Laborfest in Milwaukee has traditionally attracted big-name Democrats—Presidents Clinton, Obama, and Biden have all been here in the past to win over the union vote.
"Happy Labor Day," was the shout-out from Tim Walz to the crowd of union supporters enjoying a sun-soaked afternoon on the Summerfest grounds.
The vice presidential nominee says a Harris-Walz administration will be pro-union by supporting the PRO (Protecting the Right to Organize) Act, a law to make it easier to form unions.
Walz says his record as governor of Minnesota shows it's possible to be pro-union and pro-business.
"We are a top-five best state for business," said Walz. "You don't have to choose between workers and business; you can do both—you can do."
Sixty years ago, about one in three Wisconsin workers were union members. That has fallen to about one in ten, according to the nonprofit think tank Working Wisconsin.
A decline that labor blames on anti-union policies. Local unions say they are now seeing a slight increase in membership.
Watch: Wisconsin unions rally at Laborfest with VP nominee Tim Walz
SEIU member Blanca Jimenez says the union provides her with better pay and benefits but says higher costs have hurt her bottom line.
" I'm a single mom so it's hard for me," said Jimenez. "I want to get better pay so I can afford to pay for what I need to buy."
She recently gained citizenship and will vote for the first time in November.
"I think Kamala Harris is going to be great for us - getting the country going, better pay better opportunities."
Luther Border is a long-time union member- born and raised in Milwaukee- and he sees one issue with today's economy.
"We have people who are not paying their fair share - if you're a billionaire pay your fair share."
It's not just Walz in Wisconsin- but Vice President Harris was in Michigan and joined President Biden in Pennsylvania - all campaigning on Labor Day to try to build a Blue Wall on November 5th.
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