Latinos and the AFL-CIO: The California Immigrant Workers Association as an Important New Development

Abstract

The relationship between Latinos and the American Federation of Labor-Congress of Industrial Organizations (AFL-CIO) has been shaped by a variety of political, social, and economic factors. The AFL-CIO has organized Latinos or shunned them at different times in response to particular legislative developments, political pressures, and economic crises. Most recently, the relationship between Latinos and the AFL-CIO has been affected by a legislative developmentthe enactment of the Immigration Reform and Control Act of 1986 (IRCA).1 The AFL-CIO developed a new program in California that focuses on the recruitment of Latinos by helping them get amnesty pursuant to IRCA. The program involves a special type of membership known as "Associate Membership." Workers can become Associate Members of the AFL-CIO by joining an organization called the California Immigrant Worker's Association (CIWA).2 CIWA is still in its nascent stages, but it is a promising model for increasing Latino participation in the AFLCIO. The development of CIWA presents a new opportunity for the AFL-CIO and Latinos to increase their affiliation with one another and to improve their respective futures. This paper describes CIWA as an important new development in the history of AFL-CIO relations with Latinos. The first section highlights the troubled history of the relationship between AFL-CIO and Latinos in California. Exploring this past will better enable us to understand the nature and importance of CIWA. The second section describes CIWA and its sister organization, the Labor Immigrant Assistance Project