(WASHINGTON, D.C.) - Ahead of Labor Day, National AFL-CIO President Liz Shuler has issued a warning about Workers’ struggles with high costs and is detailing the Labor Movement’s plans for the 2026 November Mid-Term Elections. 

In her fourth annual State of the Unions address, Shuler emphasized the pain Working People are feeling, the lack of trust Working-Class Voters have in politicians and that electing Pro-Worker candidates will rely on Working People talking to their neighbors. 

In her address, Shuler said: “This Labor Day, shit’s too expensive. That’s what (94%) of Workers told us, in our new poll. Four out of five say: Paychecks aren’t keeping up with the cost of living - groceries, rent, childcare, gas. Workers are sick and tired of both parties: Republicans who enable a White House that has made our life worse and more expensive at every turn. Who have rubber-stamped Trump’s needless wars, chaotic tariffs and attacks on our communities. And at the same time, we have too many Democrats who pay lip service to Working People, say they understand us, and want our votes on Election Day - and then take office and cozy up to the same corporations we’re fighting on the picket lines. This year, it’s time to put the full weight of the Labor Movement behind candidates who will actually deliver for Working People.”

The 2026 State of the Unions also included new polling that surveyed thousands of Working People, including both Union Members and those not yet in a Union.

Key findings included: Trust in Unions exceeds trust in the Democratic Party by 20 points (52% to 32%) and Workers are twice as likely to trust Unions than to trust the Republican Party (52% to 26%); Young Workers ages 18-to-30 trust Labor Unions (61%) more than twice as much as they trust the Democratic Party (28%) or the Republican Party (22%). Among young men, the trust gap is 40 points between Unions and Democrats (63% to 23%) and 43 points between Unions and Republicans (63% to 20%); The only group Workers trust more than Unions is their own neighbors (75%); For five years running, seven in 10 Americans say they support Unions -the highest level of support in a generation; By a 2-to-1 margin, people say Unions are more needed today than in the past and say increasing Union Membership is the single best way Americans can get a raise; and More Workers than ever want a Union on the job. Among those ages 18-to-30, 57% who aren't in a Union say they'd join one at their most recent workplace, up 10 points since last year. Workers are more likely to say the path to higher wages is through more people belonging to Unions or electing candidates endorsed by Unions (22%) than through electing Democrats (20%) or Republicans (19%).

The address comes as Union Membership has hit a 16-year high, with nearly a half-million Workers across the country joining a union last year, 92% of them younger than 40.

This increased strength and Unions’ singular relationships with their Members that the Labor Movement will turn out two million more Union Voters than in 2024 and train 50,000 Election Protection Volunteers for November, the National AFL-CIO said. 

To Directly Access This Labor News Story, Go To: AFL-CIO President: Working People Are Hurting, Don’t See Politicians Showing Up for Them | AFL-CIO