Tonight’s category: Top 10 Reasons for Going to the Labor Notes Conference on April 23-25 in Dearborn.
#10: Learn all about what worked somewhere else that just might work here.
#9: Drink beer and sing songs with the Wobblies, until Security shows up.
#8: Eat rubber banquet chicken entirely prepared and served by union labor.
#7: Pick up tons of literature that can be easily plagiarized for local newsletter.
#6: Maybe hear Andy Stern’s side of the story.
#5: Spend quality bus time with the cream of Madison’s labor movement.
#4: Recharge batteries for next two years.
#3: Talk to alchemists who can turn craft unions into industrial unions.
#2: “Sorry, I’ll be out of town” sounds a whole lot better than “I don’t care if you already bought tickets, I still ain’t goin’.”
And, reason #1 for going to the Labor Notes conference: What happens in Dearborn stays in Dearborn.
If you haven’t yet made arrangements, it isn’t too late.
To register for the conference go to: www.labornotes.org.
To get a room call the Hyatt Regency at 888-421-1442 and mention you want the Labor Notes rate.
To get a spot on the bus from Madison, contact Tony at 608-347-3435 or anthonycollin@gmail.com.
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Thursday, March 25, 2010
Tuesday, January 26, 2010
The Wiz
Toto muzzled open the office door. There, behind the huge desk, sat a little man, shouting into a speaker phone. His amplified voice boomed into the outer office.
“Close the door. And go away. Pay no attention to the man behind the desk. I am the Great Wizard. And I command you.”
“Oh, shit,” said Dorothy. “Look. It’s the Wizard. But he isn’t a wizard at all. He’s just a little guy yelling into the phone.”
“Dang,” said the Scarecrow. “If the Wizard doesn’t have magical powers, we came all this way for nothing. Now we’ll never pass the Employee Free Choice Act, so we’ll never be able to organize.”
“Yeah,” added the Tin Man. “I was going to ask the Wizard to pass a law so I could organize Academic Staff. Without a new law, we’re screwed.”
“What about me?” whimpered the Cowardly Lion. “I was counting on the Great Wizard to get the NLRB to rule in our favor, so we can save the union at Woodman’s. If he’s a fake, we’ve got no chance at all.”
“And I came all this way to ask the Wizard to institute a government that would be responsive to the needs of working people,” sighed Dorothy. “It looks like we were all just wasting our time.”
“Oooooh. Oh, no,” said the Wizard, coming out from behind the big desk. “No, no. You didn’t waste your time. Not at all.”
“Sure, I’m just a faker. I got no magical powers. But look at you!”
“You, there, Scarecrow. You don’t need no new laws to organize unions. Why, the great industrial unions in this country were organized totally outside of the laws. They struck for recognition and they used mass picket lines and sit-down strikes to force the boss to the table. You can start organizing as soon as you realize that.”
“And, you, Tin Man. You won’t organize Academic Staff with a law. You’ll organize them by going out and talking up the union. If you have something worthwhile, they’ll join up in droves. If not, forcing them to pay dues with a law sure won’t solve your problems.”
“And, hey, Lion. Stop your sniveling, for Christ sake. You came all this way, kicking flying monkey butt and melting witches, but you still ain’t figured it out.”
“You want to save the union out at Woodman’s? Then you gotta go out and talk about the union with the workers. Get ‘em to working together to fight those speed-ups and that 2-tier health care system. Show ‘em how working together—organizing a union—can make their lives better”
“And, Dorothy. Dear Dorothy. What can I say? You and your brothers here speak for the material interests of the vast majority of the people. Working people, in this country and around the world.”
“You don’t need no Wizard with magical powers to get that working class government you want. You’ve had the power all along. You just have to realize it.”
“But, how?”
“Look down, Dorothy. See those red shoes you’re wearing. They’ll take you to that working class government you want.”
There was a long silence as Dorothy, the Lion, Scarecrow, Tin Man and even Toto pondered the Wizard’s words.
“Did I mention the shoes are red?”
“Yeah, yeah, Wiz. We got that part.”
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“Close the door. And go away. Pay no attention to the man behind the desk. I am the Great Wizard. And I command you.”
“Oh, shit,” said Dorothy. “Look. It’s the Wizard. But he isn’t a wizard at all. He’s just a little guy yelling into the phone.”
“Dang,” said the Scarecrow. “If the Wizard doesn’t have magical powers, we came all this way for nothing. Now we’ll never pass the Employee Free Choice Act, so we’ll never be able to organize.”
