, Leslie.
Speaker 4 (01:55):
It's a pleagure to be with you for the last
couple of months. Last Sol two and a half month,
myself and President Schuler and many of our national presidents
from our executive councils, we decided to go around the
country and to really really have a conversation with workers
around the country. And you know, our tour has really
(02:17):
given workers an opportunity to share their thoughts, their frustrations,
their anger, and a lot of cases with this administration
and the situation that's happening with workers. So you know,
I was all in all, the tour's been successful. We've
been amplifying the voice of workers around this country, and
(02:39):
you know, they have really been expressing themselves in terms
of how do they feel about this attack on collective
bargaining where we have seen over a million government workers
lose their collective bargaining rights. They have some serious concerns
about cuts to medicaid, they have serious concerns about the
(03:00):
elimination of the Department of Education, and workers are concerned.
They're pissed off, you know, and what the tour was
designed to do was to amplify their voices and to
make sure that we're giving workers a platform to really
really state their frustrations.
Speaker 2 (03:19):
You know what I have to say, I commend you,
a President Schuler, for doing this. It's one thing to
take a phone call, to get a message, to read
an email, to have a poll, but to really get
out there to take the time face to face, shake
some hands, looking eyes, really listen to what people are doing.
It's grassroots. It's very successful for many politicians. We saw
(03:41):
AOC do it, Mondomnie is doing it in New York.
And your organizational mobilization was specifically for three areas, and
I wanted you maybe to tell us why these three
areas and the frustration of union workers are the millions
of the a fl CIO And this was for freedom, fairness,
us and security. Talk to us about freedom, talk to
(04:03):
us about fairness, and talk to us about security and
the concerns that the afl CIO millions of members have
throughout this country.
Speaker 4 (04:10):
Well, we titled our bus towards Freedom, Fairness and Security.
When we talk about freedom, we're talking about the freedom
to join the union, of freedom to participate in collective bargaining,
a free we're talking about the freedom to make sure
that the government is working for them. And when we
(04:31):
talk about fairness, you know, we're talking about building a economy,
an economic position where workers are put at first, not
the economy that's being constructed today by billionaires four billionaires.
And when we talk about fairness, we're not only talking
about a fair tax code, but we're talking about fairness
(04:54):
in the workplace where workers can have the protections of
OSHA and government agencies to provide for their safety on
the job. We're talking about fairness for workers to be
able to share and the wealth that they help to create.
And when we talk about security, we're basically focused on
retirement security, whereas after workers work all their lives to
(05:18):
provide for their families, that one day they can retire
with the dignity and self respect that they deserve. And
what we're finding under this administration is those three topics, okay,
are really on the jeopardy with the policy that's coming
out of the White House. I mean, the attacks on Medicaid,
(05:39):
the attacks on you know, which is going to raise
insurance rates throughout this country, the attacks on OSHA, the
elimination of certain departments in OSHA that provide for workers
health and safety on the job. So fairness, freedom and
security is the things that we've been focusing on. And
(06:00):
it's bus on its bus tour.
Speaker 2 (06:03):
You know, speak to me Secretary Redmond about the frustration
because you know, we've talked for years and there is
a constant threat and frustration about big corporation. It's profiting
off the backs of working people. Is it fair to
say this administration and specifically policies within this administration continue
to raise cost more, which give corporations a green light
(06:26):
to profit more off the backs of working people and
to cut things that are essential life saving services. You know,
are you know, is this part of the gripes and
you know part of what they're pissed off.
Speaker 4 (06:39):
About, Oh, without a doubt, And you know what we're
saying through this administration, you know, the issue of income inequality.
You know, we're we're living in a time leslie where
the average CEO, the top one hundred CEOs in this country, okay,
based on numbers from the four than five hundred companies
(07:02):
you know, make two hundred and eighty five times what
their average worker makes. And that's unacceptable. I mean, you know,
workers are working harder and harder every day. The only
thing they're asking is to have a share in the
wealth that they help to create. And what we're seeing is,
particularly with these attacks on collective bargaining, is that workers
(07:24):
are being squeezed. Their voices are being silent. And one
thing about the freedom, Fairness and security busts to it
that we did. We're giving workers a voice where a
lot of their representatives in Congress have refused. The whole
town halls to hear their voices. So, you know, we
see that workers are feeling different than throughout my history
(07:48):
and the union then they've ever felt. I mean, these
issues have always been out there, but they've been so
exacerbated by this administration and its policies that workers are understanding, okay,
that we're shifting, slowly, shifting from a democracy to an
autocracy where only a few get to share in the
(08:09):
wealth of this country while the rest of us, you know,
is suffering.
