1 min read

Season 4, Episode 49

Hoffman: Women’s issues are labor issues

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Guest Name:


Desiree Hoffman

Guest Website:


https://www.uaw.org/ 

Guest Social Media:


Facebook

Twitter

YouTube

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Supportive Documents:


Desiree Hoffman, Assistant Legislative Director for the International Union, United Automobile, Aerospace and Agricultural Implement Workers of America (UAW), joined the America’s Work Force Union Podcast and spoke about her journey into the labor movement and how she got to her current position with the UAW. 

Coming from a blue-collar, single-parent home in central Pennsylvania, Hoffman said she was a product of the government assistance programs for which she now lobbies. Growing up, she took advantage of the opportunities provided by the government, many of which were for children deemed “at-risk.” They helped Hoffman find her path into the labor movement as she sought her path to the middle class.

Hoffman’s first job working in organized labor was with the Service Employees International Union, where she lobbied for members' rights. During her time with the SEIU, Hoffman worked on the Affordable Care Act. As one of the only female lobbyists who advocated for this legislation, she also ensured some pre-existing conditions, like child-bearing, would not keep women from gaining access to the Affordable Care Act.

After a brief hiatus from the labor movement, Hoffman was hired by the UAW. Since then, her passion for organized labor has grown, and she continues to lobby on behalf of the best interests of unions. Hoffman now spends most of her days working on policies, such as women’s rights and student loan forgiveness, that apply to her directly. As she explained, women’s issues are labor issues.

Listen to the entire episode to learn more.


America’s Work Force is the only daily labor podcast in the US and has been on the air since 1993, supplying listeners with useful, relevant input into their daily lives through fact-finding features, in-depth interviews, informative news segments and practical consumer reports. America’s Work Force is committed to providing an accessible venue in which America's workers and their families can hear discussion on important, relevant topics such as employment, healthcare, legislative action, labor-management relations, corporate practices, finances, local and national politics, consumer reports and labor issues.

America’s Work Force Union Podcast is brought to you in part by our sponsors: AFL-CIO, American Federation of Government Employees, American Federation of Musicians Local 4, Alliance for American Manufacturing, Anthem Blue Cross Blue Shield, Brotherhood of Maintenance of Way Employes-IBT, Boyd Watterson, Columbus/Central Ohio Building and Construction Trades Council, Communication Workers of America, Mechanical Insulators Labor Management Cooperative Trust, International Association of Heat and Frost Insulators and Allied Workers Local 50, International Federation of Professional and Technical Engineers, International Union of Bricklayers and Allied Crafts, International Union of Painters and Allied Trades District Council 6, Ironworkers Great Lakes District Council, Melwood, The Labor Citizen newspaper, Laborers International Union of North America, The National Labor Office of Blue Cross and Blue Shield, North Coast Area Labor Federation, Ohio Federation of Teachers, United Labor Agency, United Steelworkers.

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