After four years of a tumultuous US presidency, devoid of all values that unions embody, the ETF welcomes the results of the recent elections which will see Biden-Harris take office in 2021.
Trade unions across the US supported Biden’s campaign and worked tirelessly to ensure that he becomes the 46th president of the United States. Wins in key union cities such a Pittsburgh, a tangible example of the fruit of their labours, propelled him to victory.
The Biden-Harris campaign put forward a bold pro-worker agenda that will further enable workers to join together and collectively bargain for better pay and working conditions. We stand by our sister unions who will now fight to ensure that this promise to make the USA a better place for all workers is upheld.
Despite our distant geographical positions, traditionally and globally, European and American unions are the backbone of transport unions. We have worked closely for decades through solidarity actions, especially around Multinational Corporations, and in the aviation and maritime industry. Side by side, we have fought against harmful trade agreements and arrangements that would have undermined the rights of transport workers on both sides of the Atlantic.
Now, as we see a proliferation of US-based digital platforms, our workers’ rights are once again interconnected, and we look forward to meeting the challenge of the gig economy head-on with our American colleagues.
This important win for America’s labour movement will certainly bring about stronger ties between trade unions in Europe and the US. They can count on us for support. We may be far apart, but our trade union values and our fight are one and the same.