The American Federation of Labor and Congress of Industrial Organizations (AFL-CIO) is a national group of unions that is the largest collection of unions in the United States. It includes 61 national and international unions, which together represent about 15 million workers who are currently employed or have retired. The AFL-CIO spends money on political activities and supports policies that help workers and promote progressive ideas.
The AFL-CIO was created in 1955 when two unions, the American Federation of Labor and the Congress of Industrial Organizations, joined together after a long period of not working together. Union membership in the United States reached its highest point in 1979, when the unions connected to the AFL-CIO had almost 20 million members. From 1955 to 2005, the AFL-CIO’s member unions represented nearly all unionized workers in the United States. In 2005, several large unions left the AFL-CIO to form a new group called the Change to Win Federation. However, some of these unions have since returned to the AFL-CIO, and many groups from Change to Win now work with local labor organizations. The largest unions in the AFL-CIO today are the Service Employees International Union (SEIU), with 2 million members; the American Federation of Teachers (AFT), with about 1.7 million members; the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME), with about 1.4 million members; and the United Food and Commercial Workers, with 1.2 million members.
Membership
The AFL-CIO is a group of international labor unions. As a voluntary group, the AFL-CIO does not have much control over the daily activities of its member unions, except in very specific situations, such as removing a union for corruption or helping to solve disagreements about work areas or organizing efforts. As of January 2025, the AFL-CIO had 61 member unions that represented nearly 15 million people.
Political activities
The AFL-CIO was an important part of the New Deal Coalition, which had a lot of influence in politics until the mid-1960s. Since 1970, it has lost members, money, and political power, but it is still an important group on the liberal side of national politics. It works hard in lobbying, organizing groups of people, working with other liberal organizations, raising money, and helping find and support candidates across the country.
In recent years, the AFL-CIO has focused its political work on lobbying in Washington, D.C., and in state capitals. It also helps with "get-out-the-vote" campaigns during major elections. For example, during the 2010 midterm elections, the AFL-CIO sent 28.6 million pieces of mail to members. Each member received a "slate card" that listed union endorsements for their congressional district and a letter from President Obama that encouraged them to vote. Also, 100,000 volunteers visited homes in 32 states to support candidates who had the union's endorsement, reaching 13 million union voters.
Governance
The AFL-CIO is led by its members, who meet every four years in a large gathering called a convention. Each union chooses delegates to attend based on the size of the union. Other groups, such as state federations, local councils, and departments, also send delegates. These delegates choose leaders, discuss and agree on rules, and decide how much money members pay as dues.
From 1951 to 1996, the AFL-CIO’s leadership met in Bal Harbour, Florida, at the Bal Harbour Sheraton hotel. This location was often criticized, partly because of a labor dispute at the hotel itself. Later, the meeting was moved to Los Angeles due to concerns about the hotel’s image. However, the meeting returned to Bal Harbour after a few years. In 2012, the meeting was held in Orlando, Florida.
The AFL-CIO rules allow international unions to pay dues directly to state federations and central labor councils, instead of requiring each local or state group to collect the money. This reduces the work for local groups, as international unions collect the dues themselves. They may add these payments to their own dues or pay them directly from their collected funds. However, not all international unions pay their required dues.
One important group was the Industrial Union Department (IUD). It was created in 1955 after the AFL and CIO merged. CIO unions wanted the IUD to exist because they believed the AFL did not strongly support industrial unionism. For many years, the IUD acted as the main organizing group in the AFL-CIO. For example, in 1961, the IUD gave money to the American Federation of Teachers (AFT) to help it organize the United Federation of Teachers. This support helped the AFT win an election and create its first large group for collective bargaining. The IUD was known for taking strong positions on many issues.
The AFL-CIO has six required departments:
- North America’s Building Trades Unions
- Maritime Trades Department, AFL-CIO
- Metal Trades Department, AFL-CIO
- Department for Professional Employees, AFL-CIO
- Transportation Trades Department, AFL-CIO
- Union Label and Service Trades Department, AFL-CIO
Constituency groups
Constituency groups are nonprofit organizations officially created and supported by the AFL-CIO to help register voters and encourage people to participate in elections. These groups perform research, organize training and education events, publish reports, try to influence laws, and work with local organizations. Each group has the right to attend AFL-CIO leadership meetings and to vote and speak at AFL-CIO conventions.
The AFL-CIO has seven constituency groups: the A. Philip Randolph Institute, the AFL-CIO Union Veterans Council, the Asian Pacific American Labor Alliance, the Coalition of Black Trade Unionists, the Coalition of Labor Union Women, the Labor Council for Latin American Advancement, and Pride at Work.
Allied organizations
The Working for America Institute began as a part of the AFL-CIO. It was created in 1958 and was called the Human Resources Development Institute (HRDI). In 1998, John Sweeney changed its name and made it an independent group to help influence laws, support economic growth, create new rules about the economy, and work with Congress to create rules about the economy. The American Center for International Labor Solidarity started as the Free Trade Union Committee (FTUC), which promoted free labor unions around the world.
