Outline

The CIO








UAW: Sit Down and Fight: Video Clip
Social Unionism
 CIO PAC
WWII: New Rules




Post War Labor Relations
 Taft-Hartley Act, 1947
 Expanding the Scope of Bargaining
 Fringe Benefits
Post War Labor Accord
Public Sector Unions
No class Tuesday, Thursday and Tuesday regular
class, Exam on Thursday 2/24

Follow the directions
Review Question…big part of grade
Maintenance of Membership
Social Unionism: Just How Far?

Newspaper article extra credit
Right now it looks like this: 40 mc/tf & 4 Essays
Will put slides up tomorrow

Some are doing an excellent job

Some haven’t done any…what are
you waiting for?

Some are not doing
thoroughly…do them thoroughly
1941 Brings War…



War again brings need for reliable
industrial output
So what does government do to
make sure strikes do not disrupt
war effort?
Another War Labor Board Created
Comprised of labor, management and
government
 1942-1945 settles 20,000 conflicts
 Again…Promotes acceptance of CB

Growing the labor movement…


Massive influx of workers into wartime industries
created challenges for unions
Unions are expected to sign up each new worker
as a member of the union


Very hard to sign up all the new workers, keep track of everyone
coming and going…
Free rider problems abound…Remember Freeman
discussion of “Free Rider Problem”

Free Rider Problem and Union membership?
Free Rider Problem


People who would benefit from acting collectively
together often fail to do so.
Cost of participating in labor struggle are potentially
high (loss of pay, fired, beatings, death), and
contribution made by a given individual is small

Lack of participation by one worker unlikely to make a
difference either way

Individual worker will get benefits of unionization,
regardless of whether s/he contributes to struggle

Participation is irrational…if all reason this way, unions
fail…
Overcoming the Free Rider Problem?

Social Norms that promote a Culture of Solidarity


Solidarity- willingness of individual members of a group to support
the collective struggles of that group
Institutional Rules: Selective Incentives

Only those who join the organization receive a given benefit

Examples Selective Incentives Used by AFL Craft Unions


Burial money, unemployment insurance, housing, etc.
Closed Shop


worker must be a member of a union in order to be eligible for hire by the employer
(now illegal)
Institutional Rules: Union Security Clauses…lets explore
development of these clauses…
Solving the Free Rider Problem

CIO Unions work hard to solve free rider
problem, but it takes tremendous amount of
time and staff

Remember…we’ve got factories with as many as
100,000 people working in them

Union dues collected at job or gate by union staff

Note Button

Almost impossible to track new hires…too many
come and go

Steelworkers Union estimates 250,000 man days
per year spent by staffers collecting dues

And still… 30% of United Steel Workers (USW) do not
pay
A “Union Shop”

Unions argue they can not guarantee “labor peace” if
they can’t consolidate membership
Dissident member withhold dues as leverage
 Management pit union against non-union


Solution in Labor’s view: Union shop
 Anyone may be hired off the street BUT management and
union agree that all workers must join union and pay
dues

Logic: As in politics, once majority of people vote a certain
way, we’re all bound by decision
War Labor Board

Business Opposes Union Shop…prefers an open shop

Open Shop

A business establishment in which there is no union or where union
membership is not a condition of employment
(Herman 1998: 53)


NWLB decision: “Maintenance of Membership”
4. What is meant by the term “maintenance of
membership”? How does a maintenance of
membership policy help unions solve the “free rider
problem” that we talked about earlier this semester?
War Labor Board



NWLB decision: “Maintenance of Membership”

After 15 days on the job, workers automatically become union
members, and must remain union members for the life of the contract

Dues automatically deducted from pay of a worker
In what ways do you think that such a clause might help
build the union movement?
In what ways do you think such a clause might weaken the
labor movement?
A Double Edged Sword…

Benefits of this method for union?

Dues collection easy


Saves union time and resources
Union ranks grow rapidly

“If it was not for the union security given to our unions by the
National War Labor Board we wouldn’t have 5 million dues
paying members in the CIO.”

Van Bittner, CIO Rep on the WLB
A Double Edged Sword…


Negative impact of this method on union?
People become union members without any contact
from union


“Labor Conscripts” lacking “do or die” spirit of union
Distances union staff/leadership from rank and file

Dues collected automatically…less personal contact
Good or Bad…Security Claues Help Union
Density Grows…1 out of 3
Unions Concentrated in Key Industries

By 1946, Core of Economy
almost completely union

80-100% unionized

Aircraft, Aluminum, Auto,
Breweries, Clothing, Electrical
Machinery, Meat packing,
Rubber, Shipbuilding Steel,
Coal, Construction, Long
shoring, Trucking


John Lewis and UMW control
nation’s supply of coal
Will have spill over effect
to non-union sector

Fear of unionization will
prompt better wages, hours,
and working conditions
Outline

Social Unionism: What is the role of a union?

