Today, in Orlando, FL, International President John Costa joined more than 250 Local leaders from across North America gathered for the 2025 ATU CAN-AM Conference, one of the largest conferences to date, to discuss the ATU’s shared purpose and strategies to strengthen our Union.
After a warm welcome from host Local 1596 President/Business Agent Willie Delgado, Costa brought up all of our Florida Locals, to kick off the Conference by sharing the extreme challenges our Locals face due to union busting legislation like SB 256 while also shining a light on the extraordinary work being done to fight back.
“These Locals are fighting for their lives, for their very survival, every single day. They’ve come together to not only fight for themselves, but to fight for all of us because any one of us can be next. Together, and only together, are we able to combat the anti-union forces that want to destroy us.” Costa then gave an amazing rundown of other battles being waged, Local by Local, State by State, reminding our members of our collective strength. “You are not alone,” said Costa. “That’s why this isn’t just a Union, it’s a movement. A movement fueled by courage, solidarity, and the unbreakable belief that when we stand united, we are unstoppable.”
One of the day’s sessions featured a presentation from ATU staff on microtransit, preparing our members for the on-demand service that is fundamentally changing our industry. The ATU is all too familiar with privatization, which is why our Locals are fighting to ensure that microtransit services meet the highest standards possible. Our leaders learned how to negotiate to keep work in-house with good wages and benefits, and organize microtransit workers into our Union wherever we can.
Also in attendance and addressing the conference were International Executive Vice President Yvette Trujillo, International Secretary-Treasurer Ken Kirk, along with International Vice Presidents Manny Sforza, Curtis Howard, Natalie Cruz, Anthony Garland, Steve MacDougall, Ken Wilson, Amanda Sawyer-Turner, Jacques Chapman, Mark Henry, ATU Canada President John Di Nino, and ATU CAN-AM President Danny Casella, Local 726-Staten Island, NY.