Yesterday, the White House budget office encouraged federal agencies to use project labor agreements on construction jobs. The guidance includes potential exceptions to avoid the use of PLAs and does not require PLAs on projects over $35 million.
“Although it doesn’t contain the same protections as the Biden administration, this is a step in the right direction. Project labor agreements create jobs for SMART members and working people across our country,” SMART General President Michael Coleman said in response. “All of us at SMART appreciate and applaud yesterday’s guidance from the White House, and we look forward to keeping this conversation going. We encourage them to go further, for the sake of our members, our families and our neighbors.
“We will continue to do everything we can to keep creating jobs for SMART members and Americans nationwide, and we encourage all agencies to support the use of PLAs on all federally funded projects.”
The Department of Energy recently canceled $3.7 billion in awards for various energy projects, including a project in Mitchell, Indiana, that had employed Local 20 sheet metal workers.
“These major energy projects were creating jobs for SMART members and American construction workers. Now, after the Department of Energy’s announcement, those jobs have been taken away,” said SMART General President Michael Coleman. “That’s bad for our members, our families and our country. We’re urging the Department of Energy to reverse this decision and put American workers back on the job.”
Following reporting by ABC News that Kilmar Abrego Garcia is being returned to the United States from El Salvador, SMART General President Michael Coleman released the following statement:
“Since March, our demand has not changed: Kilmar Abrego Garcia must be returned to the United States and receive his right to due process. This is a right granted to every person in our country.
“This fight isn’t about one man — it’s about ensuring our constitutional rights are protected, for the sake of all SMART members and everyone in this country. If one person’s right to due process is denied, all our rights are in danger.”
The spending bill recently passed by the United States House of Representatives includes nearly $700 billion in cuts to Medicaid — a move that could have serious consequences for SMART members alongside working families across the country.
“These cuts will affect our members directly at the bargaining table and in their wallets,” said SMART General President Michael Coleman. “Health care costs rise year after year, but when Medicaid is slashed, health care providers and insurance companies will shift even more of the burden onto high-quality plans like ours. That means even higher premiums, rising deductibles and increased out-of-pocket costs. Our members are already doing their part — this would make it even more expensive just to hold onto the care they’ve earned.
“Medicaid provides health coverage for millions of Americans, including many SMART members’ spouses and children. For families who rely on a combination of employer-provided benefits and public programs like Medicaid or the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP), these cuts threaten their access to the care they need. It’s not just about coverage — it’s about stability for our families.
“As the bill advances to the Senate, SMART is actively working with congressional leaders to make sure our members continue to have access to affordable, high-quality health care. We urge senators to improve this legislation by maintaining full funding for Medicaid, which plays a critical role in keeping health care costs manageable for working families.”
The spending bill passed by the United States House of Representatives includes more than $500 billion in cuts to tax credits and infrastructure funding that help finance construction projects. In response, SMART General President Michael Coleman said:
“As written, this spending bill will take work away from SMART members, and it will hurt our country’s national interests. Developers and end users rely on tax credits and infrastructure funding to make sure construction projects are completed. Without that money, projects including nuclear, hydrogen and battery facilities get canceled, and SMART members lose their jobs.
“SMART is working with members of Congress to fix this. We are making sure senators know that these tax credits keep union sheet metal workers on the job so we can provide a stable future for our families.
“We will keep fighting for our members’ jobs, and we urge the Senate to stand with our members by fixing this bill and keeping these tax credits in place.”
On Thursday, April 10, the United States Supreme Court issued a decision that backed a federal judge’s order requiring the government to facilitate the return of Kilmar Armando Abrego Garcia to the United States. SMART General President Michael Coleman issued the following statement in response:
“Since last week, our demand has been a simple one — one that echoed the calls of Kilmar Armando Abrego Garcia’s family, community and allies: Bring Kilmar home and give him the due process that is his right.
“It’s been weeks since Kilmar, a sheet metal apprentice working hard to pursue the American dream, was mistakenly deported. Over those weeks, in what has been a heartbreaking and terrifying time for Kilmar’s family, we have seen Americans from coast to coast raise their voices against Kilmar’s deportation. And in the midst of that outcry, the United States justice system instructed the government, again and again, to bring Kilmar back to the U.S.
“In court last Friday, U.S. Department of Justice attorney Erez Reuveni admitted that there was nothing in the record to support ICE apprehending and deporting Abrego Garcia. The federal district court judge who heard Kilmar’s case stated she ‘[hadn’t] been given any evidence’ to support the government’s allegation of gang affiliation and ordered the government to bring Kilmar home. On Monday, a three-judge panel of the United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit unanimously denied the government’s request for a stay. And yesterday, the United States Supreme Court reaffirmed the government’s responsibility to facilitate Kilmar’s return from El Salvador.
“Our call is unchanged, and it is now backed by the Supreme Court: The government must bring Kilmar Armando Abrego Garcia home and grant him due process. We are overjoyed for Kilmar and his family, and we look forward to the Trump administration taking immediate steps to bring him back to the U.S.”
