Building Political Power for Working People

Written By Aaron Thomas

Dear UAW Sibling,

September has been a challenging month for working people in many respects, including escalating actions by the Trump administration to limit free speech, intimidate working people, and consolidate power among a small group of billionaires. Meanwhile, real problems working people face – cost of living, food insecurity, access to advanced and affordable healthcare, and more – go unaddressed.

In this challenging moment, UAW members are stepping up and building an ambitious political agenda to take back power for working people. In California, members are organizing to pass the redistricting measure Prop 50, to fight back against Trump’s attempts to rig the midterms and continue his assault on public funding. Members are also organizing to pass legislation that would establish $23 billion in funding for a California state research foundation, to ensure continuing support for lifesaving research on cancer treatments, disaster preparedness, and more. Members in every part of the Region have been organizing mass Town Halls, Science Fairs, and other actions to show elected officials the impact of members’ work. And members have been mobilizing to pass bold new legislation, SB-787, that will help put the future of green manufacturing in California into workers’ hands.

There’s a lot of work to do to advance all of these areas and more. But with every UAW member’s participation – mobilizing coworkers, developing leadership skills, having hard conversations – we can build the movement needed to win. As UAW President Shawn Fain said in his recent op-ed, “everything we do – the strikes, the contracts, the organizing breakthroughs – it’s about one thing: building power. If we want to restore dignity and stability for working people, then we have to grow our movement.” Keep reading to learn more about all of this work and how you can get involved!

Science and Health Research Funding in California 

Trump’s reckless cuts to research funding threaten lifesaving work on cancer, chronic disease, disaster relief, and more. UAW members have been taking mass action on multiple fronts for months, and are now building an ambitious plan in California to establish a state research foundation with $23 billion in funding to keep critical research work alive.

The California Science and Health Research Bond Act (SB-607) would establish an institution at the state level that is akin to the National Institutes of Health (NIH) or the National Science Foundation (NSF). It would be charged with making grants and loans to universities, research companies, and health care organizations. The bill will need the Legislature’s approval to be placed on the California ballot in 2026. This initiative will go some way to securing funding for the important scientific work our members do, and have a positive impact on public health, the environment, and our communities.

This month, UAW members at UCLA also organized a Science Fair for Cancelled Research, where researchers shared the public importance of their work, and showed the impact of Trump’s $600M cuts that suspended 800+ projects.

WSU Research Funding Roundtable

This month, over 200 UAW 4591 Academic Student Employees, Postdocs and community members at Washington State University joined a roundtable with a representative from U.S. Senator Patty Murray’s office to discuss the importance of continued federal research funding at WSU, Pacific Northwest National Labs and beyond. Murray’s office emphasized continued support against the federal budget cuts towards scientific research, and committed to continuing to address this issue on the senate floor, including by sharing examples from ASEs at WSU to emphasize why scientific research is important, how it impacts communities and the economy, and how the cuts will be detrimental to these projects. 

Several ASEs from WSU, including graduate students and undergraduate academic student employees, and faculty spoke on how their research impacts the Palouse community. Examples included research focused on salmon and plant production, proper creation of materials for MRI machines, and studying the effects of diabetes on reproductive systems. These discussions demonstrated how WSU research is geared towards bettering our community, especially in the face of climate change and emerging medical needs. Moreover, it showcased how Congress’ proposed federal budget cuts for 2026 would be devastating to our community, affect livelihoods, and weaken our economy.

Organize, Industrialize, Decarbonize

California’s economy is not working for the working class, and it is not working for our planet. Billionaires are raking in record profits, while millions struggle to meet their basic needs and the planet burns. Working people cannot afford to let private companies dictate what is and isn’t possible based on what’s best for their bottom line. It’s time for California to embrace a bold new economic strategy to create tens of thousands of new union jobs, rapidly slash greenhouse gas emissions, and drive down energy costs for working class communities.

The state must stand ready to finance and build the zero-emission technologies we need to meet our climate goals and create the high-quality union jobs our communities need to thrive. This will require embracing time-tested industrial policy tools like strategic stockpiles, centralized procurement, and public enterprises. UAW Region 6 is leading the fight for this pro-worker green industrial policy that empowers the state government to shape growth for the greatest public good. We outline this vision in our new report, Organize, Industrialize, Decarbonize! A Pro-Worker, Green Industrial Policy for California. Download and read our new report and join the effort to organize, industrialize, and decarbonize.

Yes on California Proposition 50

Region 6 members in California: vote YES on Prop 50! And help get the word out by joining fellow union members to phonebank or knock doors. 

