WASHINGTON — Nearly two decades after splitting, two major labor unions announced they are reuniting just days before President-elect Donald Trump takes office again.
The Service Employees International Union announced Wednesday that it will rejoin the AFL-CIO, an association of 60 member unions. With the addition of SEIU, its membership will expand to 15 million workers.
The second Trump administration, which will be inaugurated within two weeks, is expected to take a markedly different view of labor unions than the Biden administration. But AFL-CIO and SEIU leaders said the decision to merge was not political.
“If you look at the election results, the idea that this is political couldn’t be further from the truth,” AFL-CIO President Liz Schuller said in an interview.
At the same time, union leaders said they are ready to protect workers when President Trump takes office. Both unions had backed Vice President Kamala Harris in the 2024 election, calling Trump’s policies “devastating” and “anti-worker.”
“We don’t look at the threats that may come our way with rose-colored glasses,” SEIU International President April Verrett said in an interview.
Schuller said the union will use its organizational strength to respond to the threat with a “very strong defense” while also going on the offensive.
“We are probably the only institution in the country that has the infrastructure in every city, in every state, in every workplace, to be a mobilization machine,” she said. “And, as the saying goes, external power builds internal power.”
Approximately 2 million SEIU members work in hospitals, schools, law enforcement, and other settings. AFL-CIO’s affiliate unions include the American Federation of Public Employees, the American Federation of Teachers, and the United Auto Workers union. Union members are employed by a variety of large corporations across the United States, including General Motors, Disney, and the United States Postal Service. (Many NBC News employees are affiliated with the AFL-CIO through the News Guild, which is part of the Communications Workers of America.)
Shuler and Verrett said talks about joining forces had been going on for years.
“This is an important moment and a strong signal, of course, but we think it’s something that’s building and something that really lasts for the long term,” Schuller said, adding that the collaboration will be strengthened. since she took office in 2021.
Verrett said the SEIU board has authorized the union to more formally discuss membership with the AFL-CIO in June 2023.
Ken Jacobs, senior policy adviser at the University of California, Berkeley’s Labor Center, said the announcement makes SEIU “part of a broader coalition in decision-making about priorities.” He noted that the first Trump administration was “extremely hostile to workers.”
“I also think this is a pretty clear reflection of how important worker solidarity is going to be over the next four years with a Trump administration that is expected to be hostile to worker interests.” said Jacobs. .
President Trump’s press secretary did not respond to a request for comment Wednesday night.
President Trump has promised to bring back jobs lost overseas and revitalize the auto industry.
Meanwhile, President Trump allies Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy, co-directors of a new non-governmental organization, the Office of Government Efficiency, are proposing large-scale employment changes for government employees in the incoming Trump administration. This has led to opposition from labor unions. Mr. Trump has criticized the United Auto Workers union, and many unions endorsed Ms. Harris last year.
Still, President Trump’s efforts to win the hearts and minds of union members have been effective in forcing the Teamsters, one of the major labor unions that have long supported the Democratic Party, to decline support for the presidential candidate. has been proven.