“Yeah,” added the Tin Man. “I was going to ask the Wizard to pass a law so I could organize Academic Staff. Without a new law, we’re screwed.”
“What about me?” whimpered the Cowardly Lion. “I was counting on the Great Wizard to get the NLRB to rule in our favor, so we can save the union at Woodman’s. If he’s a fake, we’ve got no chance at all.”
“And I came all this way to ask the Wizard to institute a government that would be responsive to the needs of working people,” sighed Dorothy. “It looks like we were all just wasting our time.”
“Oooooh. Oh, no,” said the Wizard, coming out from behind the big desk. “No, no. You didn’t waste your time. Not at all.”
“Sure, I’m just a faker. I got no magical powers. But look at you!”
“You, there, Scarecrow. You don’t need no new laws to organize unions. Why, the great industrial unions in this country were organized totally outside of the laws. They struck for recognition and they used mass picket lines and sit-down strikes to force the boss to the table. You can start organizing as soon as you realize that.”
“And, you, Tin Man. You won’t organize Academic Staff with a law. You’ll organize them by going out and talking up the union. If you have something worthwhile, they’ll join up in droves. If not, forcing them to pay dues with a law sure won’t solve your problems.”
“And, hey, Lion. Stop your sniveling, for Christ sake. You came all this way, kicking flying monkey butt and melting witches, but you still ain’t figured it out.”
“You want to save the union out at Woodman’s? Then you gotta go out and talk about the union with the workers. Get ‘em to working together to fight those speed-ups and that 2-tier health care system. Show ‘em how working together—organizing a union—can make their lives better”
“And, Dorothy. Dear Dorothy. What can I say? You and your brothers here speak for the material interests of the vast majority of the people. Working people, in this country and around the world.”
“You don’t need no Wizard with magical powers to get that working class government you want. You’ve had the power all along. You just have to realize it.”
“But, how?”
“Look down, Dorothy. See those red shoes you’re wearing. They’ll take you to that working class government you want.”
There was a long silence as Dorothy, the Lion, Scarecrow, Tin Man and even Toto pondered the Wizard’s words.
“Did I mention the shoes are red?”
“Yeah, yeah, Wiz. We got that part.”
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Thursday, December 31, 2009
Local Labor 2010
A lot of people do retrospectives this time of the year, taking a look back at the high and low points of 2009. Here at LaborLeft do it the hard way. As is our tradition, here is our retrospective on the local labor movement for NEXT year.
And, you gotta admit, 2010 was a hell of a year!
No doubt, the most significant happening was the founding of the Madison Organizing Committee in January. The MOC was singularly responsible for the new unions at the Marriott, Crowne Plaza, Cintas and Hy-Vee and the half dozen or so organizing drives currently underway around town.
It was a good idea to establish the MOC as an ad hoc committee, independent from the Fed and existing internationals. Once we were out from under all the bureaucracy, jurisdictions, legal, financial and political constraints and dues requirements, we just went out and organized.
The setback at Woodman’s turned into a plus. When word got out that Phil and his “employee owners” had successfully busted the union, the customers who had been shopping there just because it was a union shop went elsewhere. The “For Sale—Will Build to Suit” sign in the empty parking lot at Woodman’s East sent a message to the managers at Hy-Vee: This is what happens when you mess with the union. A first contract was remarkably easy.
The transformation of the Union Labor News into an organizing tool obviously helped a lot. I think we distributed over 10,000 copies of the debut bilingual issue at the May Day rally. We saw a lot of people reading (in Spanish) the lead story about labor’s fight for principled immigration reform.
And, although it may have seemed a bit patronizing, we did enjoy the salsa band at Labor Day.
The shift in how we did politics might have the most significant lasting impact, however. The decision to launch independent campaigns around progressive issues really mixed things up. We hit the streets with an army of union members and, in short order, got the signatures necessary to get referenda on the statewide ballot that would require specific progressive tax reforms and paid sick leave.
We have to admit that it was fun watching the politicians scramble. Their first response was to stonewall and just ignore our issues. But that turned out to be difficult, since taxing wealth and requiring paid sick leave were about all voters wanted to talk about. Then they developed a two-line position, strongly for and against the propositions, depending on who they were talking to. Voters (and even some of the media) were smart enough to figure that one out.
In the end, the ballot initiatives forced the politicians to take a side: Will you stand with the working class or the employing class? By early fall it was clear that organized labor would be supporting a lot fewer candidates come November. The political action money we would have poured down the “lesser evil” rat hole was spent in last minute campaign to push the ballot initiatives well over the top.
