Union building on the worksite

This Op-Ed is part one of a two-part series on building union power from the rank-and-file workforce upward.

Make no mistake: unions, their members and the public we serve are under attack.

Actions by the Trump administration and Congress, outlined in their “Project 2025” blueprint, signal an effort to expand the power of the billionaire class at our expense. The so-called “Big Beautiful Bill” targets public services and jobs to fund tax cuts for corporations and the wealthy.

Our services, healthcare and jobs are all at stake.

The most effective way to fight back is to strengthen unions from the grassroots level in the workplace. Too many union leaders, particularly at the top, make decisions without consulting, educating or involving members.

The result is confusion, frustration and demoralization. In too many cases, union staff do not regularly visit worksites or follow up on complaints.

Members begin to feel powerless, creating conditions where outside anti-union groups can exploit that frustration and encourage workers to leave their unions. We are already seeing such efforts from “right-to-work” groups.

Shop stewards and activists do not have to wait for direction from leadership to organize. Building power can begin with workplace education and mobilization, ensuring that members’ questions about rules, contracts and services are answered promptly.

When necessary, stewards must fight for members and demonstrate genuine commitment. That is how trust is built and how leadership emerges.

I can speak from experience.

I worked at Bellevue Hospital for 42 years and became a shop steward in 1979. At the time, I was a CETA worker—a program created under the Comprehensive Employment and Training Act in the early 1970s.

When the federal government moved to eliminate the program by the end of the decade, the city planned layoffs. At the same time, public hospitals faced closure, which was another direct threat to our jobs.

Even before becoming a steward, I got involved in both fights. Inside the hospital, I distributed literature, circulated petitions and organized CETA workers into a workplace committee.

Together, we joined a citywide coalition and District Council 37 to fight layoffs, and we became active in the Citywide Coalition to Save Our Hospitals. These efforts successfully stopped both layoffs and hospital closures.

Through this work, members began to see me as an activist. After my first year, I ran for shop steward.

At the time, many stewards did little to defend members from management abuses. I chose a different approach.

Members respect stewards who are willing to stand up to management. You may not win every battle, but you earn respect by fighting for what’s right.

Too often, members heard, “There’s nothing I can do.” That’s rarely true. There is always something you can do even if it’s offering honest guidance.

I later ran for chief steward and won decisively, defeating a longtime incumbent backed by union staff in a large turnout by a 2-1 margin. I then recruited other committed members who were willing to challenge management and encouraged them to become stewards. At a large workplace like Bellevue, with more than 800 members, success depends on teamwork.

As a public employee, I understood that decisions made at City Hall, in Albany and in Washington directly impacted us. I communicated that to members and encouraged their involvement in broader campaigns fighting budget cuts, opposing hospital privatization, and supporting causes like the South African anti-apartheid movement.

Our grassroots organizing earned us recognition, and I even had the opportunity to meet Nelson Mandela during his visit to New York.

We mobilized members to gather petitions and letters, engaged with the public and collaborated with community groups. We organized Black History programs and other events. As co-chair of the Bellevue Childcare Center Coalition, I helped establish the on-site childcare center that still serves workers today.

Public support is critical in defending services. Beyond petitions and letters, I joined the Bellevue Community Advisory Board and became its first legislative chair. This allowed us to bring more community organizations into coalitions to resist cuts.

We also engaged in political campaigns, such as David Dinkins’ mayoral run. While we could not campaign inside the hospital, we distributed literature outside before and after work as well as during lunch breaks. It’s essential for members to understand the connection between politics and their working conditions.

Our organizing efforts were so effective that Bellevue was selected as the site for a massive anti-Medicaid cuts rally in the mid-1990s, organized by DC 37 and Local 1199 of the Service Employees International Union. Tens of thousands of union members and healthcare advocates participated.

We essentially emptied the hospital that day and successfully pushed back against severe cuts for years.

Attendance at union meetings grew dramatically from about 10 people to as many as 150. That kind of growth requires consistent outreach and strong workplace networks. Activists were recruited as a network in every department that played a role in building that momentum.

Throughout this time, I never publicly attacked union leadership, even when support was lacking. However, I did organize a rally at DC 37 during a delegate meeting to demand more assistance and respect from staff. That action demonstrated the strength of our membership and got leadership’s attention.

Members followed our lead in community and political engagement because we had proven our commitment by fighting for them on the job. That credibility matters.

I later served as Second Vice President of Local 1549, DC 37, for 20 years, applying the lessons I learned through grassroots organizing on a broader scale.

Building a strong union takes time, energy and courage. Find like-minded coworkers, stand up to management when necessary, and involve members in the process.

It can be done.