SAG-AFTRA Secretary-Treasurer Speaks to the Importance of Women in Unions

The California Federation of Labor Unions and the State Building & Construction Council held the 2025 Women’s Conference in Los Angeles on March 29–30, 2025. SAG-AFTRA Secretary-Treasurer Joely Fisher spoke at the event.

In her keynote, which focused on women as union leaders, Fisher talked about her personal and professional experiences as a unionist. She credited her mother, former Screen Actors Guild Secretary-Treasurer Connie Stevens, as inspiration for her involvement in the union and conveyed what she sees as a need to better the visibility of women leaders in unions.

“Nationally and globally, women remain [as] underrepresented in union executive positions as [they are] in the corporate pipeline. If we’re going to address this imbalance, which is especially needed in this new political climate, we need to encourage all organizations to make an effort to identify potential women leaders early in their careers, establish mentorship programs and create systems of support,” said Fisher. “We need to make sure the women who are the face of our movements’ successes and failures have the support they need.”

She also continued to call on solidarity as unions push for workers’ rights, particularly regarding the growth of artificial intelligence tools.

“SAG-AFTRA is taking the lead on supporting [A.I.] bills in other states and on the federal level as well. In this age of innovation, technology should help make our lives better, not exploit our hard work or leave us without livelihoods,” she said. “In the fight ahead, we are all up against heads of major corporations [with] virtually endless resources and political access. They want to continue building a system that keeps funneling the world’s wealth and resources into the pockets of the powerful few.

“That’s why it’s going to take the unity of all of us, and history has shown that collective action is the only way to achieve progress,” she said.

The theme of the 2025 Union Women’s Conference was “Stronger Together.”

The California Federation of Labor Unions is made up of over 1,300 unions and represents 2.3 million workers across the public and private sectors, including entertainment.

The State Building & Construction Council, the California affiliate of North America’s Building Trade Union, or NABTU, is a collective of 157 affiliated unions across construction.

Photo: SAG-AFTRA Secretary-Treasurer Joely Fisher at the 2025 Union Women’s Conference in Los Angeles on March 29, 2025.