Unions endorse Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders in New York battle

Democratic presidential candidate Bernie Sanders won his first endorsement from a fellow US senator, and he and rival Hillary Clinton both announced backing from New York City labour unions as they battled to win next week’s state primary.

The Transport Workers Union Local 100, representing 42,000 workers in the New York region, backed Sanders as he struggled to dent Clinton’s lead in a state each has called home.

Deriding “fierce attacks” against unions over the last several decades, Sanders called organised labour the last line of defence against corporate greed in America.