New York, NY — The National Labor and Management Conference (NLMC) was founded in 1978 by the Hon. Louis Levine, former New York State Commissioner of Labor and Industry, to bring together the labor management community to discuss the issues most pressing to Taft-Hartley Funds and the wider community.
In 2025, the NLMC will be hosted at The Diplomat Resort in Hollywood, Florida, from February 13-18.
William “Bill” Raisch is the National Labor Management Conference (NLMC) Chair, and since 1999, Bill has chaired the NLMC program. He has also worked with conference founder Louis Levine, on its operations and strategic direction. Raisch’s professional focus is on advancing impactful collaboration on urgent challenges and opportunities. He sees collaboration as vital to our nation going forward. “If we come together with a focus on the facts, apply common sense critical thinking with a willingness to learn from each other, and compromise where need be, there is no challenge that we can’t overcome,” he says.
LaborPress spoke with Raisch to learn about the upcoming Conference, its goals, mission, who will be its key speakers, and much more.
LP: What are the NLMC’s goals?
WR: The National Labor and Management Conference serves as a unique forum to address the critical issues of the moment affecting both labor and management. It is distinct in its focus on weaving together a network of key stakeholders vital to spurring insights, innovations and essential collaborations. Relationships are built and information shared throughout the conference in and out of the formal program.
The NLMC features both the leading and established voices of the labor and management community as well as new exciting voices with innovative ideas and approaches. The forum consistently presents timely and significant issues from the varying perspectives of management, labor and subject matter experts, and provides stimulating exchanges of views on, and approaches to, shared challenges and opportunities.
Our goals are to bring together key stakeholders to:
- better understand key challenges and opportunities
- identify potential strategies to address them and
- where appropriate establish and/or support collaborative efforts to further these strategies.
LP: What are some of the stand-out issues and topics that will be addressed at the Conference?
WR: Critical issues to be addressed include those relating to:
Urgent Labor-Management challenges such as: opportunities in an increasingly dynamic environment, including the prospects for the US and global economies, the political landscape with the incoming Trump administration, the current and evolving regulatory environment, the investment environment, health and medical insights/innovations and their impacts on health plans, and wider industrial and labor relations issues.
Also, best practices in Multi-Employer Pension and Health and Welfare Funds Operations, and spotlights on successful labor-management collaborations worthy of wider application.
LP: Who generally participates in the conference?
WR: There are a wide range of key stakeholders participating in the NLMC including:
- Trustees and directors of multi-employer health and welfare and pension funds
- Fund administrators
- Union leadership
- Senior corporate management
- Government officials
- Subject matter experts and solution providers including
- Labor lawyers, fund counsel and advisors
- Labor relations professionals from both labor and management
LP: Which key thought leaders will speak at the Conference?
WP: Labor Leaders:
- James Williams, President, IUPAT
- Sean McGarvey, President, NABTU
- Brian Bryant, President, IAMAW
- Sean O’Brien, President, IBT
- John Samuelsen, President, TWU
- Sara Nelson, President, AFA
Labor and Management Roundtables:
Teams of labor leaders and their management counterparts share their strategies for successful resolution.
Insights from the Hill:
Congressman Tom Suozzi (NY-3), Co-Vice Chair of the bipartisan of Problem Solver Caucus, shares insights into Washington’s evolving landscape.
LP: Where can people learn more and register?
WR: www.laborandmanagement.org
