​Washington, DC - The Asian Pacific American Labor Alliance, AFL-CIO (APALA) issued the following statement in response to Trump's State of the Union address:
 
"Given the difficult year for workers, immigrants, refugees, women, and so many more, the State of the Union did not shed light to the true state of our union. Instead, Trump resorted to usual tactics and rhetoric, scapegoating and criminalizing immigrants and celebrating corporate greed at the hands of working people. Though Trump called for unity in a very polarized time, his speech last night meant nothing but damaging policies for our Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) workers, families, and communities.
 
Trump's latest immigration proposal continues to hold DREAMers hostage by offering up our families, neighbors, and loved ones. DREAMers are not and should not be used as political bargaining chips, and we remain resolute to counter any attacks to pit our communities against each other. With the White House's white supremacist wish list to slash legal immigration by 50%, gut asylum laws and Temporary Protected Status (TPS) that offer refugees a new start, and build a mass deportation force, Trump is proposing measures that are a waste of taxpayer dollars and that have nothing to do with national security, instead of making long-term investments into communities.
 
Furthermore, Trump's empty words on his regime's impact on working families is grossly misleading as the administration has prioritized corporate greed over working people from the beginning. From the tax scam bill to rolling back protections to keep workers safe to potentially even stealing tips from workers, the wealthy 1% is profiting at hands of workers everywhere.
 
The true state of our union and our new American moment now lie in the organizing and mobilization of workers, women, people of color, and people from all walks of life who demand to live and work with dignity, safety, and respect. The power we are building together with national, local, and grassroots partners nationwide will not and cannot be stopped. We see it in our unions that continue to fight against attacks on the right to collectively bargain and organize. We see it in our communities who are turning out the vote in historic numbers. We see it in our APALA members who understand that an attack on one is an attack on all. This is the state of our union, and this is how we will win."
 
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Washington, DC - The Labor Coalition for Community Action, a coalition of the six constituency
groups of the AFL-CIO, including the A. Philip Randolph Institute, Asian Pacific American Labor
Alliance, Coalition of Black Trade Unionists, Coalition of Labor Union Women, Labor Council for
Latin American Advancement, and Pride at Work, issued the following statement on the
Department of Labor (DOL)'s proposed "tip theft" rule that shifts the ownership of tips from
workers to employers.

"This proposed rule to steal hard-earned tips from the pockets of restaurant workers is utterly
despicable. Instead of affirming that tips are the property of workers, the Trump administration is
championing corporate greed and acting as an extension for the National Restaurant
Association.

With tip theft already a common occurrence in the restaurant industry, the legalization to shift
ownership of tips to employers is another example of working people being robbed of what they
are due. Trickle down policies, such as this proposed rule, will maintain the status quo and
wedge an even larger gap between the richest and the poorest.

If enacted, workers will lose an estimated $5.8 billion in tips, with 80% of that coming from
women workers. With women and workers of color comprising the lowest paid segments of the
industry, this rule would disproportionately impact the most vulnerable and feed into a cycle of
poverty and economic instability.

We are committed to advocating for the rights of workers in all industries and to fighting against
greedy policies that fuel into the systematic oppression of people of color, women, and LGBTQ
workers. We demand that the Department of Labor withdraw this disgusting ‘tip theft’ rule
immediately and call on it to do its job: to fight for workers, not employers."

To submit your own story and/or comments to the Department of Labor on the proposed rule,
click here.

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About The Labor Coalition for Community Action (LCCA) - The AFL-CIO’s constituency groups – the A. Phillip Randolph Institute, Asian Pacific American Labor Alliance, Coalition of Black Trade Unionists, the Coalition of Labor Union Women, Labor Council for Latin American Advancement, and Pride at Work are unions’ bridges to diverse communities, creating and strengthening partnerships to enhance the standard of living for all workers. The groups also promote the full participation of women and minorities in the union movement and ensure unions hear and respond to the concerns of the communities they represent.

Washington, DC - The Asian Pacific American Labor Alliance, AFL-CIO (APALA) blasts the Republican driven tax bill that passed in both the House and the Senate with no Democratic support. APALA issued the following statement in response:

APALA 1st Vice President Kim Geron stated: "What the GOP has done will have dire consequences for millions of working people throughout the country, including the Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) community. Instead of passing a clean DREAM Act for undocumented youth at risk of detention and deportation, the GOP continues to prioritize the insatiable greed of corporations and billionaires at the expense of those fighting for their lives."

"The self-serving GOP is clearly out of touch with its constituents and their families who depend on crucial services like public education, healthcare and other essential public services," added APALA Executive Director Alvina Yeh. "This bill will increase taxes on working families in the long run while continuing to pad the pockets of the ultra-rich and feeding into the growing wedge of financial and racial inequity between the rich and the poor. As the budget is negotiated, it is critical that Congress include a clean DREAM Act that recognizes the invaluable contributions undocumented immigrants have on our communities. Without a clean DREAM Act, the GOP will continue to betray immigrant communities aligning itself with a white supremacist agenda."

Geron concluded: "We are sick and tired living in an economy that is rigged in favor of corporate and wealthy interests. We need every single vote in 2018 to rid Congress of elected officials who do not accurately represent the interests of the people. The GOP should watch out -- we are coming in full force. Our fight is not over."

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