For 20 years, Lynne Larkin-Wright helped union members get through the ‘bumps on the road’

July 28, 2020 by

Lynne Larkin-Wright receives a letter of appreciation from U.S. Rep. Betty McCollum for her four decades of service to the community. McCollum’s district director, Josh Straka, presented the letter on her behalf.

Lynne Larkin-Wright had been in the workforce five years when her father, George, a member and officer of Laborers Local 132, confronted her with a question: “Why would you work anything other than union?”

Soon thereafter, Larkin-Wright never did. She took a job with the City of St. Paul, where she would remain for 20 years as a member of Local 2508 of the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees.

Her father was onto something.

“Just knowing how much better your life can be and how much more stable your life can be, rather than being at the whim of someone else,” Larkin-Wright said. “It makes such a difference.”

But a union card isn’t a shield against economic hardship. Layoffs, downturns, work stoppages and unexpected medical expenses are just some of the life events that can throw union members’ lives into turmoil.

When union members in the East Metro have found themselves in economic crisis over the last 20 years, they’ve had a friend in Larkin-Wright, who retired July 2 from her position as an AFL-CIO Community Services liaison with the St. Paul Labor Studies and Resource Center. The LSRC is the nonprofit arm of the St. Paul Regional Labor Federation, and a longstanding partner organization of Greater Twin Cities United Way.

Larkin-Wright reflected on that partnership – and the 40 years she’s spent in the local labor movement – in this interview, published in the August 2020 issue of The Union Advocate.

UA: How did you go from payroll clerk at the city to AFL-CIO Community Services liaison?

LLW: At some point the city and my union loaned me to the United Way to help raise money at campaign time. I was also on the board of United Way of St. Paul as a labor representative, where I worked in fund-distribution with local nonprofits. I also got involved on the Community Services Committee as a delegate to the St. Paul Trades and Labor Assembly, and went through their union counselor training, learning about resources available in the community.

UA: Tell me about your dad’s influence on your career path.

LLW: When we were kids, we were the first on the block to buy a color TV. I have a friend who reminds me of it to this day! We had good health insurance and dental insurance. My mother, she lived 20 years longer than my dad, but she never had to worry about paying for surgery or medication or dialysis. All the work Dad did maintaining good contracts for members helped him as well.

UA: You remained a dues-paying member of AFSCME Local 2508 even after leaving the city. What has it meant to be part of that union?

LLW: Getting involved in my local was one of the best things I ever did. That and being loaned to the United Way, those are the two best things that ever happened to me. After getting up and public speaking at United Way meetings, when I went back to my local, I wouldn’t say no to getting up and saying something in front of the City Council. I’m sure for the city it was like, “Look what we’ve created!”

But for me it was a huge shift. I remember one of the first things (former RLF President) Shar Knutson had me do in this job was go in front of the City Council and request a Workers Memorial Day proclamation. I remember thinking, “I don’t know if I need to do that.” But I marched up there and did it. And it opened up a path to a lot of things I didn’t know I could do.

Lynne Larkin-Wright’s appointment to the United Way board made news in the the Feb. 21, 1994, issue of The Union Advocate.

UA: What else surprised you about the job?

LLW: I remember in my interview there were like 13 people at the table. Shar always wanted to have other people’s input, and I think because we were friends, she also wanted to make sure there wasn’t any bias, that I had all the tools.

But the work we were doing 20 years ago is different than the work we’re doing now. And it will change again. I think that’s the beauty of what the United Way does. They change based on the needs of the community. Every United Way is different because every community is different. That means LSRC’s program is going to change, and we have to.

UA: What’s changed in 20 years?

LLW: People used to come in with one thing that was going on. You helped them with that, and they were on their way. Now the issues are multiple. I think health care is a big piece of that. Retirement security is a big piece of that.

UA: What’s the one resource you wish more people knew about?

