Although the U.S. labor movement is sometimes depicted as hawkish and xenophobic, this characterization ignores its repeated attempts to grapple with the global problem of war.
On June 9, 2026, for example, delegates at the annual national convention of the AFL-CIO, the 15-million member labor federation with which most American unions are affiliated, voted to adopt Resolution 9, "We Want a Just and Peaceful World."
Declaring that "working people must never be treated as pawns in geopolitical power struggles," the resolution promises that "we will stand with workers and communities harmed by war" and "will advocate for an end to wars that threaten workers' livelihoods, security and rights."
"In Gaza," notes the AFL-CIO statement, "we demand an immediate and permanent ceasefire; full, safe and sustained humanitarian access; a halt to arms transfers that may facilitate violations of international law by all parties; and a credible political process grounded in international law and UN resolutions to achieve a just and lasting peace."
Furthermore, it declares, the AFL-CIO "will engage forcefully in international institutions," such as the United Nations and the International Labor Organization, and "will advocate for continued U.S. government and labor engagement in international negotiations," including those focused on climate change and energy under the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change and the Paris Agreement.
Assailing demagogic "efforts to divide working people through fear, exclusion, and racist anti-migrant rhetoric," the labor federation opposed "discriminatory travel bans and migration policies," denounced "the abandonment of refugee and asylum commitments under international law," and demanded "due process for all." It promised to "seek . . . foreign policies that promote peace and halt support for repressive governments."
Three months earlier, rebuking the U.S. and Israeli governments for initiating a war with Iran, the AFL-CIO issued a statement calling for an end to the conflict and demanding "strict respect for international law, the United Nations Charter, and the U.S. Constitution that call[s] for the people's voice through Congress in any war authorization."
Of course, organized labor's expressions of support for peace and international cooperation are not always accompanied by major labor movement campaigns to secure them. Within the U.S. labor movement, domestic policy concerns, which have a direct impact upon American workers, tend to outweigh foreign policy concerns.
Furthermore, during most of the Cold War, much of the AFL-CIO leadership was, in fact, quite hawkish, rallying around the flag and supporting U.S. military intervention in Asia, Latin America, and Africa. AFL-CIO president George Meany worked vigorously and successfully to get the labor federation to give "unqualified support" to the U.S. war in Vietnam and, in 1972, to reject backing the peace candidacy of Senator George McGovern, the Democratic nominee for President.
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