Reaction to the President’s State of the Union Message from Michael J. Sullivan, PILMA Chair

January, 2011

“As we saw tonight, the momentum exists to advance a national innovation agenda, one that stands to benefit millions of union members. But now comes the hard part: what can the administration and Members of Congress specifically do to translate this into new jobs and a higher quality of life for working Americans? The president did a great job of selling the need for a greater focus on innovation and competitiveness, but to do so we must identify which specific sectors and policy areas stand to have the greatest short and long-term impact here at home. In other words, where do America’s working families have the most to gain? How can we continue to bring business and labor together?

We believe the answer lies in a strong medical innovation agenda that takes advantage of our greatest resource: the American worker.”

Michael J. Sullivan is General President of the Sheet Metal Workers International Association, AFL-CIO, and serves as Chair of the Pharmaceutical Industry Labor-Management Association.