Herman's Homecoming

LAS VEGAS

It was homecoming time when Sec. of Labor Alexis Herman addressed the AFSCME Women’s Western Conference in Las Vegas in November. Herman spoke to the 1,200 delegates and guests not just as an administration official, but as "a proud former member" of AFSCME. The labor secretary began her professional career as a social worker in New York City and a member of DC 37.

"This is a secretary of labor who has been there and done that," she said.

Preaching a message of inclusion and economic opportunity for all Americans, Herman praised the work of AFSCME in promoting the interests of working people. "I especially want to thank AFSCME and AFSCME women for ensuring that people moving from welfare to work are entitled to be treated as real workers," said the labor secretary.

The administration official urged AFSCME members to continue to be politically active. "AFSCME women have always made a difference, and in the weeks, months and years ahead they will make a greater difference," she predicted.

The Las Vegas Women’s Conference drew together women from the western half of the country — from Illinois to Alaska and Hawaii — to attend workshops focusing on issues of importance to union women, everything from fighting privatization to mobilizing members.