labor

Labor Wrestles With Its Future

Harold Meyerson Washington Post
Unions face an existential problem: If they can’t represent more than a sliver of American workers on the job, what is their mission? Are there other ways they can advance workers’ interests even if those workers aren’t their members? A new labor movement might resemble a latter-day version of the Knights of Labor, the workers’ organization of the 1880s that was a cross between a union federation, a working-class political vehicle, and a fraternal lodge.

labor

Labor's Plan B

Abby Rapoport The American Prospect
Faced with the very real threat of extinction, unions have largely put collective bargaining on the back burner, and instead must try to remind American workers of the basic concept of worker solidarity. “We start from the point of view that, because so few people are in unions these days, very few people have personal experience with collective power,” explains Karen Nussbaum, the executive director of Working America.

labor

With Big Changes, Can Labor Grow Again?

Melissa Maynard Stateline
Union leaders are exploring new forms of organization. One such form is the “minority” or “pre-majority” union. Under that framework, workers could sign up members and bargain on behalf of a smaller group until they reached the 50 percent threshold and went through the traditional certification process. This article explores a number of non-traditional avenues for unions.

Labor Needs a Makeover: "The Organizing Model - As American as Apple Pie"

Mark Zimmerman Portside
Most US union members belong to very large, highly bureaucratized organizations - the 3 million member NEA, the 2 million member SEIU, the 1.3 million member AFSCME and Teamsters, and so on. Change - whether it be to elect a new slate of officers or to change organizational culture - is a daunting challenge: There are often complex hoops that member-activists and local leaders have to jump through to get dissenting or diverging voices heard.

labor

AFL-CIO’s Trumka Looks to Remake U.S. Labor Movement

Peter Wallsten The Washington Post
In an interview taped for C-SPAN’s “Newsmakers” program, Richard Trumka said he was seeking a more formal alliance with key elements of the Democratic Party’s liberal base, including civil rights organizations and women’s rights groups. The hope, he said, is to broaden union membership beyond the traditional realm of workplace-based organizing. The full interview is scheduled to air on C-SPAN Sunday at 10 a.m. and 6 p.m.

labor

Can Unions Save The Creative Class?

SCOTT TIMBERG Salon
Artists, writers,musicians and similar occupations are under attack. Low pay and lack of health benefits for most are major problems. Can unions help make their lives better? The author gives a brief history of organizing in these fields.

labor

Chamber, Labor Unions At Odds Over Guest Worker Program

David Nakamura The Washington Post
The U.S. Chamber of Commerce is pushing for 400,000 new visas for foreign workers, a demand that has been met with fierce resistance by labor unions and which could help derail an agreement between the two sides over an immigration reform bill being developed in Congress.
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