Despite low union membership, Georgia unions are flexing their muscle

Over a thousand of union members and supporters packed into Teamsters 728's Union Hall to rally in support of SAG-AFTRA on Tuesday, August 22, 2023. (Matthew Pearson/WABE)

Although Georgia has long been a place where efforts to advocate for worker’s rights have been historically unsuccessful, labor unions throughout the state seem to have picked up steam this summer.

Christi Hulme, president of the Savannah Regional Central Labor Council, believes that the newfound interests in unions may be a sign of a culture change for a state typically unfriendly to organized labor.

“I was so happy to see that we’re finally getting success stories,” she said. “Instead of hearing how we lost this or we lost that, we’re winning. And people are starting to recognize unions … that unions are still needed [and] they continue to be needed.”