NEJB Executive Board Endorses Bernie Sanders for President

Today we are proud to announce that the rank and file leaders of the Executive Board of the New England Joint Board UNITE HERE have unanimously voted to endorse Bernie Sanders for President of the United States. Our union represents 10,000 workers in the six New England states and New York in the manufacturing, distribution, laundry, hospitality, and human services industries. Our members work in factories, mills, warehouses, industrial laundries, cafeterias, casinos, hotels, group homes, and offices. We are a union of immigrant workers, with women and people of color representing a majority of our membership.

Bernie is the candidate who has spent his life fighting alongside the working class. In these times where big banks, corporations, and the wealthy few have enormous power over our political system we need a President who will stand with the workers of this country. We believe in the multiracial, multi-generational, working class movement that Bernie Sanders is leading to bring social, economic, and racial justice to all. We share Bernie’s belief that the best way to confront the massive inequality imposed on our country is through empowering workers through a strong labor movement. When we expand the rights of workers and strengthen unions, we can rebuild America’s working class. The health insurance crisis is one we have to face every day at the bargaining table where ever-increasing insurance costs are exacerbating what are already difficult negotiations. While we are proud to offer our members some of the best quality medical insurance in the region, we support Medicare for All because we believe everyone should have health insurance as a right. We believe in a Green New Deal because as low wage workers and people of color we know that the climate crisis will have a disproportionate effect on us. We must act now to ensure a sustainable future for our children. We believe in Bernie’s plan to protect and expand Social Security because working class Americans deserve to retire with dignity. Bernie knows that we are a nation of immigrants and shares our belief that we must welcome those who seek the American dream, build our communities, and strengthen our economy. We support his plan to implement an immigration system grounded in compassion, and civil and human rights. We share Bernie’s belief that our nation can be the most prosperous and true to its ideals when that prosperity is shared by everyone.

Today we pledge to lend our collective voice to the grassroots movement behind Bernie’s campaign. We will stand together and we will fight for each other. Not me. Us.

 In Solidarity,

Executive Board of the New England Joint Board UNITE HERE