UAW Strikes Chrysler

Thousands of Chrysler LLC autoworkers walked off the job Wednesday after the automaker and the United Auto Workers union failed to reach a tentative contract agreement before a union-imposed deadline.

It is the first UAW strike against Chrysler since 1997, when one plant was shut down for a month, and the first strike against Chrysler during contract talks since 1985. Negotiators stopped talking after the strike began, according to a person briefed on the talks who requested anonymity because the talks are private.

Bargaining between the UAW and the newly private automaker has been slowed by several major issues. The UAW's tentative contract with General Motors Corp. included job security pledges that it was likely to seek from Chrysler, while Chrysler wanted the same health care concessions that the union granted to GM and Ford Motor Co. in 2005. Also at issue was how much Chrysler would pay into a company-funded, UAW-run trust that would take on its roughly $18 billion in retiree health care debt. GM formed that trust as part of its tentative contract.

Our auto industry which was once the envy of the world is now in a very diminished position. One of the main reasons is the ever growing costs of health care. The auto industry supports universal health care because they realize that without it they will continue to operate at a serious disadvantage to foreign auto companies.

The middle class of America can not survive without both strong labor laws and universal health care. As the cost of health care continues to grow workers in all industries are paying an ever greater portion of the health care costs. In many industries the growth in health care costs for the employee has eclipsed the annual raise, which by any standard would mean a decrease in annual take home pay. How can the middle class survive under those circumstances?

Senate Moving Forward On Employee Free Choice Act

The Senate is preparing to take up the Employee Free Choice Act (EFCA) this week. EFCA creates an easier path for workers to receive union representation. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid is speaking this afternoon at an Employee Free Choice Rally in support of legislation.

Here is an excerpt from the Senator's remarks as prepared:

[T]oday when I introduce the Employee Free Choice Act, get ready for a fight. Every single Senator ought to support this bill. It ought to be a no-brainer. This bill renews the commitment made to our parents and grandparents 70 years ago, when President Roosevelt delivered them a New Deal.
Last year, the top three hedge funds earned $4.4 billion in profits, and the ex-CEO of Exxon got a $400 million golden parachute. Today, hourly wages are down while the number of uninsured is up. Today, household income is down, while the average CEO makes 411 times more than the average worker. Today – for far too many Americans – that New Deal has become a raw deal. It’s time to give working families a square deal. A square deal that honors workers and their families by giving them a real chance for a better life.

You know what the Employee Free Choice Act will mean: higher wages. Better health insurance. Safer working conditions. And by the way, we all know that employees who receive a fair standard of living are more productive. This is a win-win for employers and employees alike.

Yesterday Senator Edward M. Kennedy, Chairman of the Health Education, Labor & Penisions (HELP) Comittee, released the following statement in support of the EFCA:

Now that the House has passed the Employee Free Choice Act with bipartisan support, I’m pleased that the Senate is moving forward on this important piece of legislation. We’ve finally raised the minimum wage but we still have a long way to go to restore the economic security that has been lost during the Bush years. Working people aren't getting their fair share of our economic growth. Their hard work is producing skyrocketing corporate profits – not higher paychecks, better benefits, or better lives for their families. The best way to see that employees get their fair share is to give them a stronger voice.

The HELP Committee also provided a fact sheet on how the Act will help restore middle class security. The fact sheet included the following points on how the freedom to choose a union is vital to restoring the American Dream, especially for the most vulnerable Americans:

Unions help American workers get their fair share – union wages are almost 30% higher than non-union wages. Unions are also a cure for rising inequality because they raise wages more for low- and middle-wage workers than for higher-wage workers.

Union cashiers earn 46% more than non-union cashiers.
Union food preparation workers earn nearly 50% more than non-union workers.
Union maids and housekeepers earn 31% more than their non-union counterparts.
The freedom to join a union is a women’s issue and a civil rights issue. Union women earn 31 percent more than women workers who don’t have a union. African American union members earn 36 percent more, and Latino workers earn 46 percent more.
Union workers are almost twice as likely to have employer-sponsored health benefits and a pension at work. They are more than four times more likely to have a secure, defined-benefit pension plan than non-union workers.
Protecting the freedom to choose a union benefits all Americans, whether or not they have a union at work. In industries and occupations where many workplaces are unionized, non-union employers will frequently meet union standards or otherwise improve compensation. A high school graduate in a non-union workplace whose industry is 25 percent unionized gets paid 5 percent more than similar workers in less unionized industries.

The Republicans will filibuster this legislation unless the American people stand up and demand its passage. I was one of those that felt that Unions were no longer needed. I was very wrong. You only need to look at the statistics listed above to realize that companies left alone will do what is best for the bottom line. They will do this at the expense of its workers.

Passing The Employee Free Choice Act

The Employee Free Choice Act (EFCA) is proposed United States legislation which aims to "amend the National Labor Relations Act to establish an efficient system to enable employees to form, join, or assist labor organizations, to provide for mandatory injunctions for unfair labor practices during organizing efforts, and for other purposes." If it becomes law, the Act would require the U.S. National Labor Relations Board to certify a union as the exclusive representative of employees without an election where "a majority of the employees in a unit appropriate for bargaining has signed valid authorizations." In addition, the Act would require parties who cannot agree upon the terms of a first collective bargaining contract within 120 days to submit the issues to an arbitration board, which would be empowered to settle the dispute. Finally, the Act would provide for liquidated damages of two times back pay for certain unfair labor practices.

This bill will be voted on by the Senate in the next few days. It is imperative that this passes. The middle and working classes need this legislation to ensure decent wages at a time when real wages are declining. The President will most certainly veto this bill because it is not supported by big business.

The decline in labor unions since the early 1980's and the subsequent decline of the middle class can not be ignored. As more and more worker protections are dissolved and companies unfriendly to labor such as Wal-Mart thrive, the environment for labor will only decline further. This law would put labor back on an equal footing and provide a real chance at regaining the middle class which is the backbone of the United States.

A Presidential Veto should show all middle and working class Americans that the Republican party is the party of big business and will stop at nothing to ensure that wages stay depressed.

Passage of this Act and an overide of the Presidential Veto would help blunt the passage of any guest worker program that will surely depress wages even further.

Call your Senator and express your support for this bill.