“We get to wake up every morning and go to work for the people. That’s a privilege, and a serious responsibility.” This is how President Chris West opened the 2025 Full-time Officers Training - the first in the new triennium focused on education to strengthen the union from bottom to top. 
The rhetoric around Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) is everywhere. Politicians and pundits claim that DEI is “divisive,” “woke,” or even “anti-American.” They argue it gives “special treatment” to certain groups or is part of some Marxist agenda. 
For years, contract negotiations at Local 142’s tourism units followed a familiar pattern: management set the pace, and workers fought for whatever small improvements they could get. Beginning in 2022 and solidifying in 2024, ILWU Local 142 members have changed course. Across multiple bargaining tables, workers leveraged their unity, strategy, and sheer determination to win historic gains—reshaping expectations for what’s possible in contract fights.
Washington D.C. The weather was frigid but the team was on fire. For three days in early February, the ILWU Hawaiʻi International team hit the pavement in Washington D.C. meeting with all four Hawaiʻi Congressional representatives to advocate for Hawaiʻi’s working-class. 
famous billionaire, has been appointed alongside fellow billionaire Vivek Ramaswamy to lead the “Department of Government Efficiency” (DOGE).
Returning Vice Presidemt Corinna Salmo Nguyen expressed similar sentiments but highlighted the importance of one of the union’s most critical forms of support— Business Agents. “ILWU Business Agents keep the administration of the union clean and tight. My goal in this triennium is to provide the Business Agents with the training and support they need to do the best job they can for the members.
“For Something Bigger Than Just Us”
Hundreds of ILWU Members March on Hilton Hawaiian Villiage in Historic Show of Solidarity
New industrial groupings, Lahaina focus of convention business
The ILWU Local 142 hosted its 30th Statewide Convention at the Hawai‘i Convention Center from September 9-13, 2024. Under the theme “Together We Rise,” the convention provided an opportunity to reflect on the union’s storied history and plan strategically for the challenges of the next three years. The event drew approximately 400 delegates, observers, and guests from all corners of the state, fostering unity among the union’s five divisions and setting a clear agenda for the triennium ahead.
