CTUL led powerfully in 2023! CTUL is a worker-led organization, this means that workers are involved at every stage of leadership, including our Board of Directors. We govern the organization, support the incredible staff, and shape strategy and priorities. At CTUL we prioritize leadership development at all levels of the organization, this value shaped our priorities for 2023. We set 5 big priorities for CTUL in 2023:

1. Strengthen our base and organizing culture. In 2023 Leaders in Growth grew its training work and built cohesion with members across the organization.
   
   
2. Landing clear strategies on race and gender justice within our two strategic campaigns. Specifically, as a board, we knew we needed more Black workers and women at the center of all of our work. In 2023 we made progress toward these goals and saw women take on powerful leadership, which resulted in a group of women construction members lead a delegation in our March Week of Action, and going on to form a group to take on more leadership in the campaign in 2024. Anti-blackness recognition and training has continued with members so that we can continue to grow and send CTUL into the future with a very clear, united message. We’re also carrying this goal into 2024 because we know these changes cannot happen in one year and must be ongoing priorities.
   
   
3. Strengthen our member/Board’s voice, leadership, and alignment. In 2023 the announcement that Veronica Mendez Moore would be stepping down in 2024 brought the board deeper into leadership development. We did more training to know the obligations of board members and what the rights of CTUL members are in leadership, especially as we lead the search for a new director.
   
   
4. Solidify our infrastructure: Administrative / operations / fundraising. CTUL now has a complete fundraising and administrative team and has been moving forward on strengthening our systems, leaving us in a secure place going into leadership transitions in 2024.
   
   
5. Partner with staff to address workload challenges. We have entrusted staff leaders to develop strategies for staff workload. CTUL signed the first union contract with the Staff Union in 2023, which strengthened staff’s ability to advocate for what they need in their day to day work.

It’s rare we can start a big change and finish it in the same year so we see a lot of these priorities as ongoing work, similar to how we see our organizing work and campaign timelines. We were very inspired by the week of action in September 2023. It was powerful to see that our allies and colleagues are as excited as we are to continue deepening our organizing and moving forward together with shared analysis. We are proud that the construction comité grew in numbers and strength in 2023.

In 2023 we saw more alignment form with our partners which set us up well for big actions in 2024. With all of the gains we made in 2023 and our incredibly dedicated and capable teams, we know the actions that follow will be even more impressive. CTUL is a growing force, and we thank you for making our organizing possible. It is an honor to be leading the vision of an organization that is challenging what has been thought to be possible.

In solidarity, The CTUL Board of Directors