Transcript of Remarks at the North America's Building Trades Unions Legislative Conference
Statement
Speaker Nancy Pelosi joined government, labor, political and business leaders at the North America's Building Trades Unions Legislative Conference. Below are the Speaker's remarks:
Speaker Pelosi. Good morning. Good morning to each and every one of you. And good morning to Sean's dad who is here today. Thank you for the leadership that you have imbued your wonderful son with. Good morning.
Good morning, Sean. Thank you for your very kind words of introduction, which I accept on behalf of the House Democrats -- whose courage made all of those accomplishments possible from the standpoint of the House of Representatives. As Speaker of the House, it is my honor to bring greetings to all of you from the House of Representatives. Thank you for your work to strengthen our middle class, which is the backbone of our democracy. Our democracy and our middle class have a union label on it.
[Applause]
Thank you, President Sean McGarvey, for the gracious introduction, for your leadership for more than -- on behalf of more than three million hard working men and women. Let us also salute Secretary-Treasurer Brent Booker and the entire Governing Board of Presidents. Thank all of you.
[Applause]
And thank you for serving as a steadfast voice for the builders: our workers who forged our nation's foundation. It is a pleasure to join you in person once again. Isn't it nice to be together again?
[Applause]
Since we last gathered in our nation's capital three years ago, NABTU's members -- the North American Building Trades Union members have weathered unprecedented threats to your health, your lives and to your livelihoods. As we recover from the pandemic, House Democrats are committed to building on the progress that you have won for America's craft workers. And we proudly stand with you in the fight to assure -- ensure that every American has access to the rights and dignities that come with a union. Because as I said before, the middle class is the backbone of our democracy -- and the middle class has a union label on it. It bears repetition.
[Applause]
And I thank all of you. I thank all of you. I thank all of you, and I'll tell you as we go. Your union, the North [America's] Building Trades Union -- I like to say the whole name -- and your partners are reshaping our economy, one worker at a time. Operating 1,600 training centers across America, recruiting 75,000 new apprentices every year -- the Building Trades have set the gold standard for workforce training. Your apprentices earn while they learn, and making -- imagine this: over the course of their careers, making more, $300,000 more than they would have without their apprenticeship.
For many Americans -- and that's an applause line.
[Applause]
For many Americans, the Building Trades are a desperately needed lifeline -- a beacon of hope and systemic economic justice. As a Californian, it is a point of pride that two-thirds of NABTU's California apprentices are people of color. And let me thank our -- Mr. Meredith and our Members from California -- Rudy Gonzalez of San Francisco Building Trades. And speaking of California, San Francisco's own Terry O' Sullivan of LiUNA.
With "Helmets to Hardhats,' you are helping our heroes in uniform step into good-paying jobs when their service comes to an end. Lot of veterans in this room, I know. We owe you so much. And in the trade union movement, you have made your contribution once again -- continue your contribution to our country.
And through initiatives like "Tradeswomen Build Nation,' tradeswomen are -- I associate myself with the Secretary's remarks that: "women and drywall, women of steel' -- you are opening doors for working women. Later, you'll hear from President Liz Shuler, a trailblazing voice for America's labor movement and the first woman to lead the AFL-CIO.
[Applause]
President Shuler is always proud to point out the labor movement is the nation's largest organization of working women: 6.5 million strong and growing, thanks in large part to the Building Trades.
[Applause]
Those efforts are touching communities across the country. I have seen the impacts firsthand in my city of San Francisco -- a proud union town.
[Applause]
Again, let us salute our union brothers from California. Once again, the General President Terry O'Sullivan, a proud San Francisco native; the California Building Trades' new President, Andrew Meredith.
Thank you, Andrew.
[Applause]
And my friends from the San Francisco Building Trades, President Larry Mazzola, Jr. -- who has unionism in his blood -- and Secretary-Treasurer Rudy Gonzalez. The other day, I was at an event in San Francisco with, with some of our union friends, and I mentioned -- and Larry Mazzola, Jr. was there -- and I mentioned that 35 years ago, when I first was running for Congress, one of the first people to endorse me was Larry -- was Joe Mazzola, his father. Now, you're all too young to remember Joe Mazzola -- this is 75 years ago -- but we had lunch, Larry was there, his kid. Now he's retiring. So I'm very indebted to the -- our plumbers in San Francisco for that endorsement.
[Applause]
Last month, I had the pleasure of inviting one of your sisters to be my virtual guest at President Biden's State of the Union. Meg-Anne Pryor is a lifelong San Francisco who found a craft, a livelihood in a community through Operating Engineers Local 3. Meg-Anne got her start --
[Applause]
-- as an apprentice, quickly rising through the ranks. As Local 3 District Apprenticeship Coordinator, she is now helping Bay Area women access the same training that changed her life. Now two apprentices -- apprenticeships are a model for success. That is why Congressional Democrats are committed to helping you put more Americans on the path to the middle class.
As we open the doors for the next generation of builders, we are preserving the promise of the secure, hard-earned retirement. Now, let me thank you and let me thank Sean. Let me say this about Sean: relentless, persistent, dissatisfied until the job is done.
[Applause]
Is that right Sean? Is it so?
[Applause]
Persistent is such a modest word for it. I'm trying to think of something deeper than that.
