Tens of thousands stand up for labor

By Alfred Lubrano, Inquirer Staff Writer

Tens of thousands of sprinkler fitters, splicers, teachers, and other union workers convened in the steam heat of an August Saturday to rally for labor – espousing the dignity of work and lamenting the erosion of the middle class.

Eakins Oval and surrounding streets were jammed with a muscular sea of 30,000 to 40,000 workers, mostly white men in various colored T-shirts representing their unions and trades from at least 10 states.

“Work defines us,” intoned national AFL-CIO president Richard Trumka to the enthusiastic throng. “Work is who we are. But hard work alone never led to decent wages and retirement. It takes hard work – and activism.”

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