LA Labor Launches Largest Anti-Newsom Recall Event in State

Hundreds of Union members, community leaders, and political leaders kick-off one of the largest ‘No on the Recall’ programs in California. 

August 7, 2021

 With over 350 volunteers in attendance, the Los Angeles County Federation of Labor, AFL-CIO, kicked off their official ‘No on the Recall’ campaign on Saturday, August 7, joined by labor leaders, legislators, and community leaders, launching one of the largest and most robust anti-recall campaigns in the state.

“The recall is a direct attack on our democracy and on our union values, driven by opponents of the California Governor’s efforts to protect vulnerable residents during the deadly COVID-19 pandemic,” said Ron Herrera, President of the Los Angeles County Federation of Labor, AFL-CIO. “His decisive actions saved countless lives and protected millions of working families across the state. Newsom has stood for us during the pandemic, and now we are here standing with him.”

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The Los Angeles County Federation of Labor, AFL-CIO, in partnership with various affiliated unions, is anchoring the ‘No on the Recall’ campaign with an over one million dollar program, including paid and volunteer canvassers, phone bankers, and other voter outreach.   

 “In order to get to Governor Newsom, they have to go through us. And they’re not going to get there because we’ve got a labor movement,” said Rob Bonta, California Attorney General. “We’ve got workers who are powering the movement to make sure that we get Gavin Newsom reelected and fight back the recall.”

 “We may come from different backgrounds, from different walks of life, and even different approaches to the work we do day in and day out on behalf of working families,” said Dereck Smith, Executive Vice President at Service Employees International Union (SEIU) Local 2015. “But one thing we can agree on this morning is that this recall effort by the right-wing anti-forces is wasteful and, quite frankly, an attack on our progress for working families.”

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 “Throughout the pandemic, Governor Newsom has partnered with the building trades unions — to make sure we were safe and could continue to feed our families by designating us as essential workers. He wasn’t afraid to make difficult decisions. Best of all, he has helped create thousands of good-paying blue-collar jobs in California’s emerging green economy by requiring prevailing wage on new clean energy jobs,” said Joel Barton, Business Manager of the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW) Local 11.

 “We need a governor that is going to protect workers because it is the workers who will ensure that our communities stay safe. We cannot afford to roll back the measures and protections we have gained,” said John Grant, President of the United Food and Commercial Workers (UFCW) Local 770. “It was Governor Newsom who ensured that essential workers — these indispensable workers — received the protective mandates: health reporting, testing for everyone, as well as COVID-19 sick leave to ensure that they didn’t have to work with this disease. It is the demand for our health that we say no to this recall.”

The six-week campaign will continue with daily canvassing and phone banking until election day on Tuesday, September 11.