Asian Pacific American Labor Alliance, AFL-CIO (APALA) is a labor organization of Asian- and Pacific Islander-American union members. The organization serves as a constituency organization of the AFL-CIO labor union federation. ¹

In addition to the traditional economic issues associated with labor unions, APALA focuses strongly on far-left identity politics. The organization has released guiding principles which it claims are rooted in “Black liberation, Indigenous sovereignty, and solidarity with all struggles for collective liberation.” ¹

The organization engages in union outreach to the greater Asian and Pacific Islander community, engages in in voter registration and mobilization, and develops ties with labor unions in the Asia-Pacific Rim. ²

Following the 2024 election victory of Donald Trump, APALA joined the Arab American Institute and 146 other groups in urging the then-Democrat majority U.S. Senate to confirm all pending judicial nominees as of that year to lock in judges who shared left-of-center opinions ahead of the second Trump administration’s takeover the following year. ³

Overview

The Asian Pacific American Labor Alliance, AFL-CIO is a labor organization of Asian- and Pacific Islander-American labor union members. The organization is a constituency organization of the AFL-CIO, bridging labor unions and left-progressive Asian and Pacific Islander activism. ²

As of 2021, the organization claims to have more than 20 chapters and pre-chapters and to represent 660,000 Asian and Pacific Islander union members. ⁴

The organization has an affiliated charitable arm, the Institute for Asian Pacific American Leadership and Advancement. ⁵

The organization is governed by its “Principles for Collective Liberation.” The document is inspired by other far-left identity politics movements among the black and Native American communities. Among the principles the document espouses are a “world without borders,” “ending white supremacy,” “unrigging a capitalist system,” “challenging anti-blackness,” and the claim that Americans live on “stolen land.” ⁶

History

The organization was founded in 1992 by Asian and Pacific Islander labor union members. During the organization’s first founding convention, members took part in a march to demand charges against the Los Angeles police officers who beat Rodney King, a black construction worker. ⁷

Since its inception, the group primarily focused on union organizing among the Asian and Pacific Islander community. In the 1990s, it remained the only AFL-CIO constituency group focused on organizing. The focus on organizing helped Asian and Pacific Islander labor union members rise through the labor union ranks and some even rose to become heads of their local labor unions. The organization established a partnership with the AFL-CIO Organizing Institute. ⁸

In 2015, the organization, along with the radical left organization Hands Up United, hosted an Asian American and Pacific Islander artist delegation to Ferguson, Missouri. The organizations put the event on to protest the police and to push other identity politics related issues. ⁷

In 2017, APALA endorsed the more left-wing candidate for Democratic National Committee chair, then-Rep. Keith Ellison (D-MN). ⁹

In 2019, the organization held its biennial convention in Las Vegas, Nevada. While at the convention, it joined forces with the Culinary Workers Union Local 226 in a picket line against Palms Casino Resort and its owner, Station Casinos. ¹⁰

Following the 2024 election victory of Donald Trump, APALA joined the Arab American Institute and 146 other groups in urging the then-Democrat majority U.S. Senate to confirm all pending judicial nominees as of that year to lock in judges who shared left-of-center opinions ahead of the second Trump administration’s takeover the following year. ³

Leadership

Sandra Engle is APALA’s executive director, as of 2025. Sandra Engle has had extensive prior labor movement experience prior to her work with APLA, having begun her career as a criminal appeals lawyer at The Legal Aid Society of New York, where she served as Vice President of United Automobile Workers (UAW) Local 2325 before organizing with unions like the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers (IAM) and United Steelworkers (USW). ¹¹

Ligaya Domingo is APALA’s president, as of 2025. She has served, as of that year, as the Racial Justice and Education Director for Service Employees International Union Healthcare 1199NW, where she has worked for over 17 years after beginning her union career in the American Federation of Labor and Congress of Industrial Organizations‘ Union Summer Program in 1997. She has served three terms on the National Executive Board of APALA, as of 2025, and holds numerous committee positions in organizations including Martin Luther King County Labor Council and Washington State Labor Council, as of that year. ¹²

Finances

According to the group’s 2023 tax return, the organization had $530,851 in revenue and $445,673 in expenses. It had -$11,333 in assets. ¹³

Former Executive Director Alvina Yeh, who left the organization on 23rd June 2023, made a salary of $74,861 and another $11,697 in other compensation and compensation from affiliated organizations. ¹³

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2. “About.” APALA. Accessed October 11, 2021. https://www.apalanet.org/about.html.
3. Arab American Institute, “AAI Joins 140 National Organizations to Urge Senators to Confirm All Pending Judicial Nominees,” accessed February 25, 2025, https://www.aaiusa.org/library/aai-joins-140-national-organizations-to-urge-senators-to-confirm-all-pending-judicial-nominees.
4. “About.” APALA. Accessed October 11, 2021. https://www.apalanet.org/about.html.
5. “About.” 2021. APALA. Accessed October 11, 2021. https://www.apalanet.org/about.html.
6. “Principles For Collective Liberation.” Google Docs. Accessed October 11. https://drive.google.com/file/d/1vDw_WuET5nzZC2CrZtKFlB_eSIux3Dm8/view.
7. Cendana, Gregory, and Tef Poe. “Asian Pacific American Labor Alliance And Hands Up United Partner For Asian American And Pacific Islander Artist Delegation To Ferguson.” Huffpost. June 4, 2015. https://www.huffpost.com/entry/asian-pacific-american-labor-alliance-and-hands-up_b_7515936.
8. Mogado, Linelle. 1998. “Asian/Pacific American Labor Acitivists Speak Out On Union Reform, Organizing.” Labor Notes. https://labornotes.org/1998/10/asianpacific-american-labor-acitivists-speak-out-union-reform-organizing.
9. “Asian Pacific American Labor Alliance Endorses Congressman Keith Ellison For DNC Chair.” Afro. February 17, 2017. https://www.afro.com/asian-pacific-american-labor-alliance-endorses-congressman-keith-ellison-dnc-chair/.
10. “Largest National Asian American And Pacific Islander Workers’ Group To Join Culinary Union To Picket Palms.” Culinary Union Local 226. August 9, 2019. https://m.culinaryunion226.org/news/press/largest-national-asian-american-and-pacific-islander-workers-group-to-join-culinary-union-to-picket-palms.
11. Asian Pacific American Labor Alliance. “National Staff.” Accessed February 25, 2025. https://www.apalanet.org/national-staff.html.
12. “Leadership.” APALA. Accessed October 11. https://www.apalanet.org/national-executive-board.html.
13. Asian Pacific American Labor Alliance, AFL-CIO, Return of an Organization Exempt From Income Tax (Form 990O), 2023.