2026 USW International Women's Conference: Education for a New Era
March 30-April 2, Chasity Martin and I attended the 2026 USW International Women’s Conference in Toronto. When the Local sends members to events, it’s important that we report back to the membership, because the whole point is that what we gain is brought back to benefit the Local. Rather than just a short report at the union meeting that wouldn’t do it justice, I thought I’d write a little blog about what I got out of the conference.
First of all, I'd like to thank the membership for the opportunity to attend the conference. I had attended the International Women's Conference before, but it had been ten years since I last went, so I was excited to get a chance to go again. I was even more excited to have someone coming with me who had not experienced a big USW conference before. I know Chasity is grateful for the opportunity as well, and it was very eye opening for her. The theme of the conference was Education for a New Era, and education is something that USW excels at. My favorite part of any USW conference is the workshops. There were 28 workshops to choose from in which we could choose six. It was tough to choose from 28 workshops, but I tend to gravitate toward the ones that focus on union engagement and activism. We need to always be cultivating union activists and future leaders. It’s how our movement lives and thrives. Chasity and I took only one or two of the same workshops. It’s always a good idea to try to not do all the same, so that we can maximize the amount of information we bring back with us. I’ll give a little information about the workshops I took at the end of the article, if you want to hear more about those.
We heard stories all week from sisters as to challenges many of us face in the workplace, and especially those who work in male-dominated workplaces. Many of the jobs we do were created with male workers in mind. We heard from sisters who don’t have PPE that fit them, or don’t have suitable restrooms, for example. When I think about our plant, I think of some of the jobs that aren’t very suited to people of smaller stature, which largely affects our sisters. Through our voices and those who advocate for us, we can make the workplace fit everyone. A workshop I did not attend, but is worth noting, was Male Allyship. All of the brothers in attendance were asked to participate in that workshop. I was encouraged to hear that the workshop was full and from some of the brothers as to how the workshop, and the conference as a whole, opened their eyes to things they had never thought about or considered.
Aside from the workshops, and just as important, were the General Sessions. We had many, many inspiring speakers throughout the week. One of the highlights was former USW International Vice President At-Large, Carol Landry, who was the first woman ever to hold a position on our International Executive Board. She spoke about the history of Women of Steel, where we began and where we’ve come. Women of Steel was born in District 6 in Canada, in 1987. As you may be aware, the United Steelworkers originally began to represent the steel industry, with many mergers over the years diversifying the membership. But traditionally our union has been male-dominated just by virtue of the industries we represent. The sisters in D6 recognized that women had a smaller voice in their locals, so they approached then-Director Leo Gerard about starting a program to develop women leaders in the union. Director Gerard was open to the idea, tasked the sisters to present a plan to him, and Women of Steel was born. This led to a constitutional requirement that all locals with female membership have a women’s committee. It wasn’t until 2008 that Landry was installed as VP At-Large and in 2023, our own District Director, Cathy Drummond, was named as the first woman District Director. This brings us to today, when after 84 years of the Steelworkers, we’ve elected not only the first woman, but also the first person of color to be our USW International President, Roxanne Brown, who was installed on March 1 during International Women’s Month!
President Brown, or Rox as she’s affectionately called, was our keynote speaker at the conference. She spoke about her history in the union, how she got her start, the people who mentored and supported her along the way, and the challenges she’s faced as a woman leader. She tipped her hat to all of the sisters who paved the way before us, and those of us going to work today in our workplaces and local unions who continue to fight for fairness and equity for all workers. And she talked about a New Era of leadership in our union. Siblings, we have had some incredible International Presidents through the years, but I have to tell you, it was very inspiring to see the first woman President of the USW speak in person. She is also the only female president of an industrial union. There were sisters in the audience in tears just being there to witness the progress we have made as a union. I am really excited to see what the future will bring for our union with Roxanne leading us.
This is not something that I broadcast or really talk about, but it’s not lost on me that I am the first woman to do several things at Local 310. As far as I know, I am the first female Pension and Insurance Rep, the first woman to sit on the Bargaining Committee both at the local and at Master Negotiations, and now the first female Vice President of Local 310, which was founded in 1945. And while to me, it’s about doing the job, not being a woman, I also understand that it matters that a woman is at the table. It matters that Chasity is the first woman on the Safety Committee. No one knows women’s issues like a woman. We can have brothers to advocate for us, but it’s not the same as having a sister in the room to voice that from our own perspective. And this doesn’t just end with gender. We should strive to have our leadership look more like our membership, so that everyone’s voice gets heard. That starts with being inclusive and intentional about engaging all of our members, and in turn, members taking a more active role in our union. This is your union, as much as it is mine, or the Local Union President’s, or your Divisional Chair’s. I hope, if you haven’t already, you will consider joining a committee, or becoming a union steward, or even just coming to a union meeting. There is always something we can find for you to do to become a more active union member, or dare I say, a union activist!
Here are the workshops I took, for those that are interested.
Exploring the Labor Movement through the Written and Spoken Word was about “working class poetry” and how poetry has given voice to the working class. We also talked some about chants, like the ones we do during our march ins/outs.
Next Generation of Women Labor Activist: What does that look like for me? In this workshop we talked about what activism looks like in our union. There are many styles of activism, and a statement that stuck out to me was, “most activism in not a grand gesture.” Activism can look like coming to a union meeting or speaking up for a coworker.
Bargaining for Equality dealt with issues we can pursue through collective bargaining to address the issues of today’s workforce. This could be things like pay equity, language that broadens the definition of a family member for things like bereavement, accommodation for disability, or child-care issues.
Show Your Strength: Organizing Successful Solidarity Activities was presented by the Strategic Campaigns Department, including our own Chris Glover. We talked about how to show solidarity and effective solidarity actions.
Organizing: Building the Bench and Growing Power in our Locals was about internal organizing, and kind of built on the other one about activism. It talked about how to “build our bench” to get members involved in the local.
“Fake” News: Media Literacy for the Working Class was an eye-opening workshop about how we can be manipulated by mis and disinformation, especially in the age of social media. It talked about propaganda, how it can be harmful or beneficial, and how it applies to our work in the union.
In Solidarity,
Emily Brannon
Local 310 Women of Steel Committee