The Pennsylvania Convention Center was the site of the Workers’ Presidential Summit, held on Tuesday, September 17. The program was the brainchild of Pat Eiding, President of the Philadelphia AFL-CIO. Sponsors included IBEW Local 98, Unite/Here Philadelphia, CWA, Laborers’ District Council, and IATSE.

I saw on the stage, interviewed by veteran Philadelphia journalist Vernon Odum, Joe Biden, Bill DiBlasio (who has since dropped out), Andrew Yang, and Bernie Sanders (who got the biggest applause). The candidates took such questions from the audience of workers about clean energy and the transition from carbon-based fuels and the effect on jobs; tax breaks for billionaires and corporations; wage disparities between CEOs and workers; health insurance; unemployment and its emotional effects, such as suicide, drug addiction, and decline in life expectancy; upgrading infrastructure; pensions, Social Security, and security after retirement; raising the minimum wage; banning “right to work (for less) laws; and tuition-free college and the elimination of student debt.

For further information, please follow the hashtag #Workers2020.