2025 Missouri AFL-CIO Joint Legislative Conference Report
The 2025 Joint Legislative Conference began on Monday, March 24, 2025, in Jefferson City, MO. Participating unions were the Machinists (IAM), Communication Workers (CWA), Transport Workers, United Food and Commercial Workers (UFCW), and the UAW. The UAW had representatives from across the state in attendance.
The conference began on Tuesday, March 25th with an introduction by Jake Hummel, President of the MO AFL-CIO. He introduced the Minority Leader of the Missouri House of Representatives Ashley Aune a Democrat from District 14. Rep. Aune, like most of the speakers kept her comments to around 10 minutes. She mentioned how proud she was to be a Democrat fighting for all working people. She stressed that “we work for you, we work for our constituents.” She emphasized how helpful and important it is for us to show up and talk to our elected official’s person-to-person.
She was followed by several State Representatives and State Senators including two Republican representatives, both of which were from Jefferson County. Representatives Amato and Casteel both highlighted their approach to working with unions and the labor movement.
Democratic Senators Doug Beck and Stephen Weber highlighted their legislation to increase apprenticeship opportunities for minorities and all interested Missourians. One of their priorities is to help keep workers aware that the next big fight is likely in the near future. Unions should keep their members informed about changes that may affect their working lives. Senator Beck stated his red line is Republican attempts to eliminate the voter-approved Paid Sick Leave benefits in Proposition A.
Democratic U.S. Congressman Wesley Bell appeared via video and is prepared to help any way he can with issues in Washington D.C.
The CWA had two local union elected officials share how important it is for Missouri to use the $2.7 billion dollars allocated to the state from the Infrastructure Act to build broadband/internet access across the Show-Me state. 1 in 5 Missourians does not have access to the internet, mainly in rural areas. The Trump administration is currently trying to take back funds for fiber-optic service and replace with satellite internet.
Talking to Legislators
Speaking to our elected officials about current legislation and its effect on workers was a focus of this conference. The ten delegates from UAW local 2250 along with the rest of the labor advocates headed to the capitol for some discussion. We each contacted the office of our respective State Representative and Senator. Often, we would “wolf-pack” the official by having one of us speak while the others were with them for support and impact! We also shared the hand-written letters we had prepared on the importance of not reducing unemployment benefits. In conversations with one Representative that was supporting eliminating the Paid Leave provisions of voter-approved and UAW endorsed Proposition A we heard that paid leave would harm small businesses. Our response was to question the many tax cuts for the wealthy and corporations currently being considered. If the state budget could afford these tax cuts for the well-off, we should use those funds to honor the votes of Missourians. One option would be to use those funds to provide tax credits or incentives for small businesses that provide paid leave. This would ensure workers get their paid leave, businesses benefit, and Missourians see their votes honored.
For those members that do not know the history of this event, it was once a yearly get-together that had several hundred attendees. COVID ended that. As Representative Aune emphasized, it is important to see our officials face-to-face. We are proud to help in rebuilding this cornerstone of democracy in Missouri. Hopefully, next year we can send more members and have an even bigger impact!
The photo below is of the UAW delegation.
