It's Filipino Heritage Month and this week, the head of the largest trade union in the Philippines is in town. Elmer Labog is the chair of Kilusang Mayo Uno.
The group represents a cross-section of workers in the auto, semi-conductor, transportation, and garment industries. Labog says his group is the most progressive and militant in the Philippines.
He has been meeting with labor leaders from Hawaiʻi unions who represent a large number of Filipino members. On the list: the Hawaiʻi Nurses' Association, the hotel workers of Unite Here! Local 5, as well as the local chapters of the International Longshore and Warehouse Union, and the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers.
Labog just came from a Chicago rally for striking auto workers. Hawaiʻi is the last leg of his labor tour. So why Hawaiʻi now? He says, "We are in the same boat."
This interview aired on The Conversation on Oct. 26, 2023. The Conversation airs weekdays at 11 a.m. on HPR-1.