So, that’s where we are, at the end of 2010. In good position to make 2011 one a hell of a year!
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And, you gotta admit, 2010 was a hell of a year!
No doubt, the most significant happening was the founding of the Madison Organizing Committee in January. The MOC was singularly responsible for the new unions at the Marriott, Crowne Plaza, Cintas and Hy-Vee and the half dozen or so organizing drives currently underway around town.
It was a good idea to establish the MOC as an ad hoc committee, independent from the Fed and existing internationals. Once we were out from under all the bureaucracy, jurisdictions, legal, financial and political constraints and dues requirements, we just went out and organized.
The setback at Woodman’s turned into a plus. When word got out that Phil and his “employee owners” had successfully busted the union, the customers who had been shopping there just because it was a union shop went elsewhere. The “For Sale—Will Build to Suit” sign in the empty parking lot at Woodman’s East sent a message to the managers at Hy-Vee: This is what happens when you mess with the union. A first contract was remarkably easy.
The transformation of the Union Labor News into an organizing tool obviously helped a lot. I think we distributed over 10,000 copies of the debut bilingual issue at the May Day rally. We saw a lot of people reading (in Spanish) the lead story about labor’s fight for principled immigration reform.
And, although it may have seemed a bit patronizing, we did enjoy the salsa band at Labor Day.
The shift in how we did politics might have the most significant lasting impact, however. The decision to launch independent campaigns around progressive issues really mixed things up. We hit the streets with an army of union members and, in short order, got the signatures necessary to get referenda on the statewide ballot that would require specific progressive tax reforms and paid sick leave.
We have to admit that it was fun watching the politicians scramble. Their first response was to stonewall and just ignore our issues. But that turned out to be difficult, since taxing wealth and requiring paid sick leave were about all voters wanted to talk about. Then they developed a two-line position, strongly for and against the propositions, depending on who they were talking to. Voters (and even some of the media) were smart enough to figure that one out.
In the end, the ballot initiatives forced the politicians to take a side: Will you stand with the working class or the employing class? By early fall it was clear that organized labor would be supporting a lot fewer candidates come November. The political action money we would have poured down the “lesser evil” rat hole was spent in last minute campaign to push the ballot initiatives well over the top.
So, that’s where we are, at the end of 2010. In good position to make 2011 one a hell of a year!
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Friday, December 11, 2009
Alien Labor News
I was on my way to visit some friends in a nearby parallel universe the other day and dropped in to Copp’s to pick up some taco chips. Copp’s is unionized over there, but that’s a story for another time.
As I walked in the door, there, between the Isthmus and Simpson Street News, was a bin loaded with the latest copy of the Union Labor News. Curious, I went down to the Labor Temple Bar (which is smokeless, btw, and has a fair assortments of micro brews on tap) to see what gives.
The story I got is that, over there, the Union Labor News had fallen on hard times awhile back. Oh, it was well written and nicely laid out, and it even ran stuff by a local left-wing blogger from time to time, so there were no grounds to criticize. But costs were up and subscription revenues were way down.
One barfly speculated that the ULN had exercised a little too much independence in recent years and had pissed off some Democratic Party stalwarts, who saw to it that their locals cancelled their subs. But I wasn’t around long enough to check out that story.
Whatever the cause of the financial crisis, the cure was to convert the ULN form a subscription-based newspaper to a free monthly. This actually wasn’t a very radical idea. A number of mass circulation daily newspapers around the county, including the Boston Globe and The Capital Times, had switched to a free, mass distribution format.
The ULN had an advantage. As a union paper, it was able to garner grants from a couple of huge rich internationals. And, with a new free circulation of over 100,000 a month, ad revenues were up. Union members volunteered to do the distribution to their local supermarkets, libraries, government buildings and at public events where working people gathered. There was even talk of going weekly.
And, as part of the switch, ULN changed its approach. In its previous incarnation, it was primarily a union newspaper, speaking to unionized workers. The new idea was that it would become a voice for the working class and an organizing tool. Each issue had a general working class interest article on Page 1, above the fold. Inside it still covered the local labor movement. And, each issue included a pitch on how people could start organizing a union where they worked—in English, Spanish and a Rigel-5 dialect.
Folks down at the Labor Temple Bar credited the change with a modest upsurge in union organizing in the area.
