Connect With Us

On Labor Day, Transportation Workers Look to Leaders for Solutions

WASHINGTON, DC — Edward Wytkind, President of the Transportation Trades Department, AFL-CIO (TTD), offers the following statement in advance of the Labor Day holiday:

“On this Labor Day, transportation workers and working people across America continue to suffer as they look to their elected leaders for bold action.

“The economic recovery bill championed by the President and passed by the Congress saved our economy from complete collapse.  Just in the transportation sector alone, at least 1.5 million workers gained employment or saw their job saved thanks to this initiative.  But more action is needed and the stonewalling tactics of the minority party must end for the good of the country.

“While we anticipate more gridlock in Washington at the hands of a few politicians, we will not relent in our campaign to pass key transportation legislation that will put Americans to work.  The long overdue aviation and surface transportation authorization bills, combined with the President’s historic high speed rail initiative and needed investments in maritime and port facilities would put millions to work in the types of good, long-term jobs that continue to evade too many Americans.  These multi-year investments will also rebuild, expand and modernize our decaying infrastructure, deploy new technologies that bring great promise for more efficient passenger and freight transportation systems, boost our manufacturing sector and make transportation safer for its users and workers.

“As the stimulus bill has proven, infrastructure investments are proven job creators at a time when people need paychecks. While Congress should pass another aggressive jobs bill this fall, the aviation and surface transportation bills are ready-made jobs bills that have supported good jobs for generations of workers in transportation, construction, manufacturing and other sectors.

“As the next round of elections draws near, we will be looking to our elected officials for leadership on the issues that confront transportation workers who — like the rest of Americans — suffer from unemployment, home foreclosures and lost pensions and health care.

“There can be no better way for our elected leaders to honor working people on this Labor Day than to use their voices in Washington to put Americans back to work.”

###

The Transportation Trades Department, AFL-CIO, represents 32 member unions in the aviation, rail, transit, trucking, highway, longshore, maritime and related industries. For more information, visit ttd.org.

Attached Document or File This press release on TTD letterhead