Surviving Capitalism (Not) : State by State, Unions Matter

We’ve lived so long under the spell of hierarchy—from god-kings to feudal lords to party bosses—that only recently have we awakened to see not only that “regular” citizens have the capacity for self-governance, but that without their engagement our huge global crises cannot be addressed. The changes needed for human society simply to survive, let alone thrive, are so profound that the only way we will move toward them is if we ourselves, regular citizens, feel meaningful ownership of solutions through direct engagement. Our problems are too big, interrelated, and pervasive to yield to directives from on high.
—Frances Moore Lappé, excerpt from Time for Progressives to Grow Up

Monday, March 1, 2010

State by State, Unions Matter

from Truthout. The author examines a study from the Center for Economic and Policy Research.

...the findings show clearly that "unions substantially improved the pay and benefits of workers in every state."

Beyond that, unionized workers have a greater say, not only about their working conditions, but also in political affairs and community activities, given organized labor's prominence in such matters.

A large part of the reason many workers nevertheless remain outside of unions is the notoriously lax enforcement of the laws that were designed to guarantee working Americans the unfettered right to unionization.