Speaker 3 (08:15):
Yeah.
Speaker 2 (08:15):
Absolutely, to quote President Schuler, she said, working people are
the backbone of this country. We do the things our
community count on at schools and hospitals, factories and construction sites,
small and big businesses.
Speaker 3 (08:26):
Yet too many.
Speaker 2 (08:27):
Families can't keep food on the table, pay the rent
a for child's care. And you were talking Secretary Redman
about you know, Medicare or you know Medicaid. I know,
with the twenty six cities and excuse me, forty six
cities and forty cities in twenty six states joining picket lines, supporting,
organizing campaigns, visiting you know, veterans affairs, Medicaid funded facilities,
(08:49):
and hospitals. Some of these have been decimated gutted entirely
by Doge. These people are terrified about their future and
about their livelihood.
Speaker 3 (09:00):
And you know, these.
Speaker 2 (09:01):
People the only people they have to speak for them
are you guys at the AFLCIO are their union, because
like you said, their government's not listening, they won't take
the time to hear them, and they're not helping them.
Speaker 1 (09:13):
Yeah.
Speaker 4 (09:13):
Well, people got to understand the significance of Medicaid. One
out of every five children is born in the United States.
You know, their birth is covered through Medicaid. I mean,
Medicaid is not some program just for the indigen and
the poor. I mean people who adopt children wars of
the state, those children are on Medicaid. People who have
(09:34):
handicapped children, those children are on Medicaid. And workers throughout
this country know that they know that they're going to
feel this pain by this administration and for what to
give more tax breaks to the richest people in this country.
The billionaires and workers are saying that, you know, this
isn't what they voted for. A lot of our members
(09:56):
voted for this guy, you know, but they didn't vote
for this, know, they didn't. Both the City Department of
Education decimated, They didn't both for that. So workers are
expressing their resentment, their frustrations, you know through these buzz
tours where in a lot of cases, a lot of
places we go in the rare States, a lot of
(10:17):
places we go, you know, they're not afforded an audience
with their congress people.
Speaker 3 (10:22):
And that's that's just unc Yeah, absolutely country.
Speaker 2 (10:25):
But if it took a quick break, we'll be back
with Secretary Treasurer Fred Redman for the afl CIO. Check
out their website aflcio dot org on Blue Sky, follow
at aflcio dot org and on Facebook, Instagram and X
follow at a fl CIO. Secretary Treasurer Redmond is on
X as well at St Redmen. And by the way,
(10:46):
many seniors have many many when you look at their
insurance it's Medicare Medicaid, so you're hurting seniors and disabled,
not just the.
Speaker 3 (10:55):
Poor folks in the country. Will be back right out.
Speaker 2 (11:02):
We are back on Leslie Marshall and we have Secretary
Treasurer Fred Redmond from the afl CIO joining us. Follow
him on X at st Redman and check out on Facebook,
Instagram and X the afl CIO. They have a lot
of information there at a fl CIO also on blue
Sky at aflcio dot org and their website. Like I said,
you want information, or you want to find out you
(11:23):
know a little bit more, you want somebody to back
you as a hard working American. Go to aflcio dot
org for more information. Secretary redmand thank you for holding
welcome back. Well, we have a four day week courtesy
of people that are hard workers. Labor Day wouldn't be
possible without the laborers who've made it possible. Tell us
(11:44):
about the afl CIO workers Labor Day. Workers deserve week
of action.
Speaker 4 (11:50):
Well, this Week of Action, it's been a good week
the afl CIO. We sponsored over one thousand events and
around nine hundred cities around the country. And this Worker's
Labor Day Week, it's a celebration of working people and
it's a celebration of the power that we have when
(12:10):
we come together in the union, and we have the
power to take back our country for working people and
not billionaires. So it's about expressing our solidarity because we know,
as leash Shuler stated and you accurately quoted, that workers
built this country and we feel very strongly that workers
(12:32):
deserve an economy a government and a country for the people,
not the billionaires. And in the streets and on the
shop floor and union halls and halls of Congress, this
worker's Labor Day week has shown that the billionaires who
we are and how we fight. I mean, we've been
(12:53):
showing up. We've had huge crowds at these events we've had.
We've been in the rallies, picnics, parades. I'm in New
York today. We're going to have a large parade in
the city of New York tomorrow and workers are turning
out in record numbers.
