UWSWA & Alabama AFL-CIO Celebrate Partnership
For more than 60 years, UWSWA and Alabama AFL-CIO have partnered together to improve the quality of life in the community. Recently, Bren Riley, the President of Alabama AFL-CIO, and its membership re-affirmed that partnership.
“United Way is a long-time partner of the working men and women of AFL-CIO affiliated labor unions, working to assist families in need, and this partnership has truly made a difference,” said Donald Adams, a member of the local union No. 505 I.B.E.W. and a UWSWA Board member. “Not only is the aim to lend support on an immediate basis, but our organizations share the goal of finding long-term solutions to social and community service needs.”
At the heart of the partnership is community service. Community service is the foundation of the labor movement. As unions have grown and matured, their efforts and commitment to help working families and improve community life has grown and matured right along with it.
“Community service is more than handing someone a bag of groceries when they are hungry,” stated Will Fischer, AFL-CIO Community Services Director for United Way. “It’s about creating an environment in which working families can live, work, and flourish in vibrant communities.”
UWSWA believes communities are strengthened by uniting and mobilizing resources in support of the building blocks for a better life: health, education, financial stability, and essentials. AFL-CIO members help further this vision by serving on nonprofit boards, collecting funds to provide vital services for the unemployed and underemployed, and coordinating educational programs to union members.
“Together,” Adams believes, “we can make a real investment in our communities, our country, and our future.”
Each year, UWSWA awards two Labor awards in honor of two distinguished Labor workers: Red Leachman and W.O. Mozingo. Leachman was the first Labor Liaison for UWSWA while Mozingo is considered the father of the labor movement in southwest Alabama and served on the UWSWA Board of Directors.
This year, the Red Leachman Community Service Award was awarded to UA Plumbers & Pipefitters Local 119 and the W.O. Mozingo Community Service Award was given to Swan Cleveland of Sheet Metal Workers Local 441.