Following Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts’ decision to temporarily stay a federal district court order to return Kilmar Armando Abrego Garcia to the United States by 11:59pm tonight, SMART General President Michael Coleman issued the following statement:
“In court Friday, U.S. Department of Justice attorney Erez Reuveni admitted that there was nothing in the record to support ICE apprehending and deporting Abrego Garcia. The federal district court judge who heard Kilmar’s case stated she ‘[hadn’t] been given any evidence’ to support the government’s allegation of gang affiliation and ordered the government to bring Kilmar home by 11:59 p.m. on Monday, April 7. And earlier today, a three-judge panel of the United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit unanimously denied the government’s request for a stay. Circuit Judge Thacker aptly described what is at stake in Kilmar’s case, writing that:
‘The United States Government has no legal authority to snatch a person who is lawfully present in the United States off the street and remove him from the country without due process. The Government’s contention otherwise, and its argument that the federal courts are powerless to intervene, are unconscionable.’
“Now, instead of fixing the error the federal government has acknowledged making by bringing Kilmar home, the government has taken the matter to the Supreme Court. Today, Chief Justice Roberts temporarily stayed the order.
“We are devastated for Kilmar and his family that his return has been delayed. But our call remains unchanged: The Trump administration must bring Kilmar Armando Abrego Garcia home and grant him the due process that is his right.”
Following an April 4, 2025, press conference regarding the deportation of SMART Local 100 apprentice Kilmar Armando Abrego Garcia, General President Michael Coleman issued the following statement:
“The principle of due process is one of the fundamental values our nation is founded upon. Every single person in America has the right to due process, the right to face one’s accusers — the guarantee that no one shall be ‘deprived of life, liberty or property, without due process of law.’
“When Kilmar Abrego Garcia was mistakenly deported to El Salvador, he was denied his right to due process, and we at SMART are fighting to ensure he receives the treatment he is granted under law — just like we would, and we always will, fight for the rights of every single SMART member. We continue to call on the United States government to return Abrego Garcia to the United States and be granted due process, and we encourage every American who believes in the rule of law to do the same.”
The International Association of Sheet Metal, Air, Rail and Transportation Workers (SMART) issued the following statement in response to President Trump’s March 27, 2025, executive order, which seeks to eliminate collective bargaining rights for approximately 700,000 federal employees — including those serving in critical roles at federal shipyards:
“Collective bargaining is not just a cornerstone of the labor movement — it is a fundamental American freedom. President Trump’s executive order is a stunning and deeply troubling assault on that freedom, and it represents a direct threat to the livelihoods and dignity of working people across this nation.
“This order targets the rights of hundreds of thousands of federal workers who serve our country every day — from caring for our veterans and staffing our hospitals to protecting frontline workers during national emergencies. These dedicated public servants, many of whom are military veterans themselves, deserve respect and security — not political attacks designed to strip them of their voice on the job.
“Collective bargaining has empowered generations of SMART members to earn fair pay, strong benefits, and safe working conditions. Through these rights, we have helped build and sustain the very infrastructure that makes America strong. That legacy is now under siege.
“Make no mistake: This executive order is not only an attack on federal workers — it is an attack on every working American who believes in fairness, democracy and the right to be heard.”
“SMART stands in unwavering solidarity with our brothers and sisters across the labor movement,” said SMART General President Michael Coleman. “We will fight back against any effort to silence workers and dismantle the collective power that has built — and continues to build — our great nation.”
I want to wish you and your families a very happy holiday season.
Whether you celebrate Christmas, Hanukkah, Kwanzaa or practice your own tradition, this is a meaningful time. I hope all of you are able to spend these days with loved ones.
The end of the year is an opportunity to reflect on the past and look forward to the future.
The labor movement has been resurgent in recent years, with working people organizing like they haven’t in decades and union approval ratings close to all-time highs. That includes in our industries: More than ever, Americans and Canadians realize just how crucial SMART members are to our two nations. They understand the importance of the workers who manufacture and install HVAC systems and who help maintain the quality of the air we breathe. They finally recognize the essential work performed by freight railroaders and public transit operators. And they see the true value of our collective power: We are the workers fighting to raise the standard of living for our neighbors and communities.
With that foundation, we made history over the last 12 months.
We put members to work on megaprojects across the United States and Canada. We negotiated strong contracts across industries and trades. We fabricated HVAC systems for hospitals, chip plants and more. We won a nationwide two-person train crew rule. And we grew as a union, bringing in tens of thousands of new SMART members.
The truth is this, sisters and brothers: Our two nations simply don’t work without sheet metal and transportation workers, whether we’re helping build new schools or bringing freight from coast to coast. I want to thank you for all that you do — every single day.
The holiday season means different things to different people. But at its core, I believe it’s about our common humanity. As union members, that is one of our core values; the idea that every working person deserves safety, fair pay, a secure retirement and a life with dignity, and that we will organize together to win those rights.
That principle — our solidarity — will guide us in the future. As we close out 2024 and head into 2025, we will continue to stand united, to organize and to have each other’s backs.
Again, happy holidays from me, my family and the SMART General Executive Council. Enjoy the season, and please stay safe.