Well, the dilithium crystals were getting low so I had to make it for home. But, while there are always risks to employing ideas that worked in a parallel universe, it does kinda make you think.
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As I walked in the door, there, between the Isthmus and Simpson Street News, was a bin loaded with the latest copy of the Union Labor News. Curious, I went down to the Labor Temple Bar (which is smokeless, btw, and has a fair assortments of micro brews on tap) to see what gives.
The story I got is that, over there, the Union Labor News had fallen on hard times awhile back. Oh, it was well written and nicely laid out, and it even ran stuff by a local left-wing blogger from time to time, so there were no grounds to criticize. But costs were up and subscription revenues were way down.
One barfly speculated that the ULN had exercised a little too much independence in recent years and had pissed off some Democratic Party stalwarts, who saw to it that their locals cancelled their subs. But I wasn’t around long enough to check out that story.
Whatever the cause of the financial crisis, the cure was to convert the ULN form a subscription-based newspaper to a free monthly. This actually wasn’t a very radical idea. A number of mass circulation daily newspapers around the county, including the Boston Globe and The Capital Times, had switched to a free, mass distribution format.
The ULN had an advantage. As a union paper, it was able to garner grants from a couple of huge rich internationals. And, with a new free circulation of over 100,000 a month, ad revenues were up. Union members volunteered to do the distribution to their local supermarkets, libraries, government buildings and at public events where working people gathered. There was even talk of going weekly.
And, as part of the switch, ULN changed its approach. In its previous incarnation, it was primarily a union newspaper, speaking to unionized workers. The new idea was that it would become a voice for the working class and an organizing tool. Each issue had a general working class interest article on Page 1, above the fold. Inside it still covered the local labor movement. And, each issue included a pitch on how people could start organizing a union where they worked—in English, Spanish and a Rigel-5 dialect.
Folks down at the Labor Temple Bar credited the change with a modest upsurge in union organizing in the area.
Well, the dilithium crystals were getting low so I had to make it for home. But, while there are always risks to employing ideas that worked in a parallel universe, it does kinda make you think.
Ok, a lot of people read this thing. I know because you're coming up to me all the time to tell me what you think about the latest posting. But not many of you are leaving a comment. I know you folks and you aren't short of opinions. And, it isn't hard to do.
1) Click on "Comments" at the bottom of the message.
2) Type your comment in the box.
3) Then hit "Anonymous" button. Don't ask why. It just works better that way. If you want to include your name, type it in the comment box.
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Got something to say? Sure you do.
Tuesday, November 17, 2009
Clarence's Joke
Here’s a joke that Clarence Kailin told at a potluck a few years ago. A re-telling seems appropriate. It’s about the day Karl Marx died.
Old Karl arrived up in Heaven, at the Pearly Gates. St. Peter recognized him right away, but decided to have a little fun anyway.
“Name?” said St. Peter.
“Karl Marx. That’s Marx with an ‘x’ and Karl with a ‘k.”
With great flourish, St. Peter opened the Golden Book to the M’s and started down the list. After a moment he frowned over his glasses. “I’m sorry, Mr. Marx. We obviously have nothing for you here.”
With that, Karl picked up his shabby little suitcase, turned and headed down the Golden Stair.
A week passed. St. Peter is on the phone, calling down to Hell. “Lucifer. Pete here. Hey, we didn’t get a shipment from you guys this week. What’s going on? You’re usually very prompt.”
“It’s that Karl Marx guy you sent us,” says the Devil. “No sooner did he arrived, than he started organizing unions. Right now the Sulfur Workers are threatening a general strike unless they get air conditioning. I tell ya, Pete. There might not be anymore shipments from down here unless we get rid of this guy.”
“Ok, ok,” says St. Peter with a sigh. “Send him back.”
Next morning, there’s old Karl, again standing before the Pearly Gates. This time no questions asked. The gates swing open and he floats inside.
A week passes. This time it’s the Devil making a call up to Heaven. “Lucifer, here. Say, did our last shipment arrive?”
“Yes,” says the voice on the Heaven end of the line. “Quite all right.”
“Well,” says the Devil. “We haven’t been paid yet. You guys are always so prompt.”
“Yes,” says the voice on the Heaven end of the line. “There have been a few changes up here. First, we’ve reorganized. We’re now a workers’ collective.”
“And, we voted to cancel the foreign debt. So, you won’t be getting paid for that last shipment.”
“What?” says the Devil.
“Oh, and by the way, we’ve expropriated your train. And your crew’s defected.”
