Industry News and Advocacy

Still Building: International Workers’ Day and Our Work Ahead

On most job sites on May 1st, you won’t hear people talking about International Workers’ Day. But you can see it in the work.

You see it in the safety standards crews expect and deserve, the paycheck that can support a family, and the fact that training is a pathway—not a privilege.

Those things didn’t just happen.

Back in 1886, workers took to the streets in Chicago during the Haymarket Affair, demanding something basic: a fair balance between work and life. The outcome was messy and costly—but it changed the trajectory of labor in this country. Men died in the fight to secure the rights we have today, and what followed wasn’t a straight line. It was years of workers educating, agitating, organizing, and refusing to accept less.

Carpenters were part of the fight from the start.

Through unions like the United Brotherhood of Carpenters and Joiners of America, the trades helped turn those early demands into real standards for wages, safety, and training. Apprenticeships created a way in. Skill became something you could build a future on.

That’s not history sitting on a shelf. It’s the reason the work looks the way it does today.

And it’s also why the union matters today. Because on every jobsite, in every apprenticeship, and on every project, we don’t stand alone—we have each other’s backs. That’s what turns individual workers into a trade, and a trade into a standard people can rely on.

Where We Stand Now

Today, there’s no shortage of work. Projects are moving ahead in energy, infrastructure, and development, and the need for skilled Carpenters Union members is only growing.

But our union knows volume isn’t the same as quality. The question isn’t just whether jobs exist, it’s whether they’re worth having. 

For every project, the EAS Carpenters Union asks: Is it safe? And will it pay what the work demands? And can it generate more work for our members? That’s where our focus is now.

What Matters Going Forward

For carpenters, the job isn’t just to build; it’s also to protect what the trade stands for.

That means keeping training strong, protecting wages and safety, and making sure the next generation has a real career—not just a paycheck. Those before us raised the bar. Now it’s on us to keep it there, uphold our standards, and show up for our Brothers and Sisters when it matters most.

Because the truth is, the work behind International Workers’ Day was never about a single moment or a single day—it’s ongoing.

It’s on jobsites, in our training centers, and in every decision about what kind of work gets done and how.

And it’s not finished yet. It’s something our union and our members show up for every day.