Adopted: 3/28 by the Mid-Hudson Valley DSA’s Steering Committee
Whereas: all 340,000 non-management UPS workers are covered by the International Brotherhood of Teamsters (IBT) and UPS Teamster members have been organizing escalating contract actions across the country as the contract fight heats up, and will need community support as they get closer to the August 1 deadline; and
Whereas: If they strike, they will need the whole labor movement behind them to show that when we fight, we win; and
Whereas: the Resolution #5 from the 2021 convention of the Democratic Socialist of America mandates the National Labor Commission engage DSA as a whole with labor work; and
Whereas: the Mid-Hudson Valley Chapter of the Democratic Socialists of America stands in unwavering solidarity with workers and prioritizes the labor solidarity work,
Therefore be it resolved: that Mid-Hudson Valley DSA will take the following steps to be STRIKE READY:
By February 28:
- The Chapter will publicly commit to the national Strike Ready campaign and listening to rank-and-file UPS Teamsters about what support they need throughout the contract fight.
- The Chapter will ask any and all socialist elected officials with connections to their chapter to commit to supporting the Teamsters throughout their contract fight.
By March 30:
- The Chapter will democratically choose at least two Solidarity Captains to liaise with the NLC for coordination on the national campaign to support the UPS Teamsters in their contract fight and ensure they are connected with the NLC and attending Labor Corps Solidarity Calls.
- The Chapter will review the Strike Ready 2023 Chapter Kit and familiarize members with key concepts of labor solidarity
By April 30: The Chapter will:
- Systematically ask chapter members to sign the Strike Ready Pledge.
- Identify chapter members to assist Solidarity Captains in local support with chapter listwork and map the local labor community as outlined in the Strike Ready Kit.
By May 31: The Chapter will run a fundraiser for the DSA Labor Solidarity fund as a structure test to measure what sort of turnout the chapter can expect at picket lines. The chapter will engage in direct individual outreach to chapter members, including text messages and phone calls, as well as a social media campaign and a fundraising event.
Throughout June and July :
- The Chapter will canvass their membership, local contacts and the community to build support for the UPS Teamsters by asking them to sign the Strike Ready Pledge.
- The Chapter will support escalating contract actions as announced by the IBT, local UPS Teamsters, and the National Labor Commission.
August 1: The Chapter will turn out members and community supporters to show up at the picket line or the contract ratification celebration.
After the fight: The Chapter will use the excitement generated by the contract fight to recruit chapter members to commit to the rank and file strategy and debrief on experience to prepare for future labor solidarity actions.