Longshore Union Quits the AFL-CIO

[Omaha Steve]

Source: Labor Notes

In a surprise move, the 40,000-member International Longshore and Warehouse Union announced its disaffiliation from the AFL-CIO yesterday. The news comes just a week before the federation is set to hold its national convention in Los Angeles, the nation’s biggest port and an ILWU stronghold.

The ILWU, known for its militant traditions and progressive politics, has been drawn into turf wars with other unions in recent years—particularly in the grain export terminals of the Pacific Northwest, where longshore workers have been locked in a high-stakes battle over master contract standards since 2011.

In an August 29 letter to AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka, ILWU President Robert McEllrath cited these ongoing juristictional battles as part of the union’s decision to disaffiliate. The skirmishes hit close to home: McEllrath comes out of Vancouver, Washington’s Local 4, where members of rival unions are crossing ILWU picket lines, and debate over the disputes was squelched at this summer’s state labor convention.

The letter also cited the federation’s compromised positions on health care and immigration reform. Invoking the union’s radical and independent history, McEllrath noted the ILWU did not join the AFL-CIO until 1988—after being kicked out of the CIO during the McCarthy era for being “too red.”

Lockstep with Obama

FULL story at link.


- See more at: http://www.labornotes.org/2013/08/longshore-union-quits-afl-cio#sthash.WUvgy2OU.dpuf


Read more: http://www.labornotes.org/2013/08/longshore-union-quits-afl-cio

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Longshore workers from across the Pacific Northwest have come to the aid of locked out grain handlers in ILWU Local 4 and Local 8. Source: ILWU. - See more at: http://www.labornotes.org/2013/08/longshore-union-quits-afl-cio#sthash.WUvgy2OU.dpuf

[snot]

1. Can someone familiar with the situation help me understand what this is about?

Sign me interested but ignorant.

[bread_and_roses]

11. I'll try to give a quick version

The AFL-CIO is a Federation of Unions. Individual Unions belong to the Federation (Plumbers - Electricians - Musicians - Nurses - Government workers - full list of AFL-CIO Affiliates here http://www.aflcio.org/About/AFL-CIO-Unions ) . Affiliation is by choice - the members of a Union vote to affiliate - or not. They can vote to dis-affiliate also, as the Longshore Workers have just done.

Over the years, there have been dis-affiliations and re-affiliations. Some unions have never affiliated. One that many DUers might remember - the union that took over the door/window factory to keep it from being shut down a few years ago - is UE (United Electrical Workers http://www.ueunion.org/ ). UE tends to be more progressive/radical by most measures than the unions of the AFL-CIO. (I am a great admirer of UE - though I am myself a member of a union which does belong to the AFL-CIO.)

The purpose of affiliating in a Federation is to make concerted action possible, to build power, to have a mechanism to (theoretically - it doesn't always work) to prevent members from poaching each others' members or stealing each others' work.

The AFL-CIO is not the only Federation. It is itself the merger of two Federations: the American Federation of Labor & the Congress of Industrial Organizations. Currently, we also have "Change to Win" in the US, which includes SEIU (Service Workers).

Some unions left the AFL-CIO to form CtW, some of those have since returned to AFL-CIO - as I said, member unions have that choice.

The AFL-CIO has a checkered history in terms of what we would call "Progressive" actions - VERY checkered. Look up Lane Kirkland, who Fudnick below mentions.

Like any huge Federation there are tensions. Decisions at the top of AFL-CIO have to be more or less consensus decisions among the leadership of the member unions.

There is a fair amount of unrest always, and much of it currently is over the AFL-CIO's concentration on electoral politics rather than direct actions and what many of us consider an over-deference to the current Administration. But of course many others are completely content with that, and many more members don't care - they pay their dues and go to sleep.

[Le Taz Hot]

13. Thank you for that explanation. n/t

[cstanleytech]

16. So its alot like the Republican and Democratic parties?

In that everyone inside the two parties wants something and they have to hash it out and sometimes the peons (most of us here including myself) dont always agree with the decisions made by those running the organization, right?

[bread_and_roses]

19. I'm sorry but I don't know how to answer that in a way that makes sense

There are ways that comparison would hold - and ways it would not.

[socialist_n_TN]

20. Not really. it's more like a voluntary federation......

Every union that in the AFL-CIO voluntarily federates. If one of the members thinks that the overall federation is NOT looking after their interests, they can and will leave the federation. That's what happened here. The ILWU didn't feel like the AFL-CIO was looking after their interests, so they withdrew. Now they will either be an independent union or they could affiliate with Change to Win which is another union federation that was formed a few years ago because the member unions that are now in CtW decided that the AFL-CIO wasn't militant enough. Which it's not BTW.

This probably is fallout from the contract problems in Washington state. Another AFL-CIO union (the Operating Engineers) are taking longshore jobs away from the ILWU despite a contract signed and the AFL-CIO hasn't came down on them for it. The OEs are being bribed by the shipper's federation to take these jobs because they (the shippers) want to break the power of the ILWU at west coast ports. Typical divide and conquer techniques by the owners.

[Omaha Steve]

17. Thank you

Great explanation wile I was away.

[snot]

18. Thanks, BRoses!

Very helpful.

[Warpy]

2. Good.

We need strong unions moving left and clawing the working class's wealth back from the plutocrats.

I see this as a good sign, along with the wildcat strikes at fast food joints.

If they want to charge us first world prices, they're going to have to pay us first world wages.

[Maynar]

8. "If they want to charge us first world prices,

they're going to have to pay us first world wages."

A slogan is born. I have seen this, and it is good.

[jtuck004]

3. Cool. Back to the 1920's. n/t

[Deep13]

4. I suddenly love longshoremen. nt

[Fuddnik]

5. My Union has parted ways with the AFL-CIO several times in the past.

United Transportation Union.

Back in the '70s the AFL-CIO was supporting building coal slurries, giant coal pipelines, all over the country. It would have destroyed a lot of Railroad jobs, not to mention a lot of environmental destruction.

They lost a lot of credibility with me when they didn't call a General Strike when Reagan fired the Air Traffic Controllers. Thanks Lane Kirkland.

[donco]

6. back to the future

If my memory serves me, the Teamsters (which I was an organizer) weren’t affiliated with the AFL/CIO for quite some time.

[Iliyah]

7. Ya'know my husband belongs to the

Union - County of Los Angeles and I think its the AFL-CIO and they are pretty cool.

[leftyohiolib]

9. tag

[FreakinDJ]

10. Most if not all unions are done with Democrats at the National level

They have been screwed so many times giving money to Dems in the House and Senate they are now using a "Bottom-Up" approach and focusing only on local level candidates now. The AFL-CIO focuses solely on the "Washington-Elite" Dem candidates, throwing lots of money around with no results

[mtasselin]

12. in the mean time

While all of this is happening the global corporations are getting what they want a divided house. Can someone tell me when is it okay to cross a picket line? The answer is that it is not, and the head of the AFL-CIO should be ashamed of himself and all other union organizations that do. A house divided will fall, so boys it is time to get your shit together and remember who you are supposed to be representing and why, is it for the membership or for your own egos and paychecks.

[CANDO]

14. Rival unions crossing picket lines!

That is a cardinal sin. WTF is wrong with these people who cross a line? Someday it'll be their line.

[secondvariety]

15. The ILWU

has a history of wanting work done by the IBEW. Everyone wants to be an electrician (until it starts getting dicey).

http://www.oregonlive.com/business/index.ssf/2012/06/longshoremen_file_suit_while_c.html

I've run into situations like this on several jobs.