Since regaining the White House, Donald Trump and his billionaire backers have pushed through a relentless barrage of reactionary policies – lavishing tax breaks on the rich, cutting education, health, and science funding, dismantling and canceling clean energy initiatives, and more. One facet of his ruthless rule has been the aggregation of autocratic power through executive orders, arbitrary and illegal firings of public servants, and rewriting the rules of the democratic game to rig the system in favor of Republicans.

To further consolidate his hold on power and advance the billionaires’ class agenda, Trump called on state Republican politicians to pass gerrymandering legislation to preserve and expand on their current congressional majority. Gerrymandering has been a problem for far too long in US politics. Right now in most states, legislators can vote to redraw district lines to benefit themselves – with legislators deciding who they will represent rather than the public deciding who we want to represent us.

The stakes are high in this blatant power grab: if Trump succeeds in redrawing the congressional map to secure a permanent Republican majority, the working class will be left in the cold while the billionaires enjoy an inside track in Congress to advance their agenda. Trump’s attempt to eliminate $32 billion in public support for lifesaving research has largely been stymied in Congress, thanks to the strong advocacy of UAW members across the country. But with a permanent Republican majority, Trump could easily eliminate this funding in the future. Such cuts would devastate California’s economy and our own careers. 

That’s why workers are coming together to pass California’s Proposition 50, a ballot initiative to neutralize Trump’s gerrymandering. On November 4, 2025, there will be a special election in California that puts the question of political representation to the voters. In this democratic process, voters will be able to decide who represents them and what we want public priorities to be.

Alongside the California Federation of Labor, UAW Region 6 members are mobilizing fellow union members and their families to urge them to vote YES on Prop 50. Please join in the effort by signing up to phonebank and canvass in support of Prop 50.

California Legislative Priorities

UAW Region 6 members in California have been busy this summer fighting for the passage of important legislation in the California legislature, including descending upon Sacramento to lobby legislators in person. These efforts are paying off. 

One priority bill is SB-787. Introduced by California State Senator Jerry McNerney and sponsored by UAW Region 6, SB-787 would create a Senior Counselor position on Equitable Clean Energy Supply Chains within the California Energy Commission. The goal is to coordinate state investment, regulation, and industry planning to accelerate decarbonization, deliver affordable energy goods and services, and create a large base of middle class, union supply chain, and installation jobs in three strategic clean economy sectors: vehicles, homes, and grid storage batteries; building decarbonization and heat pumps; and offshore wind. The legislation has garnered widespread support from a coalition of over 40 organizations and positive accolades in the press. It passed the California legislature this month and heads to the governor’s desk to sign.

UAW Region 6 lobbying efforts in August also helped to pass the California Endangered Species Act (AB-1319), a bill sponsored by Assemblymember Nick Schultz and supported in particular by CAPS members in Local 1115. It, too, goes to Governor Newsom’s desk for his signature. 

Another important victory is a UAW-sponsored provision included SB-86, which institutes California’s first ever manufacturing workforce standard in the state’s largest manufacturing subsidy program. And last, but certainly not least, UAW-endorsed SB-63 has cleared the California legislature and heads to the Governor’s desk. As its sponsor State Senator Scott Wiener notes, the bill “authorizes a regional funding measure on the November 2026 ballot to provide transit systems with sustainable funding to provide safe, clean, and reliable service across the Bay Area.”

UAW Region 6 Retired Workers Conference

More than 50 UAW retirees came together for the annual UAW Region 6 Retired Workers Conference. Retirees gave reportbacks on their actions at their Local Chapters and Area Councils, met with Benefits Reps, and discussed getting involved in our regional political plans, including our campaign to pass Prop 50 in California. Coming out of the conference, retirees discussed getting more organized in their locals and area councils to continue building power for our union!

UAW Region 6 Endorses Katie Porter

In August, UAW Region 6 was the first major union to endorse Katie Porter for California governor. Since our announcement, other unions have joined in endorsing her candidacy, including the The Western States Council of Sheet Metal Workers and Teamsters California. Together these unions represent tens of thousands of workers across several industries and trades who see in Porter a champion of working peoples’ interests against the billionaire class. Recent polling by Emerson College shows Porter leading all contenders by a significant margin.

Message from Region 6 Director Mike Miller

The Trump administration is aggressively pursuing an anti-worker, anti-immigrant agenda, targeting people’s healthcare, jobs, and education. One line of the administration’s attack has been to undermine, defund, and discredit the research carried out by scientists, researchers, and public servants in a variety of public interest areas, including medicine, climate change, green energy, and more.

UAW members in Region 6 and across the country are standing up to this assault and fighting back – organizing new units, supporting key legislation and ballot measures, lobbying politicians, endorsing candidates for election, and more. Our struggle for workers’ interests and dignity is – and must be – multifaceted. 