LLW: We’ve been talking about United Way 211 first call for help for 40 years! People still don’t know it’s out there. But also our program, for union members to know that it’s a resource that’s there, and that Community Services liaisons are there to help? You can only say those things so many times.

Union folks aren’t used to asking for help. They’re used to being the folks out there helping. I’ve seen that recently with unemployment. People are proud and want to take care of themselves, but we all experience bumps on the road of life. If there’s help out there to make that path a little less bumpy, why not take it?

UA: What’s kept you doing this work? What’s been frustrating?

LLW: I really liked reducing stress for folks, even if it’s temporary. That has been so rewarding. I’ve been very fortunate to do this work.

The frustrating part? You can encourage people to help themselves, but sometimes they don’t. All you can do is keep encouraging people in the right direction.

UA: You’ve built so many relationships in this movement. What are some that have meant the most?

LLW: I’ve been blessed to work with great people, and not everybody can say that. I’ve still got friends I worked with 40 years ago!

I had been mentored by several people and didn’t even realize it was happening. Wayne Wittman (former Community Services Committee chair and Machinists union delegate) was a big one, and so were Shar and Robin Madsen from AFSCME. We did a lot of fun things, and we got a lot of good stuff done. Getting up at 8 a.m. on a Saturday and pounding lawn signs with other unions, or having picnics together – knowing we were all in the same boat, working together.

Because if employers find out they can divide you? Well, good luck.

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Resources for workers impacted by COVID-19 response

March 30, 2020 by

Efforts to halt the spread of COVID-19 are creating immediate economic hardship for many working families.  

Minnesota employers slashed payrolls after Gov. Tim Walz issued emergency orders temporarily shutting down restaurants, schools, movie theaters and other spaces where contagion was likely to occur.

As of last Friday, over 204,000 Minnesotans had applied for unemployment insurance benefits, flooding the state’s website with such a high volume of traffic that the agency today rolled out a new process limiting who can apply on certain days of the week based on Social Security number.

Unions, meanwhile, have been busy advocating for broad health and economic protections for workers during the pandemic response, while also scrambling to connect impacted members with support they need.

Twin Cities worker center CTUL, which advocates for people working in low-wage industries, has compiled a “Know Your Rights” list with information on access to safety equipment, earned sick time and other protections during the COVID-19 emergency.

The Saint Paul Labor Studies and Resource Center, the nonprofit arm of the St. Paul Regional Labor Federation, has compiled a evolving list of resources that may be available to help people make ends meet during the public-health crisis. 

Unemployment Insurance can provide immediate, emergency relief for many workers impacted by COVID-19, including people who have been laid off or who have seen their hours reduced. Gov. Tim Walz moved quickly to streamline UI benefits during the crisis.

People seeking health insurance during the COVID-19 outbreak can shop for coverage on the state’s health exchange, MNsure.org. 

Greater Twin Cities United Way is a longstanding partner in the AFL-CIO Community Services program, and the nonprofit is stepping up to help working families during the COVID-19 response in several ways. 

Evictions have been suspended during the COVID-19 pandemic, but resources remain are available to working people concerned about keeping their homes. 

Financial assistance may be available through your county. Call to arrange an intake interview. 

Xcel Energy has announced it will not disconnect any household’s utilities during the pandemic. Learn more about the company’s response here. 

Some schools are giving students free meals while schools are closed due to the COVID-19 virus. 

The deadline for filing state and federal income taxes has been pushed back to July 15, 2020. 

Student loan borrowers may be able to suspend payments during the pandemic response. Click here for more information. 

The American Red Cross has a “critical need” for blood donors right now. To schedule an appointment call  651-291-6789, or click here to find a drive. 

Be on the lookout for scams! Here’s a list of tips from the Federal Trade Commission on how to avoid scams related to the coronavirus. 

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Labor Chorus summer concert is July 26

June 30, 2016 by

Labor Sing 2016-page-001The Twin Cities Labor Chorus plans to get loud at the library during its annual summer concert July 26, billed as a “night of song, solidarity and rediscovering the power of raising our voices together.”

