I think of Paul Krugman as a keen observer of U.S. economics and politics. He has never been especially hostile to labor, yet he is a Princeton professor, and NYT columnist, who is far removed from the world of union activists. When he says that recent GOP assaults on organized labor may well backfire, it gives me real hope for this country.
Here's a magical story from the land of Disney, central Florida:
Unions representing Central Florida teachers, firefighters, police and other government workers are pulling an estimated $10 million from five banks affiliated with the Florida Chamber of Commerce, blaming them for an attack on public employees.
The unions are also asking their members — an estimated 20,000 people — to withdrawal their personal money from Bank of America, PNC Bank, Regions Bank, SunTrust and Wachovia. And labor leaders across the state could follow in the coming weeks, union officials say.
Executives from the banks in question sit on the Florida Chamber's board of directors, and the chamber has pushed legislation that would prohibit state and local governments from collecting union dues through payroll deduction.
Supporters say the "Paycheck Protection" act would allow public employees to prevent their wages from being used for political purposes, but opponents say it's simply a labor-busting effort that would make it more difficult for unions to operate.
The Florida Chamber of Commerce has lobbied lawmakers in support of the legislation and broadcast a campaign-style ad pushing for it. The measure has already passed the Florida House and is moving forward in the Senate.
At a news conference scheduled for today, unions representing public employees in Orange, Seminole and Volusia counties will announce the plan to close bank accounts containing their members' dues and advise workers to do the same.
"This is not an attack on business," said Steve Clelland, president of the Orlando firefighters' union. "The very money we deduct is sitting in their banks. Nothing is more American than not doing business with someone who is not serving you well."
The combination of union and personal accounts will likely top $10 million in Central Florida, Clelland said, and more as labor groups in other parts of the state follow.
"It's a shame that unions have dragged banks into their political games," Florida Chamber spokeswoman Edie Ousley. "This just goes to show how desperate they are to keep the union gravy train by using the state of Florida to collect union dues. Frankly, we expected these bully tactics a long time ago."
But Jeanette Wynn, president of the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees in Florida, noted that as Florida Chamber board members, the bank executives helped shape the business group's political agenda. Some 20,000 AFSCME members pay dues that are kept in Wachovia accounts.
"Wachovia Bank is not only a dues-paying member of the Chamber of Commerce, they have a seat on the board of directors," she said. "AFSCME Council 79 will no longer do business with banking institutions that directly advocate against the best interest of the middle class."
Here's a story from Mike Hall that really made my day:
Of course working anonymously online won't protect you from spies and traitors. Yet it's not too easy for companies to find willing spies. Photographing license plates of cars, turning into the union hall parking lot, was always an effective way to intimidate workers. I'm sure people are already spending money on figuring out ways to illegally track their workers' online activities.In Newburgh, N.Y., last spring, workers at an Anheuser–Busch InBev’s Metal Container Corp. plant—where a previous organizing attempt drew intense management harassment and the firings of some workers—employees reached out to Electrical Workers (IBEW) Local 363.
But as the IBEW Now News Blog reports:
The fear of captive-audience meetings, harassment and other actions by the employer left many at the plant wary of how to press forward without management sidelining their efforts.
So organizers got crafty and set up a special blog strictly for the 164 employees to debate, strategize, air concerns and ultimately come together for victory, all while avoiding many of the union-busting tactics so common in most campaigns.
Lead organizer Sam Fratto says the blog was like having a “24-hour-a-day union and campaign meeting.” Because of their past experience, workers were:
afraid to talk among themselves on the floor. But this time with the blog, nobody’s jobs were in jeopardy because management couldn’t single out who was for or against the union.
Over the course of the summer, the blog became an online meeting spot for the 164 workers, who knew plant management was monitoring the blog. But despite management’s efforts to hone in on pro-union workers, captive-audience meetings couldn’t refute what the workers were reading and commenting about on the blog. Says Fratto:
The company tried to get people to spill info about the campaign, but the workers just stayed silent. And since nobody’s wearing T-shirts or handing out stickers or fliers, who could they put the pressure on? Nobody.
In August, the workers voted overwhelmingly to join IBEW and are now in contract talks.
Here's a story that really makes me smile. Mostly for the workers, but also because I can now pick up some applesauce at the supermarket!
Striking Workers Declare Victory at Mott’s | |
More than three months after walking out, the 300-plus workers at Mott’s upstate New York applesauce plant declared victory after ratifying a new contract yesterday. The workers will return to work on Monday, Sept. 20, on what would have been the 121st day of the strike.
The members of Retail, Wholesale and Department Store Union/UFCW) (RWDSU/UFCW) Local 220 walked out on May 23 after earlier rejecting a concessions-laden contract from Mott’s, a subsidiary of the Dr. Pepper Snapple Group food and drink conglomerate, which made a $550 million profit last year.