“That’s ridiculous!” says the Devil. “Let me talk to St. Peter.”
“I’m sorry, but Citizen Peter no longer works in this capacity.”
“That’s outrageous!” says the Devil. “I demand to talk to God!”
After a short pause on the Heaven end of the phone the voice says, “…Who?”
We may have disagreements about things like souls and spirits and what happens when you die. But, we can agree on one thing. Wherever Clarence is tonight, you can be sure he’s organizing.
Old Karl arrived up in Heaven, at the Pearly Gates. St. Peter recognized him right away, but decided to have a little fun anyway.
“Name?” said St. Peter.
“Karl Marx. That’s Marx with an ‘x’ and Karl with a ‘k.”
With great flourish, St. Peter opened the Golden Book to the M’s and started down the list. After a moment he frowned over his glasses. “I’m sorry, Mr. Marx. We obviously have nothing for you here.”
With that, Karl picked up his shabby little suitcase, turned and headed down the Golden Stair.
A week passed. St. Peter is on the phone, calling down to Hell. “Lucifer. Pete here. Hey, we didn’t get a shipment from you guys this week. What’s going on? You’re usually very prompt.”
“It’s that Karl Marx guy you sent us,” says the Devil. “No sooner did he arrived, than he started organizing unions. Right now the Sulfur Workers are threatening a general strike unless they get air conditioning. I tell ya, Pete. There might not be anymore shipments from down here unless we get rid of this guy.”
“Ok, ok,” says St. Peter with a sigh. “Send him back.”
Next morning, there’s old Karl, again standing before the Pearly Gates. This time no questions asked. The gates swing open and he floats inside.
A week passes. This time it’s the Devil making a call up to Heaven. “Lucifer, here. Say, did our last shipment arrive?”
“Yes,” says the voice on the Heaven end of the line. “Quite all right.”
“Well,” says the Devil. “We haven’t been paid yet. You guys are always so prompt.”
“Yes,” says the voice on the Heaven end of the line. “There have been a few changes up here. First, we’ve reorganized. We’re now a workers’ collective.”
“And, we voted to cancel the foreign debt. So, you won’t be getting paid for that last shipment.”
“What?” says the Devil.
“Oh, and by the way, we’ve expropriated your train. And your crew’s defected.”
“That’s ridiculous!” says the Devil. “Let me talk to St. Peter.”
“I’m sorry, but Citizen Peter no longer works in this capacity.”
“That’s outrageous!” says the Devil. “I demand to talk to God!”
After a short pause on the Heaven end of the phone the voice says, “…Who?”
We may have disagreements about things like souls and spirits and what happens when you die. But, we can agree on one thing. Wherever Clarence is tonight, you can be sure he’s organizing.
Monday, September 14, 2009
UW Unions Sully Themselves
The American Federation of Teachers and AFSCME Council 24 have been doing their best to sully the good name of unions on the UW-Madison campus.
First a little background. There are about 4,000 UW-Madison employees who currently are categorized as “Academic Staff.” AFT has a union, Local 223 (a.k.a. UFAS), dedicated to organizing that group. They’ve been at it since 1930, without much luck. Their running excuse has been that, since Academic Staff jobs weren’t covered by state employment law, the UW would have no legal obligation to negotiate a contract with them. So, why would people join a union that didn’t have “bargaining rights”?
All that changed this past spring when the Legislature passed a budget that included extending bargaining rights to Academic Staff. AFT members were instructed to celebrate and to contact Governor Doyle to urge him to sign the bill, even though that same budget slashed agencies, froze wages for state employees and gave those who live off of wealth a pass. But, at least Academic Staff could vote in a union with bargaining rights. Finally, Local 223 could organize.
Not so fast. Enter AFT and AFSCME.
As it turns out, a lot of those Academic Staff jobs properly should have been classified under one of the bargaining units that have long been covered by state labor law. If you’re programming a payroll system, it shouldn’t make a difference if you’re doing it for DOA or a campus. Thus a lot of the UW –Madison Academic Staff jobs should have been part of the Fiscal and Staff Services unit (AFT Local 4848’s jurisdiction) or the Administrative Support Unit (AFSCME Local 2412’s bailiwick). A few more might belong to AFSCME’s Technical Unit and some to AFT’s Science Professionals.
But, the university just chose to call these workers “Academic Staff” for all those years rather than unionized classified state employees because…well, because they could get away with it.