  • What: The Fourth Annual Twin Cities Labor Sing
  • When: 7 p.m. Tuesday, July 26
  • Where: East Side Freedom Library, 1105 Greenbrier St.

The concert will include a freewill collection, with donations supporting the work of the non-profit East Side Freedom Library and the AFL-CIO Community Services programs of the St. Paul and Minneapolis regional labor federations.

The Twin Cities Labor Chorus is made of union members, allies and retirees who join together to exercise the power of music and communal singing. The group sings at rallies and picket lines, at labor events, and in support of social justice campaigns throughout the Twin Cities. The chorus receives funding from local unions and the Minnesota Clean Water, Land and Legacy Amendment.

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Remembering Wayne Wittman, the conscience of St. Paul’s labor community

February 28, 2016 by

Wayne Wittman, who served as chair of the St. Paul Regional Labor Federation’s Community Services Committee for three decades, died unexpectedly Wednesday. He was 86.

A passionate activist for peace and social justice, Wittman attended the labor federation’s first meeting at the new St. Paul Labor Center earlier this month. Today at the same labor hall (353 West 7th St.), friends and family will gather for a celebration of life from 4 to 7 p.m. [Click to view Wittman’s Pioneer Press obituary.]

Wittman guided St. Paul’s Community Services Committee through a pivotal time in its history, helping expand the labor movement’s relationships with non-profit, faith and social-justice organizations. For Wittman, the committee’s work was an extension of his day job as an advocate for Minnesotans with disabilities.

Wayne and Joan Wittman accept an award for their activsm from the DFL Party.
Wittman (L) observing elections in El Salvador with Ernest Jenkins.
Community Services Chair.

A member of AFSCME and, later, the Machinists union, Wittman was appointed Community Services Committee chair in 1983. St. Paul was going through a rocky economic time, with union shops like Whirlpool, Grain Belt, American Hoist and Derrick, and Schmidt’s closing or relocating, leaving hundreds of workers without jobs.

Labor leaders looked to the Community Services program to help – a role, former Community Services liaison Bob Bonacorda said, program staff hadn’t taken on before.

“We were deluged with plant closings,” Bonacorda said. “The Assembly leadership was looking for ways we could use the Community Services program to deal with the downturn in the economy.

“Prior to that, we dealt with Boy Scouts and Girl Scouts, blood drives and that sort of thing – all good things, all helpful things. But we had to switch gears, and it was important that Wayne had an open mind. It was a whole new ballgame for us.”

With Wittman as chair, the Community Services Committee began setting up programs designed to address the needs of union workers left jobless by St. Paul’s changing economy.

The committee started a rapid-response program, which put Community Services liaisons in job sites and union halls as soon as news broke that layoffs were coming so they could direct workers to available services and resources. The committee also solicited donations to an Emergency Fund, which liaisons could tap to provide assistance to individual members in dire financial straits. Both programs remain in place today.

Wittman brought a rolodex full of connections to the Community Services Committee. He served as a deacon at Sacred Heart Catholic Church and was a founding member of the local chapter of Veterans for Peace.

He also made more than 15 trips to El Salvador, working as an international election observer and advocate for two principles: “Peace and justice,” he said. “I’m called that way. Peace and justice issues motivate me to be active. I know that work changes things.”

Colleagues in the labor movement will remember Wittman’s quiet strength, humility and willingness to serve.

Shar Knutson, former president of the St. Paul RLF and the Minnesota AFL-CIO, called Wittman “the conscience of the labor movement in the East Metro.”

“He’s always been on the workers’ side,” Knutson said. “He’s always been on the side of those who need help. In his gentle way, he has been able to make such a difference for our community.”

“I know that things change when people take an interest and articulate and participate,” Wittman told The Advocate in 2010. “If I figure out what I can do as one person to make sense out of this crazy world we live in, then I have some purpose in life.”

