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| AFL–CIO Working for America Institute | |
|---|---|
| Name | AFL–CIO Working for America Institute |
| Formation | 1985 |
| Type | Nonprofit organization |
| Headquarters | Washington, D.C. |
| Region served | United States |
| Leader title | Director |
| Parent organization | AFL–CIO |
AFL–CIO Working for America Institute is a nonprofit research and advocacy affiliate of the AFL–CIO that focuses on labor policy, workforce development, and public-private partnerships in the United States. It conducts research, develops training programs, and advocates for policies that link trade and industrial policy to workforce development strategies. The institute works with unions, federal agencies, state governments, universities, and community organizations to influence legislation and practice related to manufacturing, technology, and employment.
The institute was established in 1985 amid debates involving figures such as Ronald Reagan, Tip O'Neill, Alan Greenspan, and labor leaders responding to shifts after the 1970s energy crisis and the Deindustrialization of the United States. Early influences included reports from institutions like the Brookings Institution, the Heritage Foundation, the Economic Policy Institute, and the Kaiser Family Foundation that framed policy conversations around trade deficits, tariffs, and industrial decline. During the late 1980s and 1990s the institute intersected with debates involving the North American Free Trade Agreement, Bill Clinton, Ross Perot, Newt Gingrich, and labor campaigns such as those led by the United Auto Workers and the United Steelworkers. In the 2000s it engaged with administrations of George W. Bush and Barack Obama on issues tied to trade adjustment assistance, Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act, and federal workforce grants administered by agencies like the Department of Labor and the Department of Commerce. The institute collaborated with actors including the Service Employees International Union, the Teamsters, the Steelworkers, and university centers such as the Harvard Kennedy School, the University of Michigan, and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology on workforce research. Prominent historical moments involved partnerships for initiatives during the administrations of Jimmy Carter and Lyndon B. Johnson when industrial policy debates were prominent in Congress with committees chaired by lawmakers like Edward Kennedy and John McCain.
The institute’s stated mission aligns with priorities championed by labor figures such as George Meany, Lane Kirkland, John Sweeney, and Richard Trumka to strengthen American manufacturing through coordinated policy and training. It emphasizes connecting federal programs like Trade Adjustment Assistance to community colleges such as Moraine Valley Community College and research institutions like the Brookings Institution and the RAND Corporation. Routine activities include convening summits with stakeholders from the National Governors Association, providing testimony before committees overseen by lawmakers like Nancy Pelosi and Mitch McConnell, producing reports parallel to those of the Economic Policy Institute and the Pew Research Center, and collaborating with philanthropic entities such as the Ford Foundation and the MacArthur Foundation. The institute also engages with international organizations including the International Labour Organization and multilateral institutions like the World Bank on comparative workforce strategies.
As an affiliate of the AFL–CIO, the institute operates with oversight from labor executives who have worked alongside leaders like Samuel Gompers in historical narratives and contemporary officers including former presidents of the AFL–CIO. Its governance model mirrors nonprofit structures seen at organizations such as the Rockefeller Foundation and Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, with a director, advisory board, and staff organized into policy, research, and program units. Program directors have historically coordinated with union departments such as the AFL–CIO Industrial Union Department and municipal labor councils like the Los Angeles County Federation of Labor. The institute’s staff network includes fellows from academic centers like the Georgetown University Institute for Public Policy and visiting scholars from institutions including the University of California, Berkeley, Columbia University, and Princeton University.
Funding streams have included grants and contracts from federal agencies such as the Department of Labor, state governments, philanthropic foundations including the W.K. Kellogg Foundation and the Rockefeller Foundation, and cooperative agreements with community colleges and university research centers like the Urban Institute. The institute has partnered with labor unions including the AFL–CIO, Service Employees International Union, International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers, and employer coalitions such as the National Association of Manufacturers on workforce initiatives. Collaborative projects have linked the institute to corporate research partners and trade associations like the Chamber of Commerce, and to regional economic development entities such as the Economic Development Administration and state departments of commerce in places like Michigan and Ohio.
Notable programs have included workforce training consortia modeled after initiatives at the Wagner-Peyser Act implementation level and federal-state skill partnerships akin to programs run by the National Governors Association and the National Skills Coalition. The institute has developed projects addressing advanced manufacturing technologies referenced in research from the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine and workforce retraining models paralleling ApprenticeshipUSA frameworks. Initiatives have targeted sectors from automotive manufacturing with stakeholders like Ford Motor Company and General Motors to renewable energy projects involving firms such as Siemens and advocacy groups like the Sierra Club. The institute has also produced policy papers and toolkits used by workforce boards modeled after those in Chicago and Pittsburgh.
Supporters cite measurable impacts in influencing legislation related to trade adjustment assistance and in creating training pipelines in partnership with community colleges and employers similar to successful models in North Carolina and Minnesota. Critics, drawn from think tanks like the Cato Institute and authors in publications such as The Wall Street Journal and The New York Times, argue that the institute’s close ties to labor limit engagement with certain employer groups and that some programs replicate existing federal initiatives. Debates have involved policymakers such as Elizabeth Warren and Ted Cruz over the scope of industrial policy, and scholars at universities like Stanford University and Yale University have questioned long-term outcomes for displaced workers. External evaluations by entities comparable to the Government Accountability Office and the Brookings Institution have been used to assess effectiveness, while labor historians reference movements involving figures like César Chávez and A. Philip Randolph when situating the institute within broader labor strategy.
Category:Labor organizations in the United States