Report from the 2026 Central Mass AFL-CIO Labor Day Dinner

Shanice may be new to the SHARE Organizing Staff, but she’s hit the ground running. At the end of her first week on the job, she attended this year’s annual Mass AFL-CIO event, and drafted up this account of the evening . . .

(L-R) SHARE Organizers Walt Andrews and Elisabeth Szanto, together with Joseph and Candy Carlson, and the author of this summary of the evening, Shanice Vassar

September 4, 2026, was a rewarding evening as SHARE joined other unions in awarding scholarships to the children of union members in Worcester County pursuing higher education.

We had the opportunity to meet Worcester's Mayor, Joe Petty, a longtime supporter of organized labor since joining the City Council in 1997. State Auditor Diana DiZoglio shared her upbringing in Lawrence, MA where her mother worked as an LPN and influenced her support for working families and unions.

We also met Joseph Carlson, the retiring President of the Central MA AFL-CIO, whose Union Scholarship Program has grown from a single $500 award originally to having given away $245,000 in scholarships for union families across Worcester County. —Shanice Vassar, SHARE Organizer

For another glimpse of the event, check out this short video from State Auditor Diana DiZoglio as she describes the importance of unions, especially when it comes to fighting for women’s and children’s rights, important workplace protections, access to healthcare . . . and, of course, the weekend.