In Buffalo, women union leaders are gaining ground fast, although their numbers still don't match women's nearly one-half share of the work force. Borman is one of five women on the 31-member executive board of the Buffalo AFL-CIO Council, which coordinates area locals. "It is changing," Borman said. But "there are more gains to be made by women." .
African-Americans are even further behind than women. There are no minorities on the all-white executive board of the Buffalo AFL-CIO Council, and there are few in the top offices of area unions. There are longtime union activists say it has been years since they can remember an African-American union officer holding a board seat. Robert Mootry, president of the Buffalo chapter of the Coalition of Black Trade Unionists explains "One of the reasons is some people don't want to be involved," he said. "It's been the status quo for so long, there are few opportunities." He also mentions that all you can wait for is the opportunity to take over leadership. Often union leaders groom their successors by granting them by putting them forward immediate leadership roles. Diversity has started a trend to gain ground through the years and has been on the rise for some time now. With the ambition of the women and the diversity groups they hope to fight for and hold high-ranking positions throughout the union world.
The unions in the global are just as strong as they are here in the US. There have been plans for trade union activities on May 1, 2003 are advancing, as unions from all five continents respond to the call for actions under a single worldwide theme. The 158 million members International Confederation of Free Trade Unions (ICFTU), along with its partners in the Global Unions group represent trade union organizations from every sector. They will be calling for "Respect" in events uniting workers from all corners of the world for the unionists to come together as one.
