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Labor Union

Minnesota AFL-CIO

Parent Organization: American Federation of Labor-Congress of Industrial Organizations (AFL-CIO)
Website:

www.mnaflcio.org/
Location:

SAINT PAUL, MN
Tax ID:

41-0785271
Tax-Exempt Status:

501(c)(5)

Budget (2019):

Revenue: $3,309,371
Expenses: $2,767,210
Assets: $2,702,897
Type:

State Labor Union
President:

Bill McCarthy

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The Minnesota AFL-CIO is the state-level affiliate of the left leaning AFL-CIO national labor federation. The organization is comprised of more than 1,000 local labor unions in Minnesota and claims to represent more than 300,000 union members. The organization lobbies for left-leaning labor policies at the state, local, and federal levels. The organization also endorses candidates for office, consistently almost exclusively endorsing Democratic candidates including President Joe Biden, Sen. Tina Smith (D-MN), and Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-MN). 1 2

Background

The Minnesota AFL-CIO is a chartered state affiliate of the national AFL-CIO. The organization is allowed to sets its own broad public policy agenda and platform at its biennial convention. The organization consists of more than 1,000 local labor unions, making it among the larger of the state-level AFL-CIO affiliates in the United States. The Minnesota AFL-CIO operates several scholarship and education programs and has multiple affiliated local and regional area labor federations, including the East Central Area Labor Council, the Minneapolis Regional Labor Federation, and the St. Paul Regional Labor Federation. 3 4 5

Policy Stances

The Minnesota AFL-CIO lobbies for various pro-labor union policies at the state and local levels as well as supporting left-leaning federal legislation. A focus of the organization’s recent lobbying efforts includes supporting left-leaning and gender-related legislation, COVID-19 stimulus, and cash grants from the government to the working class. The organization also praised Minnesota Governor Tim Walz’s (D) COVID-19 response, including encouraging workers to report workplace COVID-19 restriction violations, and supports maintaining the COVID-related state of emergency in Minnesota indefinitely. 6

The organization has also continually supported higher taxes on higher income individuals and families that were enacted in Minnesota over the past ten years and lobbies to raise state tax rates. 7

Specific pieces of legislation supported by the organization in 2021 included a paid family and medical leave program, allowing high schoolers to collect unemployment insurance, allowing part-time school employees to collect unemployment, and a waiver on unemployment waiting periods. 8

The Minnesota AFL-CIO was also supportive of the race-related protests that took place following the death of George Floyd in Minneapolis in the summer of 2020, which began in Minnesota and spread across the nation. The organization passed a resolution praising such movements and stating that “Racism, white supremacy, and anti-blackness were systematically embedded in American society.” 9

The organization was also a part of a 2021 coalition to expand extra government-funded payments to certain essential workers during the COVID-19 pandemic, including a $250 million state budget proposal to expand the unemployment fund to include part-time janitors and security officers, childcare workers, school staff, meatpackers, and retail grocery store workers. 10

The organization also provides information to its member unions on how to ensure that their political action committees ads and printed materials are union made, and supports the “Be Union, Buy Union” campaign of the Union Label and Service Trades Department, AFL-CIO. 11

Candidate Endorsements

The Minnesota AFL-CIO endorses candidates for public offices, almost exclusively Democratic candidates. In 2020, the organization endorsed solely Democratic candidates for federal office including President Joe Biden, Sen. Tina Smith (D-MN), Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-MN), and then-Rep. Collin Peterson (D-MN). 12