Speaker 1 (13:09):
You know.
Speaker 4 (13:10):
Speaking to a gentleman in Philadelphia last week and well
Monday during Labor Day, I was in Philadelphia and I
was speaking to a gentleman, a retiree, and he said,
I've never never marched in a Labor Day parade, but
with the situation in this country was too important. And
he brought his wife out, his kids, his grandkids, and
(13:33):
he said, you know, we've got to make sure that
we're showing up, that our voices are being heard because
this cannot be tolerated. People are literally seeing the destruction
of their country. They're recognizing it. Workers recognizing it, and
they're showing up. So it's been a tremendous experience this
Labor Day, this Labor Day Week, and what we've been
(13:54):
doing is just offering the platform for workers to come
out and express their frustration.
Speaker 2 (14:01):
Yeah, you know, again, to quote President Schuler, big corporations
and billionaires like Elon Musk and President Trump launched the
biggest attacks on unions in history because they know that
when we stand together, we have.
Speaker 3 (14:11):
The power to speak out and fight back.
Speaker 2 (14:13):
Interestingly enough, in the first Trump administration, they demonized unions.
Really you would think that unions went to blame for
almost every ill in the United States of America.
Speaker 3 (14:22):
But something good came out of that.
Speaker 2 (14:24):
More and more people unionized, right, Unions became you know,
more popular, more people joined unions. Uh, you know, membership
went up, and it continues to do that. But you need,
you need to treat your workers. You know, you need
to treat your workers better than the CEO. You know,
the people that are rowing the boat need to be,
(14:46):
you know, treated better than the captain, you know who's
you know.
Speaker 3 (14:49):
Standing at the helm.
Speaker 2 (14:50):
And unions get that, and I think most Americans get that,
you know, speaking of the American people are rooting.
Speaker 3 (14:57):
For the workers.
Speaker 2 (14:57):
Right, more than seventy percent of America, nearly nine out
of ten younger people, people younger than thirty support unions,
so they're supporting this fight for freedom, fairness and security.
So in a way, I guess we should thank the
demonization because it's led to people being more supportive of
unions and more people joining unions, which is a good
(15:19):
thing for workers and hopefully in the future a good
thing for the work the working class overall in the fabric.
Speaker 3 (15:25):
Of America, the working fabric of America.
Speaker 1 (15:28):
Right.
Speaker 4 (15:28):
Well, polls up show Leslie, you're exactly right that we're
polling in terms of favorability ratings. We're polling twenty percent
higher in terms of trust than the Democrat or Republican parties.
I mean, people are betting for their you know, self
respect and their freedom, their security, you know, through the
(15:50):
labor movement, because they're realizing that the labor movement is
the voice where workers can really really rally together, show
solidarity and turn this around. So, you know, through the
leadership of President Schuler, you know, we've been very very
conscious of the heartbeat of workers around this country, and
(16:12):
we've been rallying workers around this country.
Speaker 1 (16:14):
If we could get.
Speaker 4 (16:17):
Organizing elections through the NLRB with this president has deestimated, okay,
But if we could get board elections today, okay, then
we can organize thousands of workers. If we could get
petitions out of the RB. You know, but because of
the situation with the firing of Glenn Wilcox, the lack
of a form, you know, all of those petitions are
(16:39):
on hold. But what workers are realizing is that to
workers solidarity, when workers stand together, and when we really
live through that expression, that injury to one is injury
to all. Workers are realizing that this is a fight
that we all have to engage in. And like the
gentleman told me at the rally, you know, you know
(17:00):
we got to show up. You know, we have to
show up. We have to make sure our voices is
heard and it's threw.
Speaker 2 (17:06):
Out absolutely, especially when you have and not just cuts.
Let's talk about the executive order. Let's talk about union
busting executive orders and issued right before Labor Day. This
is like a middle finger to the workers. Right, there
was a march order that ripped away collective bargaining rights,
(17:27):
which he has now expanded from workers at NASA. The
International Trade Association, the US Patent and Trademark Office, the
National Weather Service, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, the
US Agency Global Media, the Bureau of Reclamation, and others.
And he did this just ahead of Labor Day. Is
this president flipping the bird at unions and workers?
Speaker 1 (17:47):
Well?
Speaker 4 (17:48):
Absolutely. And that's on top of the four hundred thousand
workers whose contracts were counseled at the BA, the EPA,
the us DA. I mean, people that inspect our foods.
Come on, now, okay, I mean these are people who
get it.
