Surprise! On Tue, Jan 29, 2013 at 10:36 AM, <[email protected]> wrote:
> Engels diagnosed the problem long ago: > "The Trades Unions of this country have now for nearly sixty years fought > against this law -- with what result? Have they succeeded in freeing the > working class from the bondage in which capital -- the produce of its own > hands -- holds it? Have they enabled a single section of the working class > to rise above the situation of wages-slaves, to become owners of their own > means of production, of the raw materials, tools, machinery required in > their trade, and thus to become the owners of the produce of their own > labour? It is well known that not only they have not done so but that they > never tried." > > Unions do help their members by keeping up wages and benefits, protecting > against abuse of management, and giving members experience fighting > management. > > Unions representing government employees have a difficult problem because > both parties think that reducing the number employees cuts cost even though > outsourcing usually costs more and lowers quality of service. > > Union members need to be educated in economics, health care, and > negotiation skills. > > -- > Ron > > ------------------------------ > *From: *"Louis Proyect" <[email protected]> > *To: *"Activists and scholars in Marxist tradition" < > [email protected]>, "Progressive Economics" < > [email protected]> > *Sent: *Thursday, January 24, 2013 7:07:15 AM > *Subject: *[Pen-l] Union membership at 97 year low > > NY Times January 23, 2013 > Share of the Work Force in a Union Falls to a 97-Year Low, 11.3% > By STEVEN GREENHOUSE > > The long decline in the number of American workers belonging to labor > unions accelerated sharply last year, according to data reported on > Wednesday, sending the unionization rate to its lowest level in close to > a century. > > The Bureau of Labor Statistics said the total number of union members > fell by 400,000 last year, to 14.3 million, even though the nation’s > overall employment rose by 2.4 million. The percentage of workers in > unions fell to 11.3 percent, down from 11.8 percent in 2011, the bureau > found in its annual report on union membership. That brought > unionization to its lowest level since 1916, when it was 11.2 percent, > according to a study by two Rutgers economists, Leo Troy and Neil Sheflin. > > Labor specialists cited several reasons for the steep one-year decline > in union membership. Among the factors were new laws that rolled back > the power of unions in Wisconsin, Indiana and other states, the > continued expansion by manufacturers like Boeing and Volkswagen in > nonunion states and the growth of sectors like retail and restaurants, > where unions have little presence. > > “These numbers are very discouraging for labor unions,” said Gary N. > Chaison, a professor of industrial relations at Clark University in > Worcester, Mass. “It’s a time for unions to stop being clever about > excuses for why membership is declining, and it’s time to figure out how > to devise appeals to the workers out there.” > > Labor unions have boasted of their political successes in helping > re-elect President Obama and in helping Democrats pick up seats in > Congress. > > But the figures announced by the bureau point to grave problems for the > future of organized labor. The portion of private sector workers in > unions fell to just 6.6 percent last year, from 6.9 percent in 2011, > causing some labor specialists to question whether private sector unions > were sinking toward irrelevance. Private sector union membership peaked > at around 35 percent in the 1950s. > > The report showed particular drops in union membership in two groups > where unions have long been strong: local government employees and > manufacturing workers. > > Union membership showed sharp drops in Wisconsin, which passed a law in > 2011 curbing the collective bargaining rights of many public employees, > and in Indiana, which enacted a right-to-work law last February that may > have prompted many workers to drop their union membership. > > Such laws prohibit requiring employees at unionized workplaces to pay > union dues or fees. The bureau’s report showed that union membership > fell by 13 percent last year in Wisconsin and by 18 percent in Indiana — > both unusually large numbers for a single year. > > Barry T. Hirsch, a labor economist at Georgia State University, said an > analysis he conducted found that the number of government employees in > Wisconsin belonging to a union slid by 48,000 last year, to 139,000 from > 187,000, as many public sector workers evidently decided to quit their > unions after the Republican-led legislature stripped them of most of > their bargaining rights. > > Speaking about the nation as a whole, Professor Hirsch said: “I am > really surprised that the drop in unionization was as large as it is in > a single year, and it was particularly big in the public sector. It does > seem you are seeing reductions in some of the states that you might > expect.” > > For instance, in Indiana, where the right to work law took effect last > March, unionization dropped to 9.1 percent from 11.3 percent in 2011. > Michigan enacted a similar law last month. > > The bureau said union membership in the public sector — long a labor > stronghold — fell to 35.9 percent in 2012, from 37 percent the previous > year. The number of government workers in unions fell by 234,000, as > many teachers, police officers and others lost their jobs. There were > 7.3 million public employees in unions, compared with seven million > private sector workers. > > William Spriggs, the A.F.L.- > C.I.O.’s chief economist, took a more upbeat approach to the report, > noting that the bureau had found increased union membership in > California, Georgia, North Carolina, Oklahoma and Texas. > > “It’s not a simple story that we don’t have our act together,” Mr. > Spriggs said. “I would be more concerned if union membership was down > among Latinos and Asian-Americans, because that’s a growing demographic, > but it’s up.” > > He acknowledged that unions were doing poorly in manufacturing, retail > and elsewhere in the private sector, which has been adding jobs even as > union membership continued a slide that has lasted for decades. > > “Our labor laws do not favor unions organizing,” Mr. Spriggs said. “It > would be one thing to say we’re bellyaching, but the Republican Party is > really being vindictive against unions, and employers campaign very hard > against workers unionizing.” > > But Professor Chaison said now would seem a good time for unions to > attract workers. “Workers should be looking to unions because of job > insecurity and stagnant wages, but they’re not.” > > In recent months, there has been an uptick in labor militancy as > evidenced by recent protests at Walmarts across the nation and the > one-day strike by fast-food workers in New York City last November. Both > of those actions against nonunion employers protested what workers said > were low wages and meager benefits. Union officials acknowledge that it > is often hard to persuade a majority of employees at a big-box store or > other workplaces to vote to unionize. > > Glenn Spencer, vice president of the Workforce Freedom Initiative of the > United States Chamber of Commerce, said Wednesday’s report “has some > alarm bells ringing at union headquarters across Washington.” > > With workers no longer spending their entire career at one employer and > often switching jobs, he said workers no longer felt as attracted to > unions. > > “Unions have fundamentally had a hard time conveying to workers what > their value proposition is, how they’re really going to make workers’ > lives better,” Mr. Spencer said. “And if you look at union contracts and > their rigid work rules, there is no incentive for employers to embrace > unions either.” > > According to the report, North Carolina has the lowest unionization > rate, 2.9 percent, followed by Arkansas, at 3.2 percent. New York had > the highest unionization rate, 23.2 percent, with Alaska second, at 22.4 > percent. > > The bureau said that among full-time workers, union members had median > weekly earnings of $943 last year (about $49,000 annually), compared > with $742 (about $38,600 annually), for comparable nonunion workers. > _______________________________________________ > pen-l mailing list > [email protected] > https://lists.csuchico.edu/mailman/listinfo/pen-l > > _______________________________________________ > pen-l mailing list > [email protected] > https://lists.csuchico.edu/mailman/listinfo/pen-l > > -- Cheers, Tom Walker (Sandwichman)
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