The Iron Workers need a president who will stand with us as we fight for our rights on the job, and that president is Joe Biden.  We’ve made this endorsement after a long process of sizing up different campaigns based on who will be best for union ironworkers.  We judged each candidate on their record, strength and commitment to working people, including President Trump.  

The general executive council (GEC) of our union met last year and directed our political team to find out members’ feelings about the race.  We have completed multiple rounds of national opinion surveys and focus groups of the membership using experienced pollsters and industry-leading techniques.  We have also gathered opinions directly from members at local visits and on the internet.

We saw a consistent result.  A minority of ironworkers are firmly committed to Trump, more so than previous Republican presidential contenders like Senator John McCain and Governor Mitt Romney.  They are outnumbered by a much larger block of ironworkers who want a change in administration.  Another chunk leans one way or the other but wants more information before deciding.

One message came up again and again from the membership: “I don’t want you to tell me who to vote for, I want you to tell me why a candidate deserves my vote.” We’ve taken this to heart, and throughout this campaign will lay out information on why your support matters.

I dispatched our political team to negotiate with major campaigns and find the best deal for ironworkers.  Over the last year, we found out who takes us seriously and who just gives us lip service.  We found out who is most focused on providing work to union ironworkers and protecting our rights on the job.  

After thorough vetting and research, we found that Biden has the broadest support amongst union ironworkers.  His favorability is a full 29 points higher than Donald Trump in our union and is considerably higher than other Democrats in the race.  By committing to defend our jobs, retirement and rights as union members, Biden offered the strongest support for union ironworkers of any candidate.  The GEC voted to endorse Vice President Biden in late January.

To secure good work and fair wages, our union sits down with contractors and negotiates the best possible agreements in the interests of ironworkers.  But it’s up to the members of our union whether they vote for the contract.  It’s the same here: our international worked with the campaigns to represent members’ interest, but how you vote is up to you.  And after the election, just like stewards and business agents hold contractors to our union agreements, our union will hold the winner accountable.

You won’t hear us echoing a bunch of outrageous Democratic talking points.  Partisanship is so bad these days that some people will say the sky is orange if the other party says it’s blue.  Instead, we’ll stick to the jobs and labor rights issues that it’s our duty as a union to champion.  We’ll talk about how Biden will defend union workers like us.  We’ll also break down the many attacks that Donald Trump has made against American workers, many of which don’t get covered in the press.

Joe Biden is one of us and will stand up for union ironworkers when he is president.  You can help our union succeed in this election by joining other ironworkers to knock doors, make calls and talk politics with your family.  Whether we’re Republicans, Democrats, or independents, in this election we need to stick together.


The current White House continues to threaten our apprenticeships with IRAPs. Click here for a timeline of the IRAP fight from the beginning.

This administration has spread right to work through the courts and let it expand in the states. Click here to see how right to work has spread through the country.

Click here to see how Joe Biden compares to other candidates on issues that matter to ironworkers.