Post War Labor Relations






Taft-Hartley Act, 1947
Expanding the Scope of Bargaining
 Fringe Benefits
The “Post War Labor Accord”
Workplace Rule of Law
Public Sector Unions
Today and Tuesday regular class, Exam on
Thursday 2/24


Right now it looks like this: 40 mc/tf & 4
Essays
Slides are up
Unions in the News

Chicago Tribune (2/17/11)

Wisconsin lawmakers are prepared to pass a momentous bill that
would strip government workers of nearly all collective bargaining
rights over the loud objections of thousands of teachers, students and
prison guards who packed the Capitol for two days of protests.
The nation's most aggressive anti-union proposal has been speeding
through the Legislature since Republican Gov. Scott Walker introduced
it a week ago. After clearing a major legislative hurdle Wednesday
night, it was headed to votes in the Senate and Assembly.
Up to 20,000 people filled the Statehouse on Wednesday, cheering,
singing and chanting in demonstrations unlike any seen in Madison for
decades. Their numbers included many families and teachers from the
Madison school district, which was forced to close after more than 40
percent of its 2,600-union covered employees called in sick.
The Legislature's budget committee passed the bill on a partisan vote
just before midnight. Several opponents in the crowd broke into tears
as Democrats on the committee encouraged them not to give up the
fight.

AP Footage
From Last Night:

http://www.youtube.com/
watch?v=_AbeAcTiFFc
From Business Unionism to Social
Unionism

a form of unionism that focuses on using collective
bargaining to improve the wages, hours and working
conditions of members who belong to a particular
union WHILE also engaging in campaigns that will
improve the conditions of the working class a whole


GOAL IS TO ADVANCE A BROADER SET OF ECONOMC
INTERESTS…ABOVE AND BEYOND THOSE DEALT WITH BY
COLLECTIVE BARGAINING
3. Who was A. Philip Randolph? How did he
challenge discrimination against Black workers in
America?
Marching on Washington…1941


A. Philip Randolph, President of the
Brotherhood of Sleeping Car Porters,
President of the Negro American Labor
Council, and Vice President of the AFL-CIO
In 1941 he threatened to march 100,000
on Washington unless President Roosevelt
prohibited discrimination in defense
industries and the military

FDR caved on industry…not on military
March on Washington…1963



A huge march on Washington is
organized to challenge discrimination
Many remember Dr. King’s “I have a
dream speech”…few know that
Randolph initiated the march
Even fewer know the demands of the
march? What did the marchers want?
Of the 10 Demands of the March on
Washington…4 were economic





1. Comprehensive and effective civil rights legislation from the present Congress — without
compromise or fillibuster — to guarantee all Americans:
Access to all public accommodations
Decent housing
Adequate and integrated education
The right to vote
7. A massive federal program to train and place all unemployed workers — Negro and white — on
meaningful and dignified jobs at decent wages.
8. A national minimum wage act that will give all Americans a decent standard of living. (Government
surveys show that anything less than $2.00 an hour fails to do this.)
[The minimum wage at the time of the march is $1.15/hour.]
9. A broadened Fair Labor Standards Act to include all areas of employment which are presently
excluded.
10. A federal Fair Employment Practices Act barring discrimination by federal, state, and municipal
governments, and by employers, contractors, employment agencies, and trade unions.
http://www.crmvet.org/tim/tim63b.htm#1963mow
Choices


You’re a proud member of Local 1 of the International Union
of Sociology Students. The IUSS has bargained a contract
that provides you with good wages, fair hours and safe
working conditions. You come to work each day knowing that
you will be treated with respect and dignity by your boss. At
your last union meeting, an issue was raised that you’re not
sure about.
Jane motioned that your union give money and
organizational support to the civil rights movement’s march
on Washington. Joe stood up and said that while he
supported the civil rights movement, not all IUSS members
did, and the union had no business using dues money to get
involved in such matters since they had nothing to do with the
IUSS contract. There was spirited debate, and the issue was
tabled until next month. How will you vote? Why? What are
the pros and cons of each position?
AFL-CIO and Civil Rights