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Turning t-shirts into totes on United Way Day at the Labor Pavilion

September 1, 2015 by

web.unitedway-fair-closeVolunteer fairgoers helped repurpose about 85 t-shirts into reusable tote bags for a Minneapolis food shelf yesterday during United Way Day at the Minnesota AFL-CIO Labor Pavilion.

“Most food shelves have a lack of bags to send food out,” Greater Twin Cities United Way volunteer coordinator Mary Smith said. “They never seem to have enough because bags aren’t something people think to donate.”

During planning sessions for United Way Day, AFL-CIO Community Services liaisons and United Way staff saw an opportunity to put the agency’s inventory of unused t-shirts from previous campaign events to good use.

Several fairgoers passing through the Labor Pavilion – many of them union members and their children – stopped to join the volunteer activity, which required basic scissors skills and took about 10 minutes. It was an opportunity, Smith said, to have a seat in the shade and support a good cause.

Volunteers counted toward Greater Twin Cities United Way’s goal of mobilizing 100,000 volunteers in its 100th anniversary year.
Cooper Lenz shows off the tote bag he finished at the Labor Pavilion.
Volunteers Claudia Brau (R) and Debra Madden-Petersen joined United Way Day at the Labor Pavilion in 2015.
Mary Smith (L), a volunteer manager with Greater Twin Cities United Way, helps Robin Walters of Oakdale with the project.
Judy and Gary Lothenbach pitch in during United Way Day at the Labor Pavilion.

Each volunteer also counts towards Greater Twin Cities United Way’s goal of mobilizing 100,000 volunteers in 2015, it’s 100th anniversary year. “We’re at about 61,000 now, so we’re well on our way,” Smith said.

Labor unions and United Way have long partnered together in support of fundraising and volunteer initiatives that support communities across the U.S., including the Twin Cities.

Organizers plan to donate the tote bags to NorthPoint Health and Wellness Center in Minneapolis.

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Stagehands’ youth movement pays off with organizing win at Varsity Theater

March 20, 2015 by

bbb75503272695698ad09fe38448f85e_400x400After an organizing drive fueled by young activists and backed by the International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees, workers at the Varsity Theater in Dinkytown have a union.

It’s the first successful organizing campaign for IATSE Local 13 in “many years,” according to Michael Abramson, co-chair of the Twin Cities-based union’s Young Worker Committee.

The National Labor Relations Board conducted the election earlier this month. Contract negotiations with the Varsity are set to begin soon, with employees seeking higher wages, benefit contributions from their employer and better working conditions.

“There are a lot of safety risks doing this work,” Abramson, who does lighting work at the Guthrie Theater, said. “So protecting the ability for someone to speak up about things they see – to say, ‘these conditions are deplorable’ – is really critical.”

[Learn more about young worker groups and how they are energizing unions across the state on the Minnesota Young Workers Facebook page.]

To start, the new unit includes just four permanent light and sound technicians employed by the theater. But the victory gives Local 13 a toehold inside the facility, where stagehands often are hired as independent contractors, and could expand in the future.

Local 13 actually collected 35 signed cards requesting union representation during the organizing drive, which began last November. Abramson, fellow committee co-chair Robert Barnwell, Local 13 representative Matt Rice and an organizer from the international union attempted to track down every stagehand who had worked in the Varsity over the previous year.

“It took a couple months,” Abramson said. “We were finding people on Facebook, guessing at the spelling of their names, whatever we could do.”

By the time they were finished, the union had a more comprehensive roster of people who had worked at the Varsity than the theater did.

Although the unit was restricted to employees who had averaged four hours of work per week over the last three months, the outreach effort raised awareness of the union among stagehands – and could set the stage for organizing drives at other small venues across the metro.

“One guy who did (independent contractor) work at the Varsity but works predominantly at another venue, he signed the card,” Abramson remembered, “then he said, ‘So when are you guys coming over here?’”

