Welcome to the Summit web page!
This page includes all the information that you need to get the most out of the Immigrant & Refugee Workers Rising and the Future of the Labor Movement, organized by the Washington State Labor Council, AFL-CIO. We will soon be posting the summit’s tentative agenda, workshop descriptions, speaker bios, presentations, and more.
This page will be continually updated, so keep checking back as we add information.
This conference is part of the immigration rights work the WSLC has undertaken since passage of 2019’s Resolution #14, which included creation of the WSLC’s Labor Immigration Committee and the creation of the WSLC’s Immigrant and Worker Justice Toolkit, which provides documented and undocumented workers, worker advocates and union leaders the resources and support they need to create a just and fair future for immigrants in the U.S.
Safety Protocols
While we are excited to gather in person for this summit, we fully recognize the seriousness of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. To minimize risk to our fellow siblings, we are implementing COVID-19 safety protocols in all gathering spaces throughout the summit. The event planning committee has established the following protocols to be followed throughout the summit. All attendees are asked to review this list before your arrival.
1. All attendees are advised to test and confirm a negative COVID-19 result prior to the start of the summit.
2. All attendees will be asked to attest to being free of COVID-19 symptoms.
3. All attendees should familiarize themselves with the symptoms of COVID-19, and the WSLC will post CDC guidance at all summit entry points.
4. Attendees experiencing COVID-19 symptoms are asked not to attend summit functions.
5. All attendees are required to wear N95 or KN95 masks in all in-door gathering spaces, this includes speakers, workshop presenters, and panelists at the mic. Cloth masks are not permitted.
6. Masks should be properly fitted for the best protection against COVID-19. The WSLC will have N95 and KN95 masks available for attendees at the summit registration table.
7. The WSLC will make hand sanitizer and disinfectant wipes available in all summit gathering spaces.
8. Attendees are encouraged to have a clearly marked personal water bottle and be cautious of potential cross contamination at water stations.
9. Attendees are asked to report any symptoms or a positive COVID-19 result to the WSLC Summit COVID-19 designee, Dulce Gutierrez (dgutierrez@wslc.org or 509-833-3096).
We are looking forward to a fun and productive summit. The health and safety of all who attend remains our top priority and we ask that you please be mindful of your union and community siblings and stay home and/or isolate if you are feeling sick.
Agenda
This agenda is TENTATIVE and subject to change.
9:00 a.m. — Summit doors open
Registration and check-in begins — Cafeteria
Breakfast available — Tollefson Plaza (outdoors)
10:00 a.m. — Opening remarks and tribal acknowledgment
Connie Rodriguez, Chair of WSLC Labor and Immigration Committee
Welcomes:
Karl de Jong, Northwest WA Central Labor Council President
April Sims, WSLC Secretary-Treasurer
10:15 a.m. — Keynote Speakers
Brenda Rodriguez Lopez, Executive Director of Washington Immigrant Solidarity Network
Alfredo Juarez, worker and union member of Familias Unidas por la Justicia
11:00 a.m. – 12:30 p.m. — Session #1 of WORKSHOPS (descriptions below)
- Injury2All Campaign Toolkit — Angst 125
- Organizing and Bargaining for Racial Justice, Immigrant Justice, and Equity in the Workplace — Angst 129
- Immigration: Know Your Rights — Angst 135
- Welcoming and Empowering Multiple Immigrant and Refugee Communities in Our Unions — Angst 136
12:30 p.m. Summit Lunch and Social Hour — Cafeteria
1:45 p.m. – 3:15 p.m. — Session #2 of WORKSHOPS (descriptions below)
- Injury2All Campaign Toolkit — Angst 125
- Organizing and Bargaining for Racial Justice, Immigrant Justice, and Equity in the Workplace — Angst 129
- Turning an Issue on the Job Into a Campaign — Angst 135
- Welcoming and Empowering Multiple Immigrant and Refugee Communities in Our Unions — Angst 136
3:30 p.m. Support Labor and Immigrant Organizing (Get in on the action!) — Cafeteria
Campus Map
Workshops
Injury2All Campaign Toolkit
Responsive to union advocacy, the Biden administration recently announced new immigrant worker protections that will provide important new tools to organizers and campaigns around the country. Due to the lack of congressional action on a pathway to citizenship, this may well be the biggest immigration win we get this term. The ability to secure concrete status protections and work permits for workers who are organizing or taking action to enforce our labor laws can be a game changer for unions in mixed-status industries, and we need to make the most of it. This presentation shares a useful toolkit meant to equip unions and organizers with everything they need to protect immigrant workers and bring new energy and momentum to their campaigns.