AFL-CIO would not endorse the 1963
March on Washington




Supported civil rights but viewed issue as
peripheral to collective bargaining
No $ or bodies provided
Didn’t open HQ to tired thirsty protestors
Some AFL-CIO unions endorsed the
march


Sent $ and bodies
Note Reuther of the UAW
Video: Sit Down and Fight


Social Unionism…more than just bread and
butter…
Walther Reuther & rise of The United Autoworkers
 UAW
pushes the envelope
 Social Unionism
Unions Pushing the Envelope…

Unite Autoworkers (UAW) Post War Demand
 30%
wage increase to make up for income lost
during WWII
 GM
should “open its books” and not raise car
prices
 This
was the controversial demand…not the wage
demand.

Why did the UAW make such a demand?
Unions Pushing the Envelope…

Why make such a demand? Social Unionism

To preserve purchasing power of all workers & prevent inflation in over
all economy

Show unions were concerned with all consumers

Reuther:
 “We are not going to operate as a narrow economic interest group.”

“The GM strike, while officially endorsed by the UAW executive
board….divided both autoworkers and the CIO” (Zieger 1995: 220)

You are on the UAW executive board. Should this demand be made?

Move to the side you agree with…
Unions Pushing the Envelope…

Unite Autoworkers (UAW) Post War Demand



30% wage increase to make up for income lost during WWII
GM should “open its books” and not raise car prices
Why make such a demand? Social Unionism

Preserve purchasing power of all workers & prevent inflation in over
all economy

Show unions were concerned with all consumers

Reuther:
 “We are not going to operate as a narrow economic interest group.”

Law says employers must “bargain in good faith”…should they be
required to bargain over such things, is or this a violation of
managerial authority?
GM’s response to the UAW?

No way!
 “We
don’t even let our stockholders look at the books.”
 “America
is at the crossroads! It must preserve the
freedom of each unit of American business to
determine its own destiny.”
 10%
counteroffer
UAW vs. GM

UAW calls company wide strike
 320,000
walk off job and begin113 day national strike
 A big deal…


In the end, a 18.5% wage increase was won, but
there was no deal on price increases
At the same time, there were strikes all over the
economy, general strikes & demands to look at books…

Note Clip on Strike Wave
Resolving Post War Labor Conflict…

From management’s position, something has to give

Three Things Happen:

1) After 13 years of Democratic control of House the
Republicans win a majority in the House….and take control of
the Senate for the first time since 1928

2) Business community mounts offensive to change labor law


Taft Hartley Act
2) Many key firms grudgingly accepts unions

“Post War Labor Accord”
Changing the Law…

Wagner Act (NLRA) Supplemented by Taft-Hartley
Act, 1947
 Republican
Congress Passes to constrain power of
unions
 President

Truman vetoes; veto overridden
What did it do?
Changing the Law…Taft Hartley Act

Outlaws mass picketing, secondary strikes & secondary
boycotts

Functions to limit union solidarity and weaken movement by
outlawing most effective tactics



Outlaws strikes during term of contract



My Dad’s union and light fixtures
Staley workers and Coca-Cola
Remember the “quickie” strikes?…now they’re illegal
Channels conflict into grievance procedure…more on this later
Closed Shop outlawed

A contractual clause providing that individuals must be a member of the
union in order to be eligible for hire into the bargaining unit (Kochan 453)
Taft-Hartley Act, 1947

Excludes supervisors in the private sector from
coverage under the NLRA
 This
is why I am not protected by labor law
Taft-Hartley Act, 1947


Permitted states to pass “right-to-work” laws that
limited union security clauses in collective bargaining
agreements
Union shop


Anyone may be hired off the street BUT management and
union agree that all workers must join union and pay dues
“Right to work” laws prohibit union shops


Workers can not be required to join union as a condition of employment
21 states adopt such laws…primarily in the South


New Hampshire passed law this week…will probably be vetoed
Free rider problems become big problem…Why?
Right to Work and Union Density:
Pattern?
Right to Work States Are Grey
Right to Work State in Grey
Union Density by State - 2006
0% to 9%
10% to 20%
Source: Union Members In 2006, Bureau of Labor Statistics
21% & over
Grudging Acceptance of Unions: “Post War
Labor Accord”

Many Key Firms Agree to Share the economic pie


“Live and let live”
“Labor unions are woven into our economic pattern of
American life, and collective bargaining is a part of the
democratic process. I say recognize this fact not only with
our lips but with our hearts.”

