HISTORY 144G Lecture Notes - Lecture 8: Union Busting, Employee Free Choice Act
Guest Speaker: Keith (president of UCAFT)
•
He represents librarians + "non-Senate faculty" (aka lecturers,
adjuncts, non-tenure track faculty)
•
Middle-class American family
○
Taught to be very individual but experiences have proved
otherwise
•
Lecturers, if have under less than 6 years, no job security
○
But he has "continuing appointment"—one years' pay + one
years' notice
§
So he has a little bit of job security
•
Union contract gave one years' notice
•
He thinks there's only collective solutions
○
Teacher's working conditions are students' learning conditions
•
Keith's father hates unions
•
Teachers union problems—>makes harder to organize
○
People see themselves more as middle class instead of
working class
§
They have this certain prestige—what they think
§
Tries to make them see that they should take action
§
Many don't understand solidarity
§
Experiences people have had come into conflict w/
what's in their hands
•
If you benefit from contract, anyone not part of your own union also
gets their benefits the union negotiate—>this case says that
everyone must pay their fair share
○
Janus case trying to take this away
§
Arguing that labor going to lose this case—he's arguing
for free-speech
○
Now w/ current one makes it easier to have dependable
revenue stream
§Money can help them hire organizers, lawyers, etc.
•He has hard organizing situation too—they're not all out on like a
shop floor and doesn't all share same lunch room or something
•Janus vs. AFSCME (government workers union)
○Part of series of cases where right-wing think tanks trying to
get a bunch of different employees not happy w/ conditions
○"fairshare fee"
§Bc he doesn't want to be part of this, he'd only pay less
that only go ot administration fees
•If you eliminate "fairshare fee," people get all the rights bargained
for w/o having to pay anything—>free rider syndrome
○In "right to work states" this happens a lot (for only private
sector)
§Keeps union density down a lot
§Est. under state law w/ Taft-Hartly Act
○Arguments that this would make unions smaller + more activist
in supporting taking this away
•"fair share fees" usually depends on the job
○It's often capped @ certain amounts
•So then the fees would no longer be mandatory
•Taft-Hartly: not required to join union
○You have rights under contract but you don't get vote
○But you still have to pay
•There are some unions that abuse this system though
○They'll collect fees + workers never even know that they're not
getting the rights that they wanted
•Declining worker bargaining power—>stagnating wages
○But wealth accuulation has increased
Survival + Debt: Real Estate Speculation
•Growth of credit card debt + debt associated w/ mortgages
Financial Crisis: Dishonesty + Risk Taking, Deregulation + Housing
Bubble 2007-8
•Investors on stock market tricked + lenders got greedy
•Many banks threatened for possible liquidation
•There was panic—>credit market contracted—>less money lent to
businesses to hire people—>more unemployment
•So people blamed Republican party—>charismatic leader w/ fairly
empty message of hope elected
Republic Windows and Doors
•Planning on liquidating assets w/o paying their workers
○Workers did a sit in—>got pretty good media
•There was this sense that opened up talk of possibilities
•Maybe this is a time to reimagine political economy
Labor Unions Lobby Congress for Employee Free Choice Act (EFCA)
•Increased penalties for union busting
•Eased way for secretive elections
•We see Democrat power within Democratic power declined
•Failed
•Something that was key signs that @ height of Democratic power,
labor can't get its pants passed
Tea Party, 2009-2010
•Of different organizations
•Anti-tax + anti-big government
•Saying government should reduce taxes + spending to try to
improve conditions in private sector instead of public
Day 8: Liberalism w/o Labor Unions: US labor
Unions + the Democratic Party since the Cold
War
Sunday, July 1, 2018
7:24 PM
Document Summary
Day 8: liberalism w/o labor unions: us labor. Unions + the democratic party since the cold. Guest speaker: keith (president of ucaft: he represents librarians + "non-senate faculty" (aka lecturers, adjuncts, non-tenure track faculty, middle-class american family. Taught to be very individual but experiences have proved otherwise: lecturers, if have under less than 6 years, no job security. But he has "continuing appointment" one years" pay + one years" notