08/29/2026
As many of you may have heard, we have entered into a strategic partnership with the Laborers Union, also known as LiUNA.
Over the last several decades, the construction industry has adopted a model that increasingly exploits workers and divides the labor movement. We know the old playbook isn't working, so we're building a new one. This is what 21st-century solidarity looks like – we’re building new partnerships with unions to test new tactics and build new models of genuine worker-to-worker solidarity across North America. This is not a merger but two unions in cooperation.
Our focus is on building worker power and bringing new members into the labor movement. Together, we are setting the course for what the labor movement should be focusing on: building a fighting movement to rebuild working class power.
We know you may have questions about what this actually means in practice.
Our two unions plan to work together across North America in order to strengthen our bargaining power, grow market share, and raise standards for workers in our industry. This partnership means increased collaboration on organizing, collective bargaining, education, employer outreach, government affairs, and more.
This is not a merger. We have always been, and will remain, an independent union, wholly autonomous. Our trade jurisdictions will remain unchanged. We will continue to be the most diverse union within the building trades, representing painters, drywall finishers, glaziers, floor coverers, trade show workers, and many more, and we will continue working to bring more workers into the IUPAT.
Nothing about members’ work in the day-to-day will change, except that ideally, we will have an increased ability to find more work opportunities for our members and bargain stronger contracts.
It is no secret that the labor movement faces challenges. The political, legal, and cultural tilt toward further consolidation of corporate power puts us – unions and all working people – at a disadvantage on multiple fronts. We have seen this in our own union, with a loss of members, market share, and power, and we are not alone. To put it very plainly: if things do not turn around, our union – and the opportunities we provide to workers across North America – is in serious trouble. Ultimately, this collaboration is a growth strategy. It positions both IUPAT and LiUNA to aggressively expand our market share against non-union competitors and to grow our membership numbers by reaching unorganized workers with a compelling, unified message of economic justice.
Together, we will build a larger, stronger, and more resilient labor movement that secures the future for generations of working families.