Eric Johnston, president of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce,
1946
Grudging Acceptance of Unions: “Post War
Labor Accord”

“Treaty of Detroit” sets tone for economy as a whole



Term coined by Fortune Magazine
To avoid labor trouble GM offers income protecting devices in
late 1940s

Automatic improvement factor (AIF) ties wages to company’s productivity

Cost of Living Adjustments (COLA) raises wages in line with inflation
This Becomes “Pattern” for major industries in the US
Treaty of Detroit: Connecting Wages to
Productivity
Next…


The “Golden Age” of
American Capitalism
The Rise of Public
Sector Unions
Outline



Public Sector Unions
The Impact of Unions

Exam on Thursday 2/24

Right now it looks like this: 40
mc/tf & 3 Essays

This might change…but not radically…

Slides are up…everything up
through today…will put up later

Will try to end early and leave
Week after Spring
Break
 Multiple
bonus Point
Opportunities…see
next slide

Bonus Points: 5 events




one assignment point or ¼
test point for each…
no limit: 5 pts for
assignments or 1.25 lift to
final grade
You can pick and
choose…indicate on
paragraph you hand in
Attend event…write a
paragraph connecting
what you learn to this
class
NFL does not seem to have union
shop language…


Right to work laws
trump union shop
agreements
So if GM has contract
language for a union
shop and a factory in
KY…Workers in KY do
not have to abide by it
Fringe Benefits…




Your text states: “So called fringe benefits also
provided a frontier for postwar collective bargaining.”
a. What are some examples of fringe benefits?
b. What role did unions play in securing fringe benefits
for American workers?
c. Provide one concrete example of a fringe benefit
won by a union?
Fringe Benefits

Beyond wages and hours




United Mine Workers win medical in 1947
Ford workers and Steelworkers get Pensions in 1949
Disability, Dental, Vision, Vacation, Family Leave and other benefits will
ultimately be added…
These benefits set standard throughout economy for union and unionunion companies

“The unions role in developing this system…was central. By the early
1970s, pensions, health insurance, and the like had become so
commonplace that millions of Americans took these hard-won benefits
for granted. Few remembered the generations of militancy that
paved the way…” (Zieger p.153)


Prior to this class, how aware were you of the role of
unions in brining Americans things like the 8 hour
day/weekend, unemployment insurance, health
insurance, paid vacation, etc
BONUS POINT OPPORTUNITY (WORTH 2 POINTS):
Ask a roommate, friend, parent, little sister, stranger
you meet at a party or anyone on the planet what
they now about the origins of these things. See if they
are aware of the “generations of militancy that
paved the way…” Describe their answer.
Something to Consider

How does the provision of these benefits by the
employer effect working class solidarity…the feeling
that all workers have a common interest? How might it
make non union workers resent unionized workers?
Something to Consider



How does the provision of these benefits by the
employer effect working class solidarity…the feeling
that all workers have a common interest? How might it
make non union workers resent unionized workers?
Creates segmentation of working class: “Insiders and
Outsiders”
Non-union workers may see union members as a
“pampered” special interest group
Something to Consider

Who provides these benefits (pensions, medical care,
vacations, family leave) in most other advanced
industrial capitalist nations (I.e. France, German,
Sweden, UK, Austria)?
Something to Consider


Who provides these benefits (pensions, medical care,
vacations, family leave) in most other advanced
industrial capitalist nations (I.e. France, German,
Sweden, UK, Austria)?
Government grants as a right of citizenship


A “social wage” that supplement a persons market wage
How does the provision of benefits by the government
facilitate the development of more solidarity and
larger, more powerful labor movements?
Something to Consider

Workers across the board have a shared interest …solidarity
is more common…unions seen as advancing the “general
interest” not a “special interest”


Bank teller, Bank manager, milk truck driver and janitor all have shared
interest in making sure benefits are provided and generous
In addition, “insider” union members in US are more vulnerable
to hardship than workers in Europe

If employer faces tough times, benefits will be attacked


US automakers and steel makers plagued by cost of benefits
 Foreign competition does not have same costs
This is exactly what is happening right now, as major US firms seek to
reduce benefit packages… note next slide
Choices Made in the 1940s Create
Problems 50 Years Later

Detroit's carmakers
have been under siege
from foreign
competition, which have
lower costs in their
factories…U.S. Healthcare costs have sapped
$1,400 from the profit
of any vehicle(Business Week, 9/07)