Speaker 2 (18:05):
I mean, and I'm not trying to have a pun
here at recipe. It is a recipe for desire. I mean,
come on, whether it's vaccines or or whether it's food
infection or cancer research. This is frightening where we're headed.
It really is, especially for the hard working middle class
American worker.
Speaker 1 (18:23):
Right, this is very frightening.
Speaker 4 (18:25):
And you know, listening to the testimony of Robert Kennedy yesterday,
I mean, it's just it's just devastating to hear that
a person who's a non Baxter, okay, is trying to
justify eliminating vaccines.
Speaker 1 (18:43):
So, I mean, we were whose.
Speaker 2 (18:46):
Six children by the way, you're all vaccinated, are.
Speaker 4 (18:48):
All vaccinating, That's correct. So we're living in very very
difficult times. And the thing that gives holds to people,
you know, I'm proud to say it's the labor movement.
They see us out there, they see fighting. We're fighting
in the courts, we're fighting in the streets. But the
key thing that we're doing is we're organizing workers around
this country. Unionized workers and non union workers are coming
(19:12):
to the labor movement to join into this movement for freedom, fairness,
and security.
Speaker 1 (19:17):
And we're going to keep fighting.
Speaker 4 (19:19):
You know, We're going to continue to fight into the
mid terms and beyond until we can restore a sense
of sanity to our government and make sure that workers
around this country is being treated fairly.
Speaker 1 (19:32):
And look, do you.
Speaker 2 (19:33):
Think that not just you Secretary Treasury were Redmond, but
do you think the workers are surprised at how the
President chose to commemorate Labor Day by specifically, you know,
launching an all out attack on workers and unions, by
you know, expanding this executive order that started back in March.
Speaker 4 (19:53):
Yeah, I think workers are surprised and see it's our
job as a labor movement to really get out there.
Purpose of our bus tour, we're going to keep having
those conversations with workers to do what we call tea
ch hands and really really explain the workers what's happening.
And if workers, if the president, with the stroke of
a pen could eliminate collective bargaining rights for federal employees,
(20:17):
then workers in the private sector, Okay, it's naive if
they think that the same thing cannot happen to them.
That's the message that we're spreading, and that message is
taking root with workers around this country. None of us
is a mune from the attack from this president and
this administration. None of us as workers is a mune
(20:38):
because this president has issued an all out of attack
on working people throughout this country and organized labor.
Speaker 1 (20:46):
And we're gearing up and we're preparing for the fight.
Speaker 2 (20:51):
Secretary Redman, sixty seconds left last message. You'd like to
leave the last minute with our viewers and listeners.
Speaker 4 (20:59):
Well, you know, I just want to leave with your
viewers that Look, the numbers are clear, okay.
Speaker 1 (21:07):
Seventy eight thousand.
Speaker 4 (21:08):
That's the number of manufacturing jobs, not including the day's
jobs report. Seventy eight thousand number of manufacturing jobs that
Trump has killed this year nearly two million. It's the
number of unemployment claims that workers have fouled since this
man became president, the largest in the history that we
(21:30):
have seen since twenty seventeen, nearly a million. This number
of federal workers who the Trump administration stripped of their
collective bargaining rights. And forty four percent of parents who
plan to go and plan to go in the debt,
you know, who can't afford to buy their kid school
(21:50):
supplies for this school semester because of the reckless tariffs
that has raised prices on goods throughout this country. So
the message that I want to leave to your view
as this administration is not working for us. It's working
for the billionaires and the CEOs. But we have to
stand together and push back like those who came before us.
Speaker 1 (22:11):
There we followed the.
Speaker 4 (22:12):
Carnegie, the Carnegies, we fought the Fricks, we fought the Melons,
and we are prepared and we're going to continue to
fight Trump until workers see that.
Speaker 1 (22:21):
Just do.
Speaker 3 (22:23):
And we thank you for that to count on you
for that.
Speaker 2 (22:26):
Secretary Treasurer bred Redman of the AFL CIO, please check
out their website aflcio dot org. I'm Blue Sky. Follow
them at aflcio dot org and on Facebook, Instagram and
X follow them at a fl cio. You can also
follow Secretary redmand on X. His handle is at St Redmond.
I'm Listenie Marshall. A shout out to market Marcomaldi, Executive producer,
(22:49):
and thank everybody for watching and for listening our two
guests in this hour, Always more to come here.
Speaker 3 (22:55):
I'm the only truth, democracy and talk
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