The organizing drive is just one way Local 13’s Young Worker Committee is attempting to rebrand the union and enhance its image in the Twin Cities events and entertainment scene. The committee just wrapped up a t-shirt drive, collecting the free shirts given to stagehands by touring acts – “Fleetwood Mac Local Crew,” for example – and donating them to charity.

“We all have closets full of t-shirts we never wear,” Abramson. “So we set up collection sites around town and worked with the AFL-CIO Community Services program to make sure the shirts go to good use.

“Hopefully we’re shedding some of the images of what the union is – the crusty old guy, or the old man’s club. We’re trying to make a younger presence known.”

Abramson welcomes inquiries from workers in the industry looking to improve safety, wages, benefits and working conditions at their shops. Email him at michael_abramson@iatse13.org.

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Dunn retires after nearly three decades of leadership at Teamsters Service Bureau

July 25, 2014 by

Jean Dunn

Jean Dunn

Over the last 28 years, the Minnesota Teamsters Service Bureau has progressed from an idea on paper to a fully realized human-services agency that serves both Teamsters families and non-Teamster dislocated workers statewide.

The woman who served as executive director of the Service Bureau for all 28 of those years, Jean Dunn, retired June 27, leaving behind a legacy of service, creativity and commitment to working families.

Ironically, when Dunn accepted the job in February 1986, she never intended to work more than five years with the Teamsters Service Bureau. But Dunn stayed, she said, because she never ran out of new challenges.

“It was such a wonderful opportunity,” Dunn said. “It was a brand new concept. The Teamsters had a vision, and they wanted somebody to implement it. It was just too good an opportunity to pass up.”

The vision that intrigued Dunn so much was this: a service agency that would assist union members with any problems not covered under their collective bargaining agreement. It remains the model for the Teamsters Service Bureau and other union Community Services agencies today.

“We called it a broad-brush human services program,” Dunn recalled. “It meant members could bring anything.”

And the members did just that. Dunn remembers providing assistance to a retiree having trouble balancing his checkbook one day, and to a union member who’s house was going into foreclosure the next.

“It was a very exciting place,” Dunn said. “We could treat the Teamster members with the respect an dignity they deserve, promise them confidentiality and be as creative as we possibly could with their problem solving. It was fabulous.”

Over the course of her 28 years heading the Service Bureau, Dunn never tired of the job, something she attributes to the sky’s-the-limit attitude approach Teamsters leadership encouraged the Service Bureau to adopt. The agency gradually expanded its mission and its reach, creating new challenges and opportunities for Dunn and her co-workers.

Under Dunn’s leadership the Service Bureau began seeking resources for new and innovative programming that would benefit Teamsters on the job, from workplace literacy initiatives to “career laddering” programs.

“I remember one bargaining unit that had gone through a great deal of growth, and the employer had brought in a lot of people from different cultures all at one time,” Dunn said. “It was very difficult for the workforce to know how to work with each other, but we were able to get some funds put together to help these workers understand each other.

“It was a vital and dynamic place to work because the Teamsters were willing to let us do whatever we thought would help the membership.”

At times, Dunn’s work meant she was helping workers outside the Teamsters’ membership as well.

In the 1990s the Service Bureau partnered with the Minnesota Business Partnership – an unlikely alliance, to be sure – to back a charter school, the Skills for Tomorrow High School. It focused on teaching children “what it means to go to work,” Dunn said, and the skills necessary to keep any job across all sectors of the economy.

Dunn also led the Service Bureau’s effort to become an independent grantee of the State of Minnesota’s Dislocated Worker Program, empowering the agency to provide retraining and job-seeking assistance to any worker – Teamster or not – who loses a job through no fault of her own.

“The state came to us and said, ‘We like what you’re doing, would you consider doing this program for non-union members?’” Dunn recalled. “We said sure, why not? If it’s going to help working people and we have the skills to do it, then OK.”

She won’t miss the stress of the job, but Dunn said she will miss working with the Service Bureau staff, the union’s leadership and its members.

