Good-Bye American Dream: New Assault Against Unions

[marmar]

from the Working Life blog:




Good-Bye American Dream: New Assault Against Unions

by Jonathan Tasini
Tuesday 04 of January, 2011


The political adage is correct: elections have consequences. We know about the takeover of the House by Republicans and the hit Democrats will take in the reapportionment process. But, the greatest threat to the American Dream is going to come from a determined assault on the labor movement.

The New York Times has this today, a story that has been covered before but has new specifics:

Faced with growing budget deficits and restive taxpayers, elected officials from Maine to Alabama, Ohio to Arizona, are pushing new legislation to limit the power of labor unions, particularly those representing government workers, in collective bargaining and politics.

And...

For example, Republican lawmakers in Indiana, Maine, Missouri and seven other states plan to introduce legislation that would bar private sector unions from forcing workers they represent to pay dues or fees, reducing the flow of funds into union treasuries. In Ohio, the new Republican governor, following the precedent of many other states, wants to ban strikes by public school teachers.

Some new governors, most notably Scott Walker of Wisconsin, are even threatening to take away government workers’ right to form unions and bargain contracts.

"We can no longer live in a society where the public employees are the haves and taxpayers who foot the bills are the have-nots," Mr. Walker, a Republican, said in a speech. "The bottom line is that we are going to look at every legal means we have to try to put that balance more on the side of taxpayers."

And...

Of all the new governors, John Kasich, Republican of Ohio, appears to be planning the most comprehensive assault against unions. He is proposing to take away the right of 14,000 state-financed child care and home care workers to unionize. He also wants to ban strikes by teachers, much the way some states bar strikes by the police and firefighters.

Let's be very clear about this. The attack against public sector unions is an attack on you and me, whether you work in the public sector or not. And if we don't see that, if we allow the bogus arguments about the wages and pensions of public sector workers being at the heart of our state fiscal crisis, then, we will end up paying the price.

Twenty years or so ago, many of us argued that so-called "free trade" was a threat to every person, whether your job was directly in the cross-hairs of a company ready to pick up and move to China. People scoffed--and, frankly, many people in the public sector thought, "that 'free trade" stuff is not my problem--government jobs can't move abroad." Yes, it is true--government jobs can't move, mostly, abroad (I say, "mostly" because you can still outsource billing and computerization work).

But, so-called "free trade" is the same side of the coin as the attack against public sector workers.

It is a single message put out by the people who push the levers of the economy: we want a world where no one has any semblance of protection at work. You don't get to belong to a union. You don't get to fight for a decent paycheck or pension. And, instead, it's every man and woman for his or herself and everyone is going to work for a steadily declining paycheck with no benefits--and what we, the corporate and financial elite, decide is fair. ...........(more)

The complete piece is at: http://www.workinglife.org/blogs/view_post.php?content_id=15071

[blondeatlast]

1. Say goodbye to the middle class when you say goodbye to unions.

"But I'm not union, why should I care?"

I'm glad my public sector professional, AFSCME parents are not around to see this, I really am. I had a good life...

[brewens]

2. All I can say to Republican union members is B.O.H.I.C.A. You

deserve every dimes worth of ass fucking you get!

[RKP5637]

3. It's a movement to place most Americans into servitude, but many

Americans are asleep, it's the other guy's problem, not mine. That's a significant problem I've seen for the future of America, there is not a collective sense IMO in this country. Instead, people belong to tribes, and diversionary techniques are applied to make great use divide and conquer. Endlessly Americans are pitted one against another, one tribe against another, and collectively all are losing as many fall for the propaganda spewed endlessly.

[amyrose2712]

4. ...

[FormerDittoHead]

5. Can I get coffee without a "coffee boy"?

http://www.nydailynews.com/news/ny_crime/2011/01/03/2011-01-03_mob_brewed_coffee_con_at_building_sites.html

Oh, that's right - this doesn't happen.

[iamtechus]

6. Maybe the time has come to learn from the ones who came before us.

Most of today's unions have gone soft. They're used to being protected by labor laws which were passed by elites who were motivated by fear of angry workers. Their leaders all came to power long after "union organizer" was a dangerous occupation.

• Adopt the motto: "I work to live not live to work."
  
• No one can make you smile and say "good morning" to the boss if you don't feel like it.
  
• An old union friend used to say, "You can't push a rope".
  
• Always make the bosses earn your enthusiasm.
  
• Always remind yourself that you're working for your family, not the boss or his.
  

A good resource in these bad times: http://www.iww.org/en/node/