The new contract restores wage levels and continues the defined-benefit pension plan. The workers’ contract at the Williamson, N.Y., plant expired April 16 and even as Dr. Pepper Snapple Group CEO Larry Young pocketed $6.5 million last year, the company demanded a $1.50 per hour wage cut for all workers, a pension freeze for current employees and the elimination of a pension for future employees, decreased employer contributions to the company’s 401(k) retirement plan and increased employee contributions toward health care premiums and co-pays.
The striking workers received strong support from union leaders and elected officials, including AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka, New York State AFL-CIO President Denis Hughes, presidents of numerous other unions, the entire New York State Democratic congressional delegation, elected officials in New York, members of the Canadian Parliament and several global unions and union federations. Union and progressive activists filled the Mott’s Facebook page comments about the corporation’s greed, and so many people posted "There's Something Rotten at Mott's" icons the company closed off public posting of images to its Facebook page.
Says RWDSU President Stuart Applebaum:
Not a day went by without people stopping by to drop off a financial or food donation for the strike fund. The international, national and local community supported us thoroughly, and the RWDSU and Local 220 members want to share their thanks. The RWDSU members at Mott’s have a message for working people everywhere: Stand up for what you believe in, and stay united.
This story should be receiving big-time media attention. I fear it will be relegated to the back pages. I do feel that the pressure we put on them-- with our letters, Facebook postings, boycott, etc.-- helped the workers' cause.
This story is close to my heart for a couple of reasons: I love applesauce, and the folks who've been making great applesauce at Motts for generations have been doing so in my native country of upstate New York. Now they are on strike because their new parent company is determined to drastically slash their wages and benefits.
The workers, meanwhile, are incensed that the company is demanding givebacks when it posted record profits last year and increased its dividend by 67 percent in May.
“Corporate America is making tons of money — this company is a good example of that,” said Mike LeBerth, president of the union local representing the strikers. “So why do they want to drive down our wages and hurt our community? This whole economy is driven by consumer spending, so how are we supposed to keep the economy going when they take away money from the people who are doing the spending?”
Dr Pepper Snapple has vigorously defended its stance. “The union contends that a profitable company shouldn’t seek concessions from its workers,” the company said in a statement. “This argument ignores the fact that as a public company, Dr Pepper Snapple Group has a fiduciary responsibility to operate in the best interests of all its constituents, recognizing that a profitable business attracts investment, generates jobs and builds communities.”
Dr. Pepper Snapple Group (parent company of Motts) is making an argument that doesn't hold water. No one is suggesting that they shouldn't try to make profits. They have in fact made enormous profits. Continuing to pay decent wages to its workers is the only way they can operate in the best interests of all their constituents. This is because workers are constituents as much as shareholders. It is true that layoffs at Xerox and Kodak give them a large pool of local workers who would work for low wages. Why is it then necessary to slash wages and benefits at Motts? Is there something wrong with being one of the few decent employers left?!?! This doesn't generate jobs and build communities. It does the opposite! Although incomes of pre-strike Motts workers were fairly modest, they allowed the surrounding community to enjoy the presence of people able to live and spend a few bucks. Pushing everyone down to subsistence level wages will destroy jobs and communities. Ice cream parlors, bookstores, realtors-- they all suffer when an important former source of decent local jobs starts paying like Walmart.
Union membership in this country has steadily declined over the last decades, falling most sharply in the private sector. This has had a negative effect on all working Americans, reducing wages, benefits and job security. It has also hurt the bargaining power of surviving unions, leading some to allow employers almost free reign, in exchange for the dubious distinction of recognition as parties to contracts that offer less and less to workers. With less people in unions, and unions losing clout, many Americans today have no real direct experience of enjoying the benefits of union membership. This makes it possible for Republicans to call unions "special interests," on a par with those who own mineral rights on public lands, or importers of Russian mink. The teachers, police, and firefighters who were spared the ax, with the bill house Democrats just passed, are mostly union members. They do not enjoy anything like the wealth or power that an investment banker or corporate lobbyist does. Yet compared to many other working Americans, these folks have it pretty good. When you're working for a low wage with no benefits, the deal given to a cop or a school teacher seems sweet indeed. Moreover, the wages and benefits paid to these public sector union members come out of taxes. All of this might help to explain how a group of Republicans, who has vigorously fought for the interests of the very wealthiest among us, has managed to redirect some of the natural anger and resentment of the less affluent against "union special interests." This is discouraging, yet perhaps it is also what we might call a "teachable moment." Union members can point proudly to their relative strength. The recession has hurt us, the cops and teachers can say, but at least we have some protection. Wouldn't our country be better off if more workers were able to get a better deal than they're giving at WalMart? Instead of whining about fat union contracts, try to form a union and get yourself a fatter contract too!
