While it is the unofficial end of the summer season, Labor Day is also a time to recognize the American labor movement and work that laborers across the country accomplish every day.

Mario Cilento, president of the New York State AFL-CIO, joined Capital Tonight on Friday to discuss the state of labor in New York ahead of the holiday weekend.

In recent months, there has been a surge in union action and efforts to form new unions, including in New York with Starbucks workers. Cilento argues the recent surge comes from younger workers realizing “there is a tangible benefit to being in a union.”

August marked the two-year mark of the Hochul administration, and Cilento says Hochul has been “on board” with labor “since the beginning,” and touted her legislative victories on raising the minimum wage, child care and actions on the climate.