Presenter: Shannon Lederer, AFL-CIO, Director of Immigration Policy
Organizing and Bargaining for Racial Justice, Immigrant Justice, and Equity in the Workplace
In this workshop, SEIU Healthcare 1199NW will share about strategies they’ve used to organize in the workplace and bargain for racial justice, immigrant justice, and equity. Come learn about SEIU’s journey to become an anti-racist organization, how they used a racial justice lens in their organizing and leadership development, and come hear firsthand from members who’ve been transformed in leading on that process.
Presenter: Ligaya Domingo, Asian Pacific American Labor Alliance (APALA) and SEIU Healthcare 1199NW, Racial Justice and Education Director
Immigration: Know Your Rights
Everyone, regardless of their immigration status, has certain rights under the law. The first step in protecting our communities from detention and deportation is to understand the U.S. detention and deportation system and what our rights are within that system so that we can exercise those rights and prevent them from being violated. This presentation will give a brief overview of the US detention and deportation system, what our rights are within that system, and examples of how we can protect ourselves and our communities.
Presenters: Vanessa Reyes and Eva Chavez, Washington Immigrant Solidarity Network (WAISN)
Welcoming and Empowering Multiple Immigrant and Refugee Communities in Our Unions
We are in a critical moment: Washington has 3rd highest union density, workers are organizing, and unions overall have a rate of approval we have not seen since 1965. Since 1975, Washington has welcomed nearly 150,000 refugees from 70 countries. In addition, the 2020 Census shows that developing diversity in our communities is not only a national trend but is now a change that has occurred in Yakima, Franklin, and Adams counties (with King County not far behind). Join this interactive workshop to learn about the history of various immigrant and refugee communities’ contributions to labor and share stories of diverse leadership and worker victories. Participants will also create an outreach plan that welcomes and empowers immigrant and refugee workers to bring back to their workplaces and organizations.
Presenters: Faviola Lopez, UFCW 3000 community organizer; Muna Dahir, SEIU Local 925 member; Juan Carlos Cervantes, UFCW 3000 member; Shania John and Paul Ryan Villanueva, members of Asian Pacific American Labor Alliance
Turning an Issue on the Job Into a Campaign
In this workshop you will learn how to identify issues that will activate your co-workers and community, and then how you can move your issue from conversations to campaigns. Go from idea to victory by learning how to organize a campaign, build momentum, mobilize your coworkers and community, and ultimately, secure a win!
Presenters: Brenda Rodriguez, WAISN; and Ingrid Chapman, WA State Labor Council
What Else You Need to Know
SOCIAL MEDIA HASHTAGS — Commemorate your 2022 WSLC Labor and Immigration Summit experience by sharing a picture of you at the Summit using these cool hashtags: #ImmigrantWorkersRising #Future4Workers #1u
ACCOMMODATIONS — We’re working to make the Summit welcoming to all. See the campus map above to locate parking, buildings, bathrooms, a prayer room and other spaces. Headphones for interpretation will be available and can be requested at the registration table.
GET IN ON THE ACTION — We will ask for as much support as possible for labor and immigrant organizing happening around the state with an interactive digital action in the Cafeteria to conclude our program. We encourage all to stay through the end of the program for a fun closing to support workers, and to win raffle prizes! Get in on the action!
WIFI — Network Name: SVCGuest (no password)