This month, Research and Public Service Professionals (RPSP-UAW) voted overwhelmingly – with 83.42% in favor – to unionize with UAW, and soon will be negotiating their first union contract.

In the political arena, we have important opportunities to advance working class policies. A few are worth mentioning here briefly. UAW Region 6 members are backing a California ballot initiative that would create an institution at the state level that is akin to the National Institutes of Health (NIH) or the National Science Foundation (NSF). It would be tasked with making grants and loans to universities, research institutes, and health care organizations. It would go some way toward ensuring that life-saving and natural disaster-preventing research cut by the Trump Administration remains funded.

The California Science and Health Research Bond Act (SB-607), a UAW-sponsored bill, was introduced in the California legislature this month by UAW-endorsed state senator Scott Wiener and assemblymember José Luis Solache, Jr. It will need the legislature’s approval to be placed on the California ballot in 2026. Region 6 members must do everything we can to advocate for this very important measure, which will have a huge positive impact on our members, their livelihoods, scientific progress, public health, and the environment. 

As I told the New York Times recently, “It should be up to Californians, not Donald Trump, to decide whether or not we fund lifesaving research in cancer treatment, disease diagnostics, chronic diseases, climate science, wildfire preparedness and more.”

Another important measure concerns the pursuit of Equitable Clean Energy Supply Chains (SB-787). This UAW-sponsored bill, introduced by UAW-endorsed Senator McNerney, would create a Senior Counselor position within the California Energy Commission charged with coordinating state investment, regulation, and industry planning to accelerate decarbonization, deliver affordable energy, and create a large base of middle class, union supply chain and installation jobs. This bill passed the California legislature and awaits the governor’s signature. We must pressure the governor to sign it.

Last, but certainly not least, is Proposition 50, which is highlighted elsewhere in this newsletter. On November 4, 2025, there will be a special election in California to thwart Trump’s attempt to rig the democratic system through partisan gerrymandering. UAW members in Region 6 endorsed this measure and are urging a “yes” vote. We need to get behind this ballot initiative and ensure it wins. UAW Region 6 members will be canvassing and phonebanking alongside other labor unions and organizations to ensure its victory. Please get involved in this effort to pass Proposition 50, and more broadly, to engage in building a strong political program that can win on workers’ issues this November. We must end the Trump trifecta in 2026.

More Updates from Around the Region

  • Research and Public Service Professionals at University of California overwhelmingly WON their union with a 83.42% YES vote. Now on to win a strong first contract that will improve working conditions and contribute to a more equitable and sustainable UC!

  • Staff at Root and Rebound (Local 2320) have been on strike for SIX MONTHS, in one of the longest strikes in the Local’s recent history. Support striking workers by joining a benefit event on October 14 in Oakland, or contributing to the strike fund!

  • Earlier this month, hundreds of members of Local 872, UF-UAW, AFA-UAW, and URFU-UAW at University of Southern California held a rally to demand a Fair USC Now, where they delivered letters signed by thousands of workers calling on USC admin to respect the right of faculty to form a union and bargain a fair contract with postdocs. 

  • The UAW 492 Women’s Committee is fundraising to support breast cancer research, and joining the Breast Cancer walk in Portland on October 19. Help them reach their fundraising goal by contributing here. 

  • The third cohort of the Our Labor, Our Movement (OLOM) organizer training program comes to a close this month. This year’s cohort included more than 20 new organizers who spent the summer developing core skills for building worker-led organizing campaigns – including 1-1 conversations, identifying and developing leaders, and more. Onward!

The UAW Research Department is Hiring!

The UAW Research Department in Detroit is hiring a researcher and financial strategist. The position will provide support for the Research Department within the President’s Office. This role will act as a liaison with UAW staff and affiliates and report to the Director of the Research Department. The UAW Research Department is responsible for in-depth analyses of companies, industries, and the economy. From contract costing and COLA proposals, to identifying industry trends and policy shifts, the Department’s analyses are used to support bargaining, organizing, and policy campaigns. Please see the job listing here for more details on the position and how to apply.

UAW Region 6 is Hiring a Servicing Representative!

UAW Region 6 is hiring a Servicing Representative. Servicing Representatives are highly experienced staff who work with Local Unions to build worker power and represent workers in collective bargaining, as well as participate in developing the Union’s programs to organize and achieve social justice. Staff in these positions also support new organizing drives and coalition-building with other unions and social justice organizations. The position will be based in Oakland, California and may require extensive travel, including overnight stays out of town, daily driving, evening and weekend work. The job listing will be posted this week on UAW’s Indeed site.

Upcoming events

Aaron Thomas
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Learning from the Past, Building a Movement for the Future