Portside

The annual decline in the number of union members actually slowed after the a right-to-work law in Michigan took effect in 2013. And membership grew to 604,000 in 2020 from 589,000 in 2019. 

The Amazon organizing drive has drawn attention to just how much the deck is stacked against workers and unions. The Pro Act would provide a much-needed update to labor law after decades of rising inequality and an erosion of collective bargaining.

The question is whether even a supportive president can reverse the decline in union power that economists say has helped hollow out America's middle class. Neither organized labor nor sympathetic politicians have managed to do that for decades.

The death of AFL-CIO President John Sweeney has evoked examinations of his legacy. One can praise the good things but its important to address the bad things so we can have a more accurate understanding of his time.

The late AFL-CIO leader John Sweeney was an admirable figure who had a vision for reinvigorated US labor unions. But he only tried to reform a union movement that needed a more fundamental refoundation.

Both at SEIU and the AFL-CIO, President Sweeney felt a particular responsibility to those workers most exploited, most vulnerable, and historically most ignored or worse by organized labor. In my opinion, this was his most important legacy.

How a coalition of the left, the US Chamber of Commerce, the AFL-CIO and others organized to make sure Biden took office.

As we rebuild, we must remember that recovery is impossible without equity. Therefore racial justice is a key component of our agenda. And we need to rebuild the safety net for everyone who lives and works here. That means economic security for all.

We are witnessing one of the greatest assaults on our democracy since the Civil War,” tweeted AFL-CIO president Richard Trumka. Union leaders throughout the country denounced the coup attempt and attack on the Constitution.