"All families deserve the security of a universal health care system that guarantees access based on need rather than income." -AFL-CIO Resolution 34: The Social Insurance Model for Health Care Reform, 2009
Who We Are
We are workers.
We are entertainment industry workers and city and county employees protecting our healthcare benefits. We are nurses and caregivers in solidarity with our patients. We are hotel workers and grocery clerks supporting our families. We are retirees who want a better life for our children and grandchildren. We are teachers, bus drivers, and professors who want better healthcare for our students. We are immigrant workers with little or no access to healthcare. We are workers, labor activists, union staffers, and community organizers who care deeply about our broken healthcare system. We are trade unionists fighting for healthcare justice for our sisters and brothers - those on and off the job.
We are single-payer advocates.
The Affordable Care Act (ACA) was a step forward in ensuring that Americans have access to affordable healthcare, but we are not finished. We in labor have committed ourselves to guaranteeing every American healthcare based on need, rather than income, not mandating that everyone must buy a health insurance policy and then handing them the bills. We support a “Medicare for All” system – the improvement and universal extension of a sensible, homegrown program that’s supported our seniors for nearly fifty years.
We are a coalition.
Labor United for Universal Healthcare is a coalition of nearly forty California unions, worker centers, and allied groups committed to building a healthcare system that is sustainable, secure, and just. The spiraling costs of health insurance is an unconscionable burden on Americans, both union and non-union. As organizers, we know that we're always stronger together.
What We Want
We want sustainable healthcare.
We want a system that doesn't break our budgets. Healthcare costs are out of control, and recent news suggests that the ACA will only exacerbate that trend. Workers and their families need healthcare that doesn't destroy the livelihoods they've fought so hard to secure and maintain.
We want secure healthcare.
We're tired of seeing friends and neighbors lose their homes and life savings over hospital bills. Employer-based healthcare is as only as secure as employment - which isn't saying much given the layoffs, cutbacks, and closures that austerity programs have imposed on us. Workers and their families need healthcare that they can count on.
We want just healthcare.
We know that justice means "it's all of us or none." Nobody should be denied care because they're poor. Nobody should be denied insurance because of a "pre-existing condition." Nobody should be denied care because of immigration status. We need healthcare that gives everyone what they need.
What We Do
We educate labor about single payer healthcare.
We train and coordinate speakers to present brief, accurate presentations about single-payer and the ACA and collect and provide information about single-payer healthcare and how healthcare reform affects union members. While the AFL-CIO has gone on record supporting Medicare for All, information about healthcare and healthcare reform is easy to come by and difficult to sift through. We're here to speak to our sisters and brothers in labor about healthcare.
We agitate with those fighting for healthcare.
We stand in solidarity with anyone and everyone fighting for access to healthcare, union members or not. We also stand in solidarity with all workers organizing for power in their workplaces. We participate in rallies, street theater, and mass actions for labor, healthcare, and other progressive causes. Our massive puppets are a major draw at any action we come out to.
We organize our own communities for healthcare justice.
We are growing - we're at nearly fifty local organizations, all of which support our efforts to pass Medicare for All at the state and federal levels. If you or your organization are interested in joining our work, please join Labor United for Universal Healthcare.
Who We Work With
We're a coalition of Los Angeles-area unions.
We are, largely, Angeleno and other California-based unions. Many of our affiliates are Los Angeles-based unions supporting healthcare justice.
We're part of a statewide coalition.
We're proud to be a member of the Campaign for a Healthy California and work with single payer organizations like the California Health Professional Student Alliance (CaHPSA) and California OneCare.
We're part of a national movement for healthcare justice.
We are a partner of Labor Campaign for Single Payer. We also partner with national organizations such as Physicians for a National Health Program and Healthcare-NOW!
Click here for more information on state and national organizations working for healthcare reform.
Like this page? Consider sharing it on
Facebook or 
Twitter.