Last week, a memo was released that circulated amongst Republican Party senators prior to the vote on the proposed auto bailout. The memo advocated stopping the bailout as an opportunity to 'take their first shot at organized labor', and the Senators were able to filibuster the bill, forcing President Bush to use money from the $700 B financial bailout package to finance GM and Chrysler and save them from bankruptcy. Ron Blackwell opines that the GOP's real target is the Employee Free Choice Act, a piece of legislation which would drastically change existing regulations around union organizing and has the support of President-elect Barack Obama.
Bio
Ron Blackwell is Chief Economist for the AFL-CIO, where he has also worked as Director of Corporate Affairs. Before coming to the AFL-CIO, Blackwell was assistant to the president of the Amalgamated Clothing and Textile Workers Union, and chief economist of UNITE (Union of Needletrades, Textiles and Industrial Employees). Prior to joining the labor movement, Blackwell was an academic dean at the New School for Social Research in New York (now the New School University), where he taught economics, politics and philosophy.
I have one response. I once was good friends with a high union official. And he said a version of the following, "the only people we ever provide assistance to are the people who screw off. The people who do their job well never need us".
I propose it no one can work as a union official, especially a full time one, and feel that he or she is doing a worthwhile job. And any organization staffed by people who can't feel they're doing a worthwhile job progressively becomes more and more corrupt.
jpeterse 2008-12-22
Jtrbug, I like your spirit and share your frustration. Of course, I'm too passive myself.
From what I got out of Mr. Blackwell' statements was that there already is a card check. The only thing I noted as being new in the free choice act is that employees would have perogative over secret ballot, not the employer. I doubt it's so simple though.
In reply to sumdog: I don't know economics too well, and you might be right. But it seems awfully counter-intuitive that workers of large corporations (a reality we can't wish away with small business nastagia), skilled or not, should not have any means of negotiating their work contracts. Workers get abused time and again if they are helpless. Maybe youre right about the tariffs. Foreigners who outcompete us by treating workers like crap shouldn't be allowed our market.
sumdog 2008-12-22
This is so much more complicated. Corker (R-TN) just asked for a date from the UAW, any date in 2009. The UAW refused to reduce wages until 2011. Toyota/Honda/Subaru have US plans. Japanese have such a different work standard and they don't think unions are necessary. My friend Noah worked in QA (non-union) and Peterbuilt in Nashville and said the quality was awful. Fleets ordered from the other two non-union plans. Unions that teach a skill like electrician unions are good, but unskilled or highly skilled unions like the TVA union or the UAW are worthless. Want to raise the value of US goods? Increase tariffs, cut income tax and stop bailing out bad large industry and let small industry flourish.
Jtrbug1958 2008-12-22
I ask my husband as I watche a lady and her husband leave one of the big 3 for the last time, in tears...what the heck are they putting in our water. I can't believe there aren't riots in the streets but no, instead we sit back passively while we watch our jobs leave the country or watch as illegals just come in and take them.
WAKE UP AMERICA...WE STOPPED VIETNAM, WE CAN STOP THIS INJUSTICE TOO!
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