A Labor Day Message from John R. Durso, President, Local 338 RWDSU/UFCW
September 5, 2011
Labor Day is such a special holiday as we celebrate the working women and men of our wonderful country. We in the labor movement have a great deal to be proud of, for each and every day we fight on behalf of our members and for those who have no voice. We fight for justice in our society and for the dignity and respect that every working women and man deserve.
We fight for our future and for our children’s future; we have lead the struggle for people of every race, creed, sexual orientation or national origin to be treated equally and fairly.
We stand on the shoulders of those who came before us, those who fought and sometimes died to give us the rights we all enjoy. Today our movement is smaller than it once was and we are under attack from corporate America and the right wing of this country but we are no less vocal nor are we less powerful. Ask the people in Wisconsin, Ohio, Michigan and New Jersey see if those Unions and those Union members feel out of touch or powerless.
We must reach out to our young and educate them on who we are and what we do, we need to open our doors and our hearts to those who are different then us but who yearn for the same things we do.
To all those who say that labor’s time has passed or that unions are no longer needed I say ask the workers at Wal-Mart, ask the workers at Circuit City who were fired because they made to much money and then were offered their jobs back at lower salaries.
The labor movement has many battles yet to fight, nothing has ever been given to us, we have had to fight to get and to keep all that we have. We must be prepared to do that once again! We represent the hopes and the dreams of the less fortunate; we give strength to the weak and courage to the meek.
We are what makes America great, be proud to be Union person and enjoy our holiday; you have earned it.
