This weekend, International President John Costa, who lives by his saying, you can’t run a union from your office, joined members from across the Midwest in Riverside, Iowa, to hear directly from them about what's happening on the ground, from contract fights to new technology threatening our jobs.
"The Midwest is a model for what ATU does best," said Costa. "From the historic $1.5 billion in transit funding in Illinois that saved jobs and protected our operators by requiring floor-to-ceiling protective barriers in buses, to the groundbreaking apprenticeship programs building the next generation of transit workers in Minnesota, our Locals here are leading the way. And you're not stopping there by fighting every day in statehouses across this region to make sure automation never replaces the people who serve our communities. This isn’t just a union, it’s a movement."
Members also heard a deep dive from ATU International staff from our Strategic Research, Legal, and Collective Bargaining departments on technology and what it means for the future of our jobs, from microtransit to automated vehicles to surveillance. Our Health & Safety department also presented on effective Safety Committees, which ATU fought to pass, giving workers a real voice in their working conditions.
The Midwest isn't waiting for the future of transit to happen to you. You're building it. Thank you to all the Locals from Iowa, Michigan, Illinois, Minnesota, Missouri, Milwaukee, Wisconsin, Kansas, Nebraska, and Oklahoma who attended, and to the Midwest Conference President, Todd Strasser, and the entire Board for their leadership.
Also attending the conference were International Executive Vice President Yvette Trujillo, International Secretary Treasurer Ken Kirk, and International Vice Presidents Marcellis Barnes, Gary Johnson, Natalie Cruz, Mark Henry, Kenneth Day, and Carly Allen, who proudly represent members across the Midwest.