U.S. Rep. Nikki Budzinski Spotlights Steel, Fair Trade and the LEAP Act

U.S. Rep. Nikki Budzinski of Illinois’ 13th Congressional District joined the America’s Work Force Union Podcast to outline a pro-worker agenda rooted in union family history, state-level wage negotiations and a federal focus on industrial investment and apprenticeship pathways.

Budzinski discussed the economic stakes surrounding U.S. Steel’s Granite City Works, the need for enforceable fair-trade rules as the USMCA review approaches and her LEAP Act proposal to expand and modernize registered apprenticeship programs. The conversation linked bread-and-butter issues—wages, benefits, pensions and job security—to the policy choices that determine whether working families can still access a stable middle-class life.

• United Steelworkers jobs at Granite City Works remain a central economic anchor as ownership changes raise questions about long-term investment and stability.
• Fair trade enforcement and USMCA review are framed as worker issues tied to domestic manufacturing competitiveness and supply-chain resilience.
• The LEAP Act elevates union apprenticeship programs as a debt-free pathway to family-sustaining careers, especially in non-college-majority districts.

In a moment when affordability pressures and workforce shortages are reshaping the national economy, U.S. Rep. Nikki Budzinski is making a case that rebuilding the middle class requires more than slogans. It requires a policy that protects union standards, stabilizes industrial communities and expands access to training that leads directly to good jobs.

Budzinski, who represents Illinois’ 13th Congressional District across central and southern Illinois, joined the America’s Work Force Union Podcast to discuss how her background in the labor movement and government budgeting impacts her approach to wages, manufacturing and workforce development. Her message was consistent: working people need more routes into the middle class, and the strongest routes are those built on collective bargaining, high-road employers and proven training models.

AFL-CIO, SEIU and UFCW Helped Deliver a $15 Minimum Wage in Illinois

Before arriving in Congress, Budzinski helped lead a major state negotiation that reshaped pay standards for working people in Illinois: the move to a $ 15-per-hour minimum wage.

She described a multi-stakeholder process that included labor organizations and business interests, with the state pursuing a phased approach that incrementally increased wages over numerous years. The outcome, she emphasized, was a fully implemented $15 minimum wage, including adjustments affecting younger workers.

For labor advocates, the significance of the Illinois model is not only the final number. It demonstrates that coordinated bargaining among stakeholders can yield measurable gains for low-wage workers while maintaining a focus on long-term implementation.

Public Education and Apprenticeship Roots Shape Budzinski’s Agenda

Budzinski tied her labor priorities to family experiences. She credited union apprenticeship opportunities with helping previous generations achieve stability, benefits and retirement security.

She also pointed to public education as a core pillar of community opportunity. In her view, policies that weaken public services or shift resources away from public schools can undermine the same working-class stability that unions have historically helped build.

That combination—apprenticeships and quality public education—forms the foundation of her workforce message: multiple pathways should be treated as equally legitimate routes to economic security.

United Steelworkers and Granite City Works Face Investment Uncertainty

A major portion of the conversation focused on U.S. Steel’s Granite City Works, a facility Budzinski described as a bedrock employer for the Granite City community.

She highlighted the role of the United Steelworkers in securing wages, benefits and job protections that have sustained families for generations. She also emphasized the importance of keeping production capacity active, including maintaining operations tied to blast furnace activity.

Budzinski framed the central question as a long-term investment. As steelmaking technology evolves and global competition intensifies, she argued that domestic mills need modernization and capital commitments that preserve union jobs and keep facilities competitive.

Fair Trade and Steel Dumping Pressures

Budzinski connected instability in domestic steel markets to trade policy and global pricing pressures. She argued that past trade decisions have reduced the U.S. manufacturing sector's ability to compete on a level playing field.

When cheaper imported steel undercuts domestic production, the consequences include uncertainty for workers, disrupted schedules and community-level economic stress, she said.

She believes worker-centered trade policy should prioritize enforceable standards that prevent market distortion and protect industrial capacity that supports national supply chains.

USMCA Review and Congress’s Role in Trade Negotiations

With the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) review approaching this summer, Budzinski pointed to the need for Congress to play an active role in trade negotiations.

She emphasized that trade policy should be evaluated through a worker lens: whether agreements strengthen domestic industries, protect jobs and uphold standards that prevent a race to the bottom.

She also argued that trade frameworks should consider broader competitiveness factors, including labor standards and environmental expectations, so that U.S. workers are not forced to compete against systems that do not uphold comparable protections.

LEAP Act Expands Registered Apprenticeships as a Middle-Class Pathway

Budzinski’s LEAP Act—Leveraging and Energizing America’s Apprenticeship Programs—was presented as a direct response to two realities: rising education costs and the need for skilled workers in high-demand sectors.

In districts where a majority of residents do not hold four-year degrees, she argued that workforce policy must elevate training routes that deliver immediate economic value. Registered apprenticeships, particularly union programs, were described as a model that combines classroom learning with paid, on-the-job training.

She also emphasized the practical advantages: apprentices earn while they learn, avoid significant debt and often move directly into stable careers with benefits and retirement contributions.

IBEW Apprenticeship Success Shows What Workforce Policy Can Do

Budzinski underscored the role of union apprenticeship programs in opening doors for young workers, including those who may not see college as the best fit.

She described how exposure to career options should begin earlier—well before graduation—so students understand the full range of pathways available in their communities. She pointed to sectors such as aviation, manufacturing and maintenance as examples of careers that can deliver strong wages without requiring a traditional four-year route.

For labor leaders, the takeaway is familiar: the apprenticeship model is not a backup plan. It is a primary strategy for building skilled talent, sustaining union density and keeping high-wage work rooted in local communities.

Labor Caucus Priorities: Affordability, Safety and Retirement Dignity

In Congress, Budzinski described her alignment with pro-labor members and her work within the Labor Caucus.

She framed the caucus’s priorities around affordability, wage growth, safe working conditions and retirement security. The underlying argument is that strengthening collective bargaining and expanding access to union jobs raises standards beyond union shops, lifting wages and expectations across industries.

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