Now, there’s a mechanism for fixing the problem when state employees are incorrectly put into the wrong bargaining unit. A union can file for a “unit clarification” with the Wisconsin Employment Relations Commission. If the WERC agrees that the jobs should be moved into a different bargaining unit, it’s done.
AFT and Council 24 leadership have known about this—that a lot of Academic Staff jobs were in the union’s jurisdiction and they could get them in the union through the unit clarification process—for years. It was back in 1992, for example, that Marty Beil went to the WERC to rip off a hundred Financial Specialists from AFT 4848’s jurisdiction. So, nobody can claim naiveté here. But none of the unions did anything about raiding the Academic Staff group…until now.
Right after the Legislature passed the law extending bargaining rights to Academic Staff, the powers-that-be in AFT and AFSCME Council 24 decided to try to rip off a big chunk of the Academic Staff jobs and get them moved into their locals through the unit clarification process. “Why?” you might ask. “Why, at all?!” And, especially, “Why NOW?!!” Just at the moment when the Academic Staff unit got bargaining rights on its own?
Well, it makes no sense from a union organizing perspective. But it all makes perfect sense within a Business Union Model. Since the various AFT and AFSCME locals involved have either “maintenance of membership” or “fair share” agreements in place, most of these newly-drafted Academic Staffers would end up automatically paying dues to the union. And, within the Business Union Model, being “organized” is literally defined as “paying dues.”
And, of course, when you go the unit clarification route, there’s no need for a messy union certification election and a campaign to convince people they should want to be in a union. Just send in the lawyers and get ‘er done.
That all still begs the question: “Why now?” Obviously, AFT and AFSCME could have run their unit clarifications years ago. Are we to believe that they suddenly and at the same time realized that thousands of Academic Staff jobs should be in their jurisdiction and decided to take action? After 80 years? And just at the very moment that Local 223 got the legal right to bargain?
The cynic might think that these unions decided to make their move now because they were worried that Local 223 might actually use their new legal status to organize Academic Staff into a new union. Maybe they thought it was “now or never.” Maybe it’s a little like the predatory instinct to pounce on fleeing prey.
Pretty much anyone who knows anything about organizing unions could have anticipated that the unit clarification maneuver would not sit well with a lot of the potential draftees. As predicted (by us, anyway), there has been a more or less organized rebellion among UW-Madison Academic Staff.
Some Academic Staff employees, including some long-time union activists and members of Local 223, just want a chance to organize their co-workers and hold an election. They want a union, but they want a union that’s democratic and demonstratively supported by its members. And, for various reasons, they don’t relish the prospects of being absorbed into existing locals.
Unfortunately, the union bureaucracies’ ham handedness has given fuel to the truly anti-union elements on campus.
All of which is too bad. Certainly Academic Staff employees would be better off with a union. Even the somewhat anemic AFT and AFSCME locals where they might end up have better wages and benefits than non-union state employees. And, certainly, any union will have better job security than non-reps.
But, just imagine what a new union of Academic Staff employees, with a smart and aggressive leadership and the support of the members, could accomplish.
Got a comment? Sure you do! Just click on "comments" below and share your thoughts with others in the Madison-area labor movement.
First a little background. There are about 4,000 UW-Madison employees who currently are categorized as “Academic Staff.” AFT has a union, Local 223 (a.k.a. UFAS), dedicated to organizing that group. They’ve been at it since 1930, without much luck. Their running excuse has been that, since Academic Staff jobs weren’t covered by state employment law, the UW would have no legal obligation to negotiate a contract with them. So, why would people join a union that didn’t have “bargaining rights”?
All that changed this past spring when the Legislature passed a budget that included extending bargaining rights to Academic Staff. AFT members were instructed to celebrate and to contact Governor Doyle to urge him to sign the bill, even though that same budget slashed agencies, froze wages for state employees and gave those who live off of wealth a pass. But, at least Academic Staff could vote in a union with bargaining rights. Finally, Local 223 could organize.
Not so fast. Enter AFT and AFSCME.
As it turns out, a lot of those Academic Staff jobs properly should have been classified under one of the bargaining units that have long been covered by state labor law. If you’re programming a payroll system, it shouldn’t make a difference if you’re doing it for DOA or a campus. Thus a lot of the UW –Madison Academic Staff jobs should have been part of the Fiscal and Staff Services unit (AFT Local 4848’s jurisdiction) or the Administrative Support Unit (AFSCME Local 2412’s bailiwick). A few more might belong to AFSCME’s Technical Unit and some to AFT’s Science Professionals.