“It was always a wonderful opportunity to interact with rank-and-file members and hear what they wanted, what their vision was and how well the Service Bureau was working for them,” Dunn said. “And the Teamsters leadership was a real resource to me on procedure and clarifying their vision to make sure the Service Bureau was always fulfilling their dreams.”

Dunn will be missed, according to people who worked with her, like Don Gerdesmeier of Teamsters Joint Council 32, who was the Service Bureau’s top administrator.

“This was the a perfect job for Jean Dunn,” Gerdesmeier said. “How many people sit across the desk from us and talk to us only because it’s their job? Jean Dunn, she did it because she really cared.

“She had a nice, long run. It was good for her, good for the Teamsters and good for dislocated workers and the families she touched along the way.”

“I congratulate Jean on a successful career,” said Bobby Kasper, president of the St. Paul Regional Labor Federation. “The Teamsters Service Bureau is her legacy, and it’s one that will last a long time.”

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‘Labor Sing’ to benefit AFL-CIO Community Services

July 11, 2014 by

web.laborchorus-directorThe Twin Cities Labor Chorus will host its annual summer concert and sing-along, “Labor Sing,” at the State Fairgrounds July 29.

The 7 p.m. concert will take place inside the Minnesota AFL-CIO Labor Pavilion, located at the corner of Dan Patch Ave. and Cooper St, near the Snelling Avenue entrance to the fairgrounds.

Admission is free, but the Labor Chorus will take a freewill offering to benefit the AFL-CIO Community Services programs of the St. Paul and Minneapolis regional labor federations. Donations can be made payable to: Twin Cities Labor Chorus, PO Box 40095, St. Paul, MN 55104-8095.

Founded in 2009, the Labor Chorus has become a staple at area union events, from picket lines to membership parties. For information about joining or booking the Labor Chorus, e-mail tclaborchorus@gmail.com.

Below, watch the Labor Chorus perform the traditional labor anthem “Solidarity Forever.”

 

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Union coat drive warms up homeless students in St. Paul Schools

February 4, 2014 by

Staff at Project REACH, the St. Paul Public Schools’ homelessness initiative, accept coats and hats donated by union members. The staff members include (L to R) Anne McInerney, Wijit Xiong, Karla Stewart (holding a “Thank You!” sign), Andrea Lindorfer and Cindy McGowan.

Staff at Project REACH, the St. Paul Public Schools’ homelessness initiative, accept coats and hats donated by union members. The staff members include (L to R) Anne McInerney, Wijit Xiong, Karla Stewart (holding a “Thank You!” sign), Andrea Lindorfer and Cindy McGowan.

St. Paul union members gave homeless students in the St. Paul Public Schools the gift of warmth last month, donating 120 winter coats and dozens of stocking caps to Project REACH, the district’s outreach effort to homeless youth.

The gift was made possible by contributions to the St. Paul Labor Studies and Resource Center’s annual Jean Jones Winter Coats and Hats Initiative, which collected $3,500 in November and December.

“The generosity of our affiliate unions and their members continues to amaze us,” said Bobby Kasper, president of the St. Paul Regional Labor Federation, which oversees the non-profit LSRC.

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Labor volunteers needed for United Way Action Day

July 29, 2013 by

AFL-CIO_UW-LU_lockup_4p-300x85It only takes 15 minutes to make a difference at United Way Action Day! Union members can get involved in the second metro-wide volunteer event Aug. 14 by joining the St. Paul Labor Studies and Resource Center’s Community Services team.

Union volunteers are needed at two events:

• “Speed volunteering” downtown at Ecolab Plaza, 370 Wabasha St. N, for as little as 15 minutes over the lunch hour, 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m.

• “Team challenges” in the Mall of America’s main rotunda from 4:30 to 6:30 p.m. Five-person teams will compete in speed volunteering races. Winners get to donate funds to an agency partner of their choice.

To sign up for either event, call 651-222-3787 or e-mail vbeebe@stpaulunions.org.

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