The United Steelworkers union, which represents about 850,000 workers in metals, mining and other industries, also endorsed Harris, calling her “a key member of the most pro-worker administration of our lifetime,” United Steelworkers President David McCaul said in a statement.
Labor experts say Harris is a natural choice for unions to rally around because, as vice president, she has played a key role in overseeing relations with labor unions under an administration considered the most pro-union since the New Deal.
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“Labor activists and elected leaders know that defeating Trump is essential,” said Larry Cohen, a Democratic activist who works to boost voter turnout and former head of the Communications Workers of America, which endorsed Harris. “Given what’s at stake, their support for Harris should come as no surprise.”
Earlier this week, the American Teachers Union, the United Food and Commercial Workers, the International Union of Electrical Workers and the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees also voiced their support for Harris.
“We fully support Kamala Harris,” Lee Sanders, president of the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees, which represents more than 1 million public employees, said in a statement Monday afternoon. “Vice President Harris is exactly the right person for these times.”
Several other large organizations that previously supported Biden, including the North American Construction Workers Union, the United Auto Workers and the Association of Flight Attendants, are still considering their decisions.
A UAW source said the union’s board of directors “will meet in the coming days to determine next steps,” calling Harris “an ally and advocate for the UAW and the entire working class.”
Labor support is expected to be crucial for Democrats to defeat former President Donald Trump, especially in battleground states such as Pennsylvania, Michigan and Wisconsin, where union density is high.
Labor unions are the largest donors to the Democratic Party and the largest donors to the Biden campaign.
Labor leaders who support Harris point to her record as a White House co-chair with former Labor Secretary Marty Walsh of a task force on labor rights that produced nearly 70 recommendations to make it easier for workers to unionize and bargain collectively. They also point out that she meets frequently with union leaders and members and refused to cross the picket line during last year’s Los Angeles hotel strike.
So far, some of Harris’ most enthusiastic support in the labor movement has come from health care unions in her home state of California.
Just hours after Biden formally dropped out of the race on Sunday, the nation’s largest private sector labor union, the Service Employees International Union (SEIU), announced that its executive committee had voted to endorse Harris.
In an interview with The Washington Post on Monday, April Verrett, president of SEIU, which represents about 2 million members in health care and other fields, praised Harris’ record as a “champion for caregiving and for caregivers,” a top priority for the union, which represents nurses, doctors, home care and nursing home workers. Verrett pointed to Harris’ role as vice president in establishing new safe staffing standards for nursing homes and making home care and child care more affordable.
“We know her really well, we know her work,” said Verret, who said he’s known Harris for years through his work in California. “It’s no surprise to anyone that we were enthusiastic supporters of her for president.”
Sal Rosselli, president emeritus of the National Union of Healthcare Workers (NUHW), which represents about 19,000 health care workers in California, said the union’s endorsement of Harris was a “no brainer”.
Rosselli said the union had already voted weeks ago to support Biden if he withdrew at the first sign that his candidacy was in jeopardy, which allowed the union to act quickly on Sunday.
“When Harris was district attorney in San Francisco, she ensured that first-time offenders had access to employment opportunities in the health care field,” Rosselli said.
Biden and Trump have been vying for months to portray themselves as an ally of the working class, and nearly every major labor union had endorsed Biden before he dropped out of the race.
Last week, the head of the Teamsters, a 1.3 million-strong union representing mostly transport workers, took the unusual step of speaking at the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee, angering White House staff and some union leaders.
The union has not yet endorsed the election, saying it will “not take for granted” the vote of its members.