Toyota's health care costs
are so negligible that they
aren't even a line item in
the company's financial
statements. Toyota benefits
both from the Japanese
national health plan's
coverage of retirees'
medical needs and from the
way that plan is structured
(autoweek.com)ttp://www.autoweek.com/article/20050401/FREE/50401

0702#ixzz0v6sGTzPg
Beyond wages and benefits…The
Workplace


Your authors note that academics have noted that even as collective
bargaining channeled much of the conflict between employers and
employees, the shop floor or actual worksite remained “contested terrain.”
Please explain what they mean by this and discuss how grievance
procedures and arbitration provide a mechanism to turn a “contested
terrain” into a workplace governed by the rule of law. Read carefully, and
this answer will not be hard.
Your authors suggest that the gains of the CIO allowed workers to create a
“workplace rule of law.” What do they mean by this? Note that much of the
answer to this question appears prior to the use of the term in the text.
Workplace Rule of Law & The
Union Law Enforcer



Contracts will address more than $
& benefits…
They will address discipline, work
assignments, promotions, dismissal
seniority, etc.
“The emerging contractual
relationship…eliminated, in the
words of one radical organizer,
‘the worst evil – the total
submissiveness of workers to
boss’”(Zieger 2002: 111)

Shop Steward

On the job union rep
who carries out
responsibility of
union
Contested Terrain: From Quickies to
Grievances


But no contract can anticipate all

foreseeable situations …thus the “contested
terrain” (Zieger 2002: 200)
Grievance

Any perceived violation of
the contract
Workplace remains… “contested terrain”
 Grievance procedure
where there will be ongoing conflicts
between labor and management
 Formal process for

Contract says workers get paid day off on
July 4th…July 4th falls on Sunday


Should workers get a paid Monday?
Borgata declares it will fire waitresses that gain
weight. Does contract allow this?
settling conflict spelled
out in contract
“Post War Labor Accord” Delivers…


1955, AFL and CIO merge
into AFL-CIO
1950-1973, American
economic success rewards
both labor and management


“Golden Age of American
Capitalism”
Steady increase in
productivity, wages and
standard of living for most
Americans
Treaty of Detroit: Connecting Wages to
Productivity
We Used to Grow Together, Now
We’re Growing Apart
Real Family Income Growth Adjusted for Inflation
92%
1973-2000
1947-1973
117%
104%
98% 103%
64%
88%
75%
36%
26%
18%
1%
Poorest
20%
Richest Top
20%
5%
Poorest
20%
Source: U.S. Census Bureau. Based on mean family income.
Richest
20%
Top
5%
Union Help Facilitate the “Great Compression”
Post War Labor Accord…US
Public Sector Workers

4. What was the basic trend in public sector
unionization rates between 1955 and the 1970s.
Please provide one example of a previously
unorganized occupation that became unionized.
A Changing Labor Movement…

Private Sector- GM
autoworkers, Walmart
workers, Taco Bell Workers,
Citibank, etc,
40.00%
Percent Unionized
35.00%
30.00%
25.00%
20.00%
Private
15.00%
Public
10.00%
5.00%

Public Sector- City Cops,
Teachers, Nurses, Secretaries
at Public Universities, Forest
Rangers, Firefighters, etc.
0.00%
1950 1970
1990
A Changing Labor Movement…

Unions decline in private
sector, but grow in public
Sector

A smaller percentage of private
sector workers are in unions:
autoworkers, steelworkers,
machinists cashiers, etc.
Percent Unionized
40.00%
35.00%
30.00%
25.00%
20.00%

A much larger percentage
of public sector workers are
in unions: Teachers, Cops,
Firemen, Nurses, University
Staff, DMV workers, prison
guards, etc.
Private
15.00%
Public
10.00%
5.00%
0.00%
1950 1970
1990
Public Sector Workers

Tremendous growth from 400,000 in 1955 to 7.6
million in 2010
 Density
goes from 12.8% in 1960 to 36.2% in 2010
 Federal:
27% union density (Border patrol, Environmental
protection workers, postal workers, food inspectors, et)
 State:
31% union density (University professors, turnpike
workers, fish and wildlife, DMV, etc)
 Local
42% union density (teachers, firefighters, police,
sanitation, et
Public Sector Unionism

What caused the rapid growth?

Expansion of government budgets & growth in employment

The example of civil disobedience set by civil rights and other groups in
the 1960s
 Remember what MLK was doing in Memphis when he was shot and
killed?