But when it came to pensions -- in other words, let me just say this. My whole thing about running for office and everything is about the children, the children. Their health, their education, the economic security of their families, including the pension security of their seniors, of their grandparents. And for far too long, multi-employer pension plans teetered on the edge of collapse, threatening the benefits of more than three million Americans -- in the bill -- we dealt with.
Last year, with President Biden at the helm, as Democrats took control of the White House and both chambers of Congress, we delivered urgently needed assistance. As part of our American Rescue Plan, which was the first bill -- that was the big trillion-dollar bill to help America's working families -- it contained the Butch Lewis Emergency Pension Plan Relief Act. Delivering --
[Applause]
Thank you. The applause is for you. Thank you, because without -- with your advocacy and Sean's persistence and those of all of these folks sitting up here, we are delivering $86 billion to more than 200 pension plans, restoring payments for [retirees] who lost out on promised income and securing these benefits for years to come. That was last year.
Then, further into the year, in November, Democrats delivered another victory for working people with our Bipartisan Infrastructure Law. We secured --
[Applause]
-- historic investments to rebuild our nation's infrastructure. Again, as we further transform our middle-class -- thanks to President Biden's leadership -- the infrastructure law is now creating good-paying union jobs for the NABTU members to work with.
Here's what it does: the largest investment in passenger rail since the creation of Amtrak, the largest investment in bridges since President Eisenhower, the largest-ever investment in public transit, the largest-ever investment in our water systems, helping to get the lead out of our children's drinking water, and an historic investment in our nation's airports, to name a few.
[Applause]
I was -- Rudy Gonzalez in San Francisco, Building Trades, when we talked about our -- our airports and, and other projects that we are doing there.
Democrats have fought for and won prevailing wage protections for federally infrastructure -- federally funded infrastructure projects.
[Applause]
Davis-Bacon, Davis-Bacon, Davis-Bacon.
[Applause]
And these investments rebuild communities. They -- as these investments rebuild community, they are protecting the livelihoods of the craft workers getting the job done. We stand firm in our support for the Davis-Bacon Act. And we will continue defending the tools that workers need to take home a fair paycheck: from prevailing wage laws to project labor agreements -- which the Administration just expanded, project labor agreements.
[Applause]
And of course, collective bargaining. As the Biden Administration implements the infrastructure law, House Democrats are working to further power the success of our workers. Earlier this year, the House passed the America COMPETES Act to turbocharge our economic -- economy's success at home and its competitiveness abroad. This legislation will help us Make It In America!
[Applause]
Bringing manufacturing back to our shores, investing in registered apprenticeships, creating nearly one million new apprenticeship opportunities across the nation. Thank you for your leadership in that. And all together, the COMPETES Act means one thing -- I'm going to use a four letter word: jobs, jobs, jobs, jobs.
[Applause]
These investments will create good-paying opportunities for union workers and ensure that American labor, talent and ingenuity continue to dominate on the world stage.
As we create new paths to prosperity for all Americans, Democrats are also working to protect American's rights and freedoms on the job. Nearly half of Americans would join a union if they had the opportunity. You've seen those surveys. Workers are discovering the propellant -- the profound power of solidarity: from construction workers to video game developers, to brave Amazon [employees] -- employees who just organized in New York. Brave Amazon employees!
[Applause]
But union-busting employers and outdated labor laws continue to stand in their way. That is why the Democratic House has twice passed the Richard L. Trumka PRO Act.
[Applause]
Named for a giant of the labor movement, this landmark legislation will strengthen Americans' freedom to join or organize a union. In memory of President Trumka's lifelong service to labor movement, let us continue fighting to make the PRO Act the law of the land. We must do that.
[Applause]
So once again, on behalf of the Congress and the country, thank you. Each one of you: know your power. Have the confidence that your mobile -- your outside mobility, your advocacy -- relentless, persistent, dissatisfied leadership of Sean and other leaders who are up here. Thank you for your leadership, for your solidarity and your immense talent. House Democrats are proud to be your partners in progress. And we will continue working alongside you to Build a Better America: to create good-paying jobs -- good-paying jobs, connecting our communities -- infrastructure-wise and broadband, strengthen our supply chains and lowering the cost for working families. Lowering the cost for working families.
Our inside maneuvering on Capitol Hill is important; but there's only so much we can accomplish on our own. We also need your outside advocacy and mobilization. Because nobody can mobilize behind a righteous cause like the American Building Trades. Know your power!
[Applause]
This is your movement. This is your moment. And together we will win our shared fight for the future that working families deserve.
Now, let me just say this: this is not a political meeting. This is a policy meeting. But just in case you're wondering, Democrats in the House, Democrats in the Congress, have no intention of losing the election in November. Absolutely no intention.
[Applause]
We want to work in the most bipartisan way, in the most transparent way, in the most unifying for our way. And last week, we all came together, and I know that Senator Murkowski referenced this to honor, lying in state in the Capitol, our colleague, Chairman John -- Don Young. We miss him. A Republican who shared our values in many -- not all -- in many of our, our concerns. So again, we want to be unifying, we want to be bipartisan, we want to be transparent, but we want to be winners.
Thank you for the honor of joining you today. Solidarity forever! We don't agonize, we organize, we unionize!
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