UFCW Local 1529
Standing strong for working families
Powering · Labor Education
Washington State Labor Council, AFL-CIO
The voice of labor in Washington — 650+ affiliated local unions, 600,000+ union members statewide.
April Sims was elected President of the Washington State Labor Council, AFL-CIO in October 2022 and sworn in to a four-year term in January 2023 — making history as the first woman and first Black woman to lead the WSLC, and the first Black woman elected president of any AFL-CIO state federation in the United States.
The granddaughter of Louisiana sharecroppers and the daughter of a single mother, Sims grew up understanding firsthand how a union job can lift a family out of poverty. As a young mother, a union job built her economic security and drew her into labor leadership for what has now become a two-decade career.
Her path to the presidency:
- 2002 — Joined the Washington Federation of State Employees (WFSE), AFSCME Council 28; later served as Legislative & Political Action Field Coordinator.
- 2015 — Joined the WSLC staff as Field Mobilization Director.
- 2017 — Became Political & Strategic Campaign Director.
- 2018–2022 — Elected Secretary-Treasurer of the WSLC.
- 2023–present — President of the WSLC, AFL-CIO — chief executive officer of the state’s largest labor organization, supervising staff and operations on behalf of 600,000+ union members.
As president, Sims has been a national leader in the labor movement’s work to connect racial, gender, and economic justice. Her leadership of the WSLC’s Race & Labor program has helped redefine what a state federation can be — not just a coordinating body, but a movement infrastructure for the workers who’ve historically been left behind.
- 2024Defeated I-2117 — Defended the Climate Commitment ActLabor + climate + community coalition stopped the rollback that would have killed billions in clean-energy investment and union jobs.
- 2023Saved WA Cares Long-Term Care InsuranceDefended the first-in-the-nation public long-term care benefit funded by workers — a lifeline for aging Washingtonians.
- 2023First Black woman to lead any AFL-CIO state federationPresident April Sims sworn in January 2023 — making history nationally and re-centering racial justice in state-fed leadership.
- 2023Race & Labor Program scales upTrained hundreds of union leaders across Washington in the explicit link between racial, gender, and economic justice.
- OngoingCOPE-endorsed champions in OlympiaWSLC's political program continues to elect labor champions to the State House, Senate, and Congress.
“We shall combat resolutely the forces that seek to undermine the democratic institutions of our nation and to enslave the human soul. We commit to sharing the responsibility for racial justice and equity and actively work together to achieve the transformation we aspire in our unions and workplaces and in the community.”
Founded in 1957, the Washington State Labor Council, AFL-CIO is the largest labor organization in Washington — the state federation that brings together more than 650 local unions representing over 600,000 union members across every industry, from aerospace and tech to construction, healthcare, education, hospitality, and public service.
Workers
The largest labor organization in Washington — 650+ local unions, 600,000+ members.
Families
Growing opportunity, promoting equity, protecting our environment, building independent power for working families.
Communities
Fighting for progress, fairness, and dignity for every worker — organized or not yet organized.
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