Mei Cobb, vice president of volunteer & employee engagement at United Way Worldwide, sends us this.

In the United States, we celebrate Labor Day on the first Monday in September to recognize the economic and social contributions of working men and women. This Labor Day, I’d like to recognize two groups of union members who are volunteering in support of United Way initiatives.

For the past six years, the Erie-Crawford Central Labor Council’s Community Services Committee has helped sponsor an annual “Back to School Free Haircut Day” in conjunction with Michael Hooks of Michael’s Hair Salon in Erie, Pa. In 2006, only 30 or 40 people showed up to the event. This year, it was more than 700.

This year, AFL-CIO Community Services liaison Ron Oliver says more than 700 children took part and, on top of the free haircuts from Hooks and a team of volunteer stylists, each child received a backpack of school supplies and a children’s book.

We all know unions have our backs on the job, but did you know they also have your bottoms and soles?

Atlanta-North Georgia Labor Council Community Services Committee just completed a successful underwear drive where they netted 704 items (socks, belts, T-shirts, underwear and bras), which were delivered to Crossroads Community Ministries in Atlanta yesterday morning.

Want to help your favorite NFL player and member of the NFL Players Association (NFLPA) fight against school dropout rates in your community?

Pledge to become a reader, tutor or mentor, along with the 30 football players and the United Way initiative.

United Way of Metropolitan Nashville was in dire need of a new trailer to help with community outreach efforts. That’s where the local unions came in.

Central Labor Council of Nashville and Middle Tennessee, Nashville Building Trades, Tennessee AFL-CIO Labor Council and 39 affiliated local and regional unions pitched in donations for the trailer and the artwork along the sides. The trailer was used last Thursday for United Way's Day of Action, when it delivered backpacks and school supplies to area schools for children in need. 

There’s nothing like a new pair of sneakers to start the school year off on the right foot. For children whose parents are struggling to get by on tight budgets, the Soles for Christ program in Missouri makes it possible for them to receive new shoes. 

AFL-CIO Community Services is hosting the Soles for Christ program Monday and today in their local headquarters in St. Joseph, Mo. Thousands of shoes from private donors were picked up by area children in need at the AFL-CIO building.

Berry Craig, recording secretary for the Paducah-based Western Kentucky AFL-CIO Area Council and a professor of history at West Kentucky Community and Technical College, is a former daily newspaper and Associated Press columnist and currently a member of AFT Local 1360. Craig sends us this.

How can you help your union get better coverage in small-town media? 

First, try getting to know the newspaper, TV and radio reporters. Introduce yourself by calling them up or sending them an email with your photo. It’s a good idea to put a face with an email. Better yet, drop by for a visit. 

Pro football players and members of the NFL Players Association (NFLPA) were busy during the 2012 offseason giving back to their communities. Carolina Panthers wide receiver Steve Smith pledged to donate $100,000 to help cover the medical bills of survivors of the Aurora, Colo., theater shooting; Kansas City Chiefs players helped rebuild homes devastated by the tornado in Joplin, Mo.; and Chicago Bears rookies planted trees at LaFollette Park. Read a full list of the community service work here. 

In the remote village of Lenya, located in the province of Nyanza in Kenya, only girls attend primary school. Instead of getting an education, the boys must support and feed their families by fishing in nearby Lake Victoria.

Union members teamed up with the United Way California Capital Region Toilet Paper Drive in Sacramento in recent days, netting 177,451 rolls and breaking the United Way’s Certified Non-Profit Community Partners 2011 record by more than 52,000 rolls. The toilet paper was donated to local Sacramento homeless shelters.