Challenge met — but we’re not done

SMART’s convention, held every five years, represents the democratic process of our union: Members elect delegates to represent them at the convention; delegates then debate and vote on resolutions, amendments to the SMART Constitution and International leadership positions, guiding the direction of our organization for the next five years.

The theme of this year’s convention is “Challenge met — but we’re not done.” It’s an idea that reflects the fighting spirit of our union; our mission to secure a brighter tomorrow for members, families and working people across North America. It also invites us to look back at the battles we’ve fought — and won — since we last gathered in 2019.

The 2nd SMART General Convention arrived at a time when organized labor was against the ropes. The Trump administration’s proposed Industry-Recognized Apprenticeship Programs (IRAPs) rule attacked our union sheet metal apprenticeship programs, threatening a historical pillar of our trade. The Trump Federal Railroad Administration discarded a proposed two-person crew regulation and attempted to pre-empt state two-person crew laws, undermining not just rail safety and SMART-TD railroad jobs but the democratic principles of our nation. Provincial governments attacked workers’ rights in Canada, and across the labor movement, unions struggled to reach the working class, leaving ordinary people without collective bargaining power — and threatening our future.

Brothers and sisters, we met those challenges.

We came together to defeat the proposed IRAPs rule. We elected pro-labor champions in 2020, winning a two-person freight crew regulation, funding for passenger rail and public transit and much more. We lobbied for and helped secure the passage of transformative pro-worker laws like the American Rescue Plan Act, the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, the CHIPS and Science Act and the Inflation Reduction Act — laws that saved union sheet metal workers’ pensions, put members on jobs from Arizona to upstate New York, provided funding opportunities for our training centers and beyond.

“I promise you, we will not rest until every SMART member — and every worker across the United States and Canada — has the pay, the benefits and the collective power we all deserve.”

And most importantly, we have changed the way we are perceived: Americans and Canadians realize the value of SMART representation, and across the country, we have organized at a furious pace, achieving incredible growth and strengthening our collective future.

Thanks to your efforts, we stand on a strong foundation, one forged by the hard work and selflessness of union members across North America. And now, we can look forward. Our job isn’t finished. We have more people to organize, more jobs to win, better contracts to negotiate, pro-union legislators to put in office.

I promise you, we will not rest until every SMART member — and every worker across the United States and Canada — has the pay, the benefits and the collective power we all deserve.

We are not done.

In solidarity,

SMART General President Michael Coleman