Passage of laws favorable to public sector collective bargaining…lets
explore
Katz &Kochan, 2002
Public Sector Unions


Collective bargaining rights were granted to federal employees by JFK
through Executive Order 10988 in 1962
1978 Congress Replaces Executive Order with Law Protecting Right to
Organize & Collectively Bargain

No right to strike


Mediation


intervention in labor management disputes with objective to help parties reach a settlement
Fact finding


In 1981 Reagan fired the PATCO workers
neutral party analyses and conveys facts of a labor management dispute
Arbitration

procedure to settle labor management disputes in which a their party makes a binding
decision
(Katz and Kochan)
Public Sector Unions


41 states have passed collective bargaining legislation for
at least some state and local employees

24 comprehensive laws covering most workers

Some southern states have no laws
Right to strikes vary from state to state and occupation to
occupation


Police typically have binding arbitration
WI in the news…note next slide
WI in the News





COLLECTIVE BARGAINING. Make various changes to limit collective bargaining for most public employees to
wages. Total wage increases could not exceed a cap based on the CPI unless approved by referendum. Contracts
would be limited to one year and wages would be frozen until a new contract is settled. Collective bargaining
units are required to take annual votes to maintain certification as a union. Employers would be prohibited from
collecting union dues and members of collective bargaining units would not be required to pay dues. Changes
effective upon expiration of existing contracts. Law enforcement, fire employees and state troopers and inspectors
would be exempt from the changes.
QUALITY HEALTH CARE AUTHORITY. Repeals the authority of home health care workers under the Medicaid
program to collectively bargain.
CHILD CARE LABOR RELATIONS. Repeals the authority of family child care workers to collectively bargain with the
state.
UW HOSPITALS AND CLINICS BOARD AND AUTHORITY. Repeals collective bargaining for UWHC employees.
State positions currently employed by the UWHC are eliminated and incumbents are transferred to the UWHC
Authority.
UW FACULTY AND ACADEMIC STAFF. Repeals authority of UW faculty and academic staff to collectively
bargain.
The Face of Labor Changes: 10
Largest Unions in America (2008)

NEA - National Education Association
2,530,000

IBT - International Brotherhood of Teamsters
1,402,000

UFCW - United Food & Commercial Workers International Union
1,308,722

SEIU - Service Employees International Union
1,374,000

AFSCME - American Federation of State, County & Municipal Employees
1,300,000

LIUNA - Laborers' International Union of North America
818,412

IAM - International Association of Machinists & Aerospace Workers
730,673

IBEW - International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers
727,836

AFT - American Federation of Teachers
706,973

UAW - United Automobile, Aerospace & Agricultural Implements Workers of America
671,853

RED MEANS PUBLIC SECTOR OR LARGE PUBLIC SECTOR COMPONENT
Something to Consider

As union density drops in the private sector, and workers
see stagnating wages and reduced benefits, how would
you expect many to react to public sector workers who are
largely unionized with decent wages and good benefit
packages?
Something to Consider



As union density drops in the private sector, and workers
see stagnating wages and reduced benefits, how would
you expect many to react to public sector workers who are
largely unionized with decent wages and good benefit
packages?
Again segmentation of working class creates different
populations of “Insiders and Outsiders”
“Pension and Benefit Envy”

Segments of the general public see public sector union members
(cops, teachers, firefighters, DMV workers) as a “pampered” state
workers with overly generous benefits paid for by the taxpayer…
Pension Envy in NJ…Coming to a State
Near You



About 90 percent of state and local workers in the United
States have been promised pensions, compared with about 20
percent of private-sector workers, according to Keith
Brainard, research director at the National Association of
State Retirement Administrators
More and more New Jerseyans find themselves without
pensions and become resentful of the double whammy that
they face: fewer benefits for themselves and higher taxes so
that the public-sector workers can receive generous benefits,"
explains David Rebovich, managing director of the Institute for
New Jersey Politics at Rider University in Lawrenceville.
Las Vegas Review Journal (10/3/06)
Something to Consider

Workers across the board have a
shared interest …solidarity is
more common…unions seen as
advancing the “general interest”
not a “special interest”



France and Italy

Bank teller, milk truck driver,
teacher and cop all have shared
interest in making sure benefits are
provided and generous
General strike of all
workers in response to
pension changes
In addition, “insider” union
members in US are more
vulnerable to hardship than
workers in Europe

If state faces tough times, benefits
will be attacked

In US…government
workers are on their
own
Next…



Unions in Contemporary Society
Explaining the decline
How do unions organize, bargain, grieve, do
politics, etc.