(C) Common Dreams
This story was originally published by Common Dreams and is unaltered.
. . . . . . . . . .
Key Labor Union Backs Donald Trump's Tariffs: 'Something Needed to Be Done' [1]
['Andrew Stanton', 'Garret Hoff', 'Mark Kendall']
Date: 2025-04-08 18:00:56-04:00
Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources.
Newsweek AI is in beta. Translations may contain inaccuracies—please refer to the original content.
The Teamsters, a key labor union representing more than 1.3 million Americans, is backing up President Donald Trump's tariffs.
Why It Matters
Last week, Trump announced new tariffs on dozens of countries across the globe to close the trade deficit and promote U.S. manufacturing, though economists have warned the policies will come at the cost of higher prices for American consumers. Polls suggest many Americans are feeling anxious about the tariffs and how they could impact the economy.
However, the news of the tariffs was welcome news for the International Brotherhood of Teamsters, which views tariffs as a policy that will promote U.S. manufacturing and bring back union jobs, Kara Deniz, assistant director of communications for the union, told Newsweek in an interview Tuesday afternoon.
What to Know
The Teamsters is a critical labor union, politically. Although it has previously backed Democrats, who have relied on labor as a key faction of its coalition, its members voted to endorse Trump in the last election, though the union did not make any formal endorsement.
Deniz told Newsweek the union is supporting the tariffs, which she said will bring back manufacturing jobs for American workers.
Teamsters Union members picket in Detroit, Michigan on September 4, 2024. Teamsters Union members picket in Detroit, Michigan on September 4, 2024. Bill Pugliano/Getty Images
"In the last 40 years or so, trade policy has seen a hemorrhaging of jobs to other countries, where workers in other countries are oftentimes exploited all for getting cheap goods shipped back to the United States, while workers bear thebrunt of that and suffer from that," she said. "Something needed to be done, and we welcome this announcement."
She said the working class agenda promised by Trump that attracted some of the union's members included creating these types of jobs and that the union is "hopeful" about the policy moving forward.
Companies that do not want to pay employees fair wages are using concerns about rising prices and diminishing stock prices caused by the tariffs as a "fear-mongering" tactic, she said.
"These companies are making massive profits off the backs of workers," she said. "There are corporations bringing in billions of dollars a year that don't want to pay livable wages to workers here, so they go and find a cheaper country and exploit people over there. It's a race to the bottom and has to stop. Tariffs are a method to do that."
The tariffs will also give unions another bargaining chip when negotiating with companies that want to offshore their business, as well as result in better-produced products, she said.
Deniz emphasized the "long-term potential" of the tariffs, noting that the union does not have all the answers at this point, but that Teamsters members remain "supportive of anything that will give them better bargaining power."
"Our members are employed but they have families, they have communities that they live in and don't want to see descimated or negatively impacted by some trade deals of decades past," Deniz said. "For them, seeing anything that's going to help create jobs only helps the people in their orbit. It helps you to get a stronger contact, when you have that leverage to be at the table."
How Are Other Unions Responding to Trump Tariffs?
Other unions have also responded to the tariffs in recent days with varying levels of support.
Shawn Fain, the president of United Autoworkers (UAW) told NPR that while some of Trump's tariffs are "reckless," the automobile tariffs will indeed help workers in that industry.
"We've sat here for the last 30 plus years, with the inception of [the North American Free Trade Agreement] back in 1993-94, and watched our manufacturing base in this country disappear," he told the news outlet.
AFL-CIO President Elizabeth Shuler wrote in a statement that tariffs can be used strategically to "support our industries and protect jobs at home," but that they must be "accompanied by policies that invest in our manufacturing base and a strong commitment to promoting workers' fundamental right to organize trade unions and bargain collectively."
"Unfortunately, the Trump administration's attacks on trade union workers' rights at home, gutting of the government agency that works to discourage the outsourcing of American jobs, and efforts to erode critical investments in U.S. manufacturing take us backward," Schuler wrote.
United Steelworkers International (USW) President David McCall echoed that sentiment, writing in a statement that Trump's tariffs "send the message to our trading partners that they must earn" the right to participate in the U.S. market.
Still, he cautioned against tariffs on some U.S. allies.
"First and foremost, we must ensure our trade policy targets cheaters rather than trusted economic allies like Canada," he wrote. "We should be working to build relationships – not barriers – with partners who have proven their commitment to joining us in tackling global overcapacity."
What People Are Saying
JPMorgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon, in his annual letter released Monday: "The recent tariffs will likely increase inflation and are causing many to consider a greater probability of a recession. And even with the recent decline in market values, prices remain relatively high. These significant and somewhat unprecedented forces cause us to remain very cautious."
President Donald Trump, while announcing the new tariffs on Wednesday, said: "Chronic trade deficits are a national emergency."
Senator Bernie Sanders, a Vermont independent who caucuses with Democrats, in a statement: "We need a rational, well-thought-out and fair trade policy. Trump's across-the-board tariffs are not the way to do it. We do not need a blanket and arbitrary sales tax on imported foods which will raise prices on products that the American people desperately need."
What Happens Next
The 10 percent tariffs on all global imports went into effect on Saturday, and the country-specific reciprocal tariffs will begin on Wednesday. This includes 104 percent tariffs on goods imported from China.
[END]
---
[1] Url:
https://www.newsweek.com/teamsters-labor-union-supports-tariffs-donald-trump-2057151
Published and (C) by Common Dreams
Content appears here under this condition or license: Creative Commons CC BY-NC-ND 3.0..
via Magical.Fish Gopher News Feeds:
gopher://magical.fish/1/feeds/news/commondreams/