Other groups that work with the AFL-CIO include:
- Alliance for Retired Americans
- Solidarity Center
- American Rights at Work
- International Labor Communications Association
- Jobs with Justice
- Labor Heritage Foundation
- Labor and Working-Class History Association
- National Day Laborer Organizing Network
- United Students Against Sweatshops
- Working America
- Working for America Institute
- Ohio Organizing Collaborative
Programs
Programs are groups created and managed by the AFL-CIO to achieve specific goals. Examples of AFL-CIO programs include the AFL-CIO Building Investment Trust, the AFL-CIO Employees Federal Credit Union, the AFL-CIO Housing Investment Trust, the National Labor College, and Union Privilege.
International policy
The AFL-CIO is connected to the International Trade Union Confederation, which is based in Brussels and was formed on November 1, 2006. This new organization included the members of the International Confederation of Free Trade Unions, a group the AFL-CIO had been part of for many years. The AFL-CIO worked actively to support and strengthen free trade unions around the world. During the Cold War, it strongly opposed Communist unions in Latin America and Europe. In its efforts to oppose Communism, it contributed to the division of the CGT in France and helped establish the anti-Communist group Force Ouvrière.
According to the cybersecurity company Area 1, hackers linked to the People's Liberation Army Strategic Support Force hacked into the computer systems of the AFL-CIO to obtain information about negotiations for the Trans-Pacific Partnership.
History
The AFL-CIO has a long history of working with civil rights movements. After the CIO split from the AFL, a major disagreement was the CIO’s decision to include Black workers in its unions. The AFL had focused on craft unions, which often excluded Black workers. Later, some Black workers criticized the CIO for not continuing to support them after the AFL and CIO merged.
In 1961, Martin Luther King Jr. gave a speech titled "If the Negro Wins, Labor Wins" at the AFL-CIO convention in Bal Harbour, Florida. He wanted labor and civil rights groups to work together to improve conditions for all workers by ending racial discrimination. However, he also criticized the AFL-CIO for allowing some unions to exclude Black workers. In 1965, King said, "The labor movement of thirty years ago did more in that period for civil rights than labor is doing today." He believed the combined strength of labor and civil rights groups could help society, but this potential was not being used. In 1967, King opposed the Vietnam War, while the AFL-CIO supported it. The AFL-CIO supported the Civil Rights Act of 1964.
In the 21st century, the AFL-CIO faced criticism for its connection to the International Union of Police Associations (IUPA). During the George Floyd protests in 2020, the AFL-CIO’s Washington, D.C., offices were set on fire. The AFL-CIO president, Richard Trumka, condemned George Floyd’s murder and the destruction of the offices but did not address calls to end the AFL-CIO’s relationship with the IUPA.
After President Lyndon B. Johnson won a major election in 1964, a Democratic Congress passed many liberal laws. Labor leaders claimed credit for these laws, including the Civil Rights Act of 1964, the Voting Rights Act of 1965, the War on Poverty, and Medicare. However, the 1966 elections were a setback for liberal Democrats. The AFL-CIO’s political action group, COPE, did not address concerns about civil rights or the growing divide over the Vietnam War. This split weakened the New Deal coalition. In the 1970s, the AFL-CIO faced more political challenges, especially when it opposed George McGovern’s nomination in 1972.
In 2003, the AFL-CIO started a debate about the future of the labor movement with the creation of the New Unity Partnership (NUP). This debate grew stronger after John Kerry, a labor-backed candidate, lost the 2004 presidential election. The NUP wanted to reduce central bureaucracy, spend more on organizing new workers, and restructure unions. In 2005, the NUP ended, and the Change to Win Federation (CtW) formed. Several large unions left the AFL-CIO, including the Service Employees International Union (SEIU), the Teamsters, and the United Food and Commercial Workers (UFCW).
Some unions later returned to the AFL-CIO, but conflicts continued. In 2009, part of UNITE HERE formed a new union called Workers United, while the rest rejoined the AFL-CIO. The Laborers’ International Union of North America also returned to the AFL-CIO in 2010. The SEIU rejoined the AFL-CIO in 2025.
In 2013, the International Longshore and Warehouse Union (ILWU) left the AFL-CIO, saying other unions ignored its picket lines and the AFL-CIO did not support its policies on labor laws, immigration, and healthcare. The ILWU became an independent union.
In 2024, the AFL-CIO opposed a plan by Norfolk Southern Railway to replace its top leaders and board members. The union supported the company’s CEO, Alan Shaw, citing concerns about safety, service, and job losses. The AFL-CIO criticized the plan to replace Shaw and adopt a system called precision railroading.
Leadership
- George Meany (1955–1979)
- Lane Kirkland (1979–1995)
- Thomas R. Donahue (1995)
- John J. Sweeney (1995–2009)
- Richard Trumka (2009–2021)
- Liz Shuler (2021–present)
General Reference
The Troy Area Labor Council AFL-CIO Records include materials from 1942 and from 1969 to 1989. These records are kept in the M.E. Grenander Department of Special Collections and Archives at the University Libraries of the University at Albany, State University of New York. This collection is known as the Troy Area Labor Council AFL-CIO Records.