References

  1. “2020 Minnesota AFL-CIO Endorsements.” Minnesota AFL-CIO. Accessed October 15, 2021. https://www.mnaflcio.org/updates/2020-minnesota-afl-cio-endorsements
  2. “About.” Minnesota AFL-CIO. Accessed October 15, 2021.  https://www.mnaflcio.org/about
  3. “About.” Minnesota AFL-CIO. Accessed October 15, 2021.  https://www.mnaflcio.org/about
  4. “About.” Minnesota AFL-CIO. Accessed October 15, 2021.  https://www.mnaflcio.org/about
  5. “Area Labor Councils.” Minnesota AFL-CIO. Accessed October 15, 2021.  https://www.mnaflcio.org/about/area-labor-councils
  6. “Minnesota AFL-CIO Announces 2021 Legislative Priorities.” Minnesota AFL-CIO. Accessed October 15, 2021 https://www.mnaflcio.org/updates/minnesota-afl-cio-announces-2021-legislative-priorities
  7. “Minnesota AFL-CIO Announces 2021 Legislative Priorities.” Minnesota AFL-CIO. Accessed October 15, 2021 https://www.mnaflcio.org/updates/minnesota-afl-cio-announces-2021-legislative-priorities
  8. “House Jobs Bill Delivers for Working Minnesotans.” Minnesota AFL-CIO. Accessed October 15, 2021 https://www.mnaflcio.org/updates/house-jobs-bill-delivers-working-minnesotans
  9. “Minnesota AFL-CIO Resolution on Racial and Economic Justice.” Minnesota AFL-CIO. Accessed October 15, 2021 https://www.mnaflcio.org/updates/mn-afl-cio-resolution-racial-and-economic-justice
  10. “Workers Call On ‘Essential Workers Frontline Work Group’ To Deliver Hero Pay.” Minnesota AFL-CIO. Accessed October 15, 2021 https://www.mnaflcio.org/updates/workers-call-%E2%80%9Cessential-workers-frontline-work-group%E2%80%9D-deliver-hero-pay
  11. “Union FAQs.” Minnesota AFL-CIO. Accessed October 15, 2021.  https://www.mnaflcio.org/union-faqs
  12. “2020 Minnesota AFL-CIO Endorsements.” Minnesota AFL-CIO. Accessed October 15, 2021. https://www.mnaflcio.org/updates/2020-minnesota-afl-cio-endorsements
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Nonprofit Information

  • Accounting Period: December - November
  • Tax Exemption Received: May 1, 1956

    • Available Filings

    Period Form Type Total revenue Total functional expenses Total assets (EOY) Total liabilities (EOY) Unrelated business income? Total contributions Program service revenue Investment income Comp. of current officers, directors, etc. Form 990
    2019 Dec Form 990 $3,309,371 $2,767,210 $2,702,897 $557,535 N $132,110 $3,163,841 $13,420 $277,618 PDF
    2018 Dec Form 990 $3,001,954 $3,141,804 $2,228,925 $625,724 N $501,941 $2,492,141 $6,639 $384,141 PDF
    2017 Dec Form 990 $3,619,747 $2,883,317 $2,425,430 $682,379 N $182,550 $3,428,385 $4,714 $245,106
    2016 Dec Form 990 $2,588,518 $2,429,378 $1,744,715 $738,094 N $146,173 $2,428,460 $871 $167,431
    2016 Mar Form 990 $3,157,328 $3,272,502 $1,626,737 $779,256 N $112,508 $3,016,247 $4,395 $245,800 PDF
    2015 Mar Form 990 $3,282,193 $3,462,589 $1,786,844 $824,189 N $473,269 $2,793,417 $4,274 $231,443 PDF
    2014 Mar Form 990 $3,177,456 $2,869,761 $2,001,830 $858,779 N $418,128 $2,688,011 $3,098 $241,195 PDF
    2013 Mar Form 990 $3,571,554 $3,757,211 $1,738,191 $902,835 N $596,469 $2,641,588 $4,482 $224,680 PDF
    2012 Mar Form 990 $4,522,139 $4,280,948 $1,954,427 $933,414 N $1,261,391 $2,888,465 $4,206 $222,456 PDF

    Additional Filings (PDFs)

    Minnesota AFL-CIO

    175 AURORA AVE
    SAINT PAUL, MN 55103-2356