But, the university just chose to call these workers “Academic Staff” for all those years rather than unionized classified state employees because…well, because they could get away with it.
Now, there’s a mechanism for fixing the problem when state employees are incorrectly put into the wrong bargaining unit. A union can file for a “unit clarification” with the Wisconsin Employment Relations Commission. If the WERC agrees that the jobs should be moved into a different bargaining unit, it’s done.
AFT and Council 24 leadership have known about this—that a lot of Academic Staff jobs were in the union’s jurisdiction and they could get them in the union through the unit clarification process—for years. It was back in 1992, for example, that Marty Beil went to the WERC to rip off a hundred Financial Specialists from AFT 4848’s jurisdiction. So, nobody can claim naiveté here. But none of the unions did anything about raiding the Academic Staff group…until now.
Right after the Legislature passed the law extending bargaining rights to Academic Staff, the powers-that-be in AFT and AFSCME Council 24 decided to try to rip off a big chunk of the Academic Staff jobs and get them moved into their locals through the unit clarification process. “Why?” you might ask. “Why, at all?!” And, especially, “Why NOW?!!” Just at the moment when the Academic Staff unit got bargaining rights on its own?
Well, it makes no sense from a union organizing perspective. But it all makes perfect sense within a Business Union Model. Since the various AFT and AFSCME locals involved have either “maintenance of membership” or “fair share” agreements in place, most of these newly-drafted Academic Staffers would end up automatically paying dues to the union. And, within the Business Union Model, being “organized” is literally defined as “paying dues.”
And, of course, when you go the unit clarification route, there’s no need for a messy union certification election and a campaign to convince people they should want to be in a union. Just send in the lawyers and get ‘er done.
That all still begs the question: “Why now?” Obviously, AFT and AFSCME could have run their unit clarifications years ago. Are we to believe that they suddenly and at the same time realized that thousands of Academic Staff jobs should be in their jurisdiction and decided to take action? After 80 years? And just at the very moment that Local 223 got the legal right to bargain?
The cynic might think that these unions decided to make their move now because they were worried that Local 223 might actually use their new legal status to organize Academic Staff into a new union. Maybe they thought it was “now or never.” Maybe it’s a little like the predatory instinct to pounce on fleeing prey.
Pretty much anyone who knows anything about organizing unions could have anticipated that the unit clarification maneuver would not sit well with a lot of the potential draftees. As predicted (by us, anyway), there has been a more or less organized rebellion among UW-Madison Academic Staff.
Some Academic Staff employees, including some long-time union activists and members of Local 223, just want a chance to organize their co-workers and hold an election. They want a union, but they want a union that’s democratic and demonstratively supported by its members. And, for various reasons, they don’t relish the prospects of being absorbed into existing locals.
Unfortunately, the union bureaucracies’ ham handedness has given fuel to the truly anti-union elements on campus.
All of which is too bad. Certainly Academic Staff employees would be better off with a union. Even the somewhat anemic AFT and AFSCME locals where they might end up have better wages and benefits than non-union state employees. And, certainly, any union will have better job security than non-reps.
But, just imagine what a new union of Academic Staff employees, with a smart and aggressive leadership and the support of the members, could accomplish.
Got a comment? Sure you do! Just click on "comments" below and share your thoughts with others in the Madison-area labor movement.
Wednesday, August 5, 2009
State Employees for Doyle
In recent weeks, leaders of several state employee unions have made a substantial financial commitment to re-elect Jim Doyle. This is ironic (but not coincidental) in light of Doyle’s demand that their members take a substantial pay cut over the next two years.
Here’s how it will work. In May Doyle announced that all state employees would have to agree to take 8 un-paid furlough days a year, for the next two years, which comes down to a 3 % pay cut. His line was that the furloughs will contribute $224 million toward resolving the state’s $6.5 billion deficit. If the unions didn’t agree, there would be consequences.
State employees immediately spotted this as bullshit. First, over half of state employees and over 70 % of University employees are paid from federal funds or grants, or through their own work in revenue-generating programs. Cutting the hours of these people won’t save the state a dime. In fact, the result will be a modest decrease in state tax revenues as these folks earn less.
For other state employees--those working in prisons, the DD Centers, mental health and medical facilities and the like--furloughs will actually increase labor costs. These institutions have legally-mandated minimum staffing levels and staffing has been bare bones for years. Even before furloughs, when someone called in sick another employee was required to pull a double shift—at time and a half pay! The net effect of furloughs for these workers is that they’ll be putting in roughly the same number of hours in a year, but an additional 8 days of that will be at time and a half.
Obviously, this occurred to Doyle and his people too. But his was a political, not a budgetary, calculation. Other Governors were furloughing state employees so he, by god, was going to do it too. It may not make economic sense, but beating up on state employees always plays well up in the Fox Valley.
Now, one might think that the unions would get together and make a stink. If nothing else, they could launch a campaign to expose Doyle’s furlough fraud. Tell the voting taxpayers across the state that they are being manipulated by a cynical politician.
But Doyle’s press release wasn’t even cold when the leaders of the two major state employee union federations started selling the plan to members. Furloughs were necessary, they said, in light of the unprecedented state deficit. And about all the unions could do is insure they were administered as fairly and painlessly as possible.
One of our more paranoid members suggested that the rapidity and uniformity of union leaders’ response to Doyle’s announcement suggested that they had advanced notice and may even have coordinated what they were going to say. Such are the workings of the fevered mind.).
Maybe a union campaign to expose the fraud wouldn’t have stopped the furloughs. But it would have made Doyle pay a political price. And, if nothing else, it would have made him and those who follow think twice before using unionized state employees like a piñata.
Outsiders may have trouble understanding why the union tops took a dive for Doyle on this one. But if you’ve been around awhile you understand that the first task of most union leaders is to elect Democrats. Doyle was our guy in the last election and, pretty much regardless of what he does, will be in the next. So it wouldn’t do to rile up a bunch of state employees and the voting public over something like a little political fraud. Better to help him stick it to the membership. It’s just a matter of priorities.
And for those unionized state employees who will be taking the 3% hit (and it won’t be everybody), you may take comfort in the fact that you are making a material contribution to Doyle’s political career.
Here’s how it will work. In May Doyle announced that all state employees would have to agree to take 8 un-paid furlough days a year, for the next two years, which comes down to a 3 % pay cut. His line was that the furloughs will contribute $224 million toward resolving the state’s $6.5 billion deficit. If the unions didn’t agree, there would be consequences.
State employees immediately spotted this as bullshit. First, over half of state employees and over 70 % of University employees are paid from federal funds or grants, or through their own work in revenue-generating programs. Cutting the hours of these people won’t save the state a dime. In fact, the result will be a modest decrease in state tax revenues as these folks earn less.
For other state employees--those working in prisons, the DD Centers, mental health and medical facilities and the like--furloughs will actually increase labor costs. These institutions have legally-mandated minimum staffing levels and staffing has been bare bones for years. Even before furloughs, when someone called in sick another employee was required to pull a double shift—at time and a half pay! The net effect of furloughs for these workers is that they’ll be putting in roughly the same number of hours in a year, but an additional 8 days of that will be at time and a half.
Obviously, this occurred to Doyle and his people too. But his was a political, not a budgetary, calculation. Other Governors were furloughing state employees so he, by god, was going to do it too. It may not make economic sense, but beating up on state employees always plays well up in the Fox Valley.
Now, one might think that the unions would get together and make a stink. If nothing else, they could launch a campaign to expose Doyle’s furlough fraud. Tell the voting taxpayers across the state that they are being manipulated by a cynical politician.
But Doyle’s press release wasn’t even cold when the leaders of the two major state employee union federations started selling the plan to members. Furloughs were necessary, they said, in light of the unprecedented state deficit. And about all the unions could do is insure they were administered as fairly and painlessly as possible.
One of our more paranoid members suggested that the rapidity and uniformity of union leaders’ response to Doyle’s announcement suggested that they had advanced notice and may even have coordinated what they were going to say. Such are the workings of the fevered mind.).
Maybe a union campaign to expose the fraud wouldn’t have stopped the furloughs. But it would have made Doyle pay a political price. And, if nothing else, it would have made him and those who follow think twice before using unionized state employees like a piñata.
Outsiders may have trouble understanding why the union tops took a dive for Doyle on this one. But if you’ve been around awhile you understand that the first task of most union leaders is to elect Democrats. Doyle was our guy in the last election and, pretty much regardless of what he does, will be in the next. So it wouldn’t do to rile up a bunch of state employees and the voting public over something like a little political fraud. Better to help him stick it to the membership. It’s just a matter of priorities.
And for those unionized state employees who will be taking the 3% hit (and it won’t be everybody), you may take comfort in the fact that you are making a material contribution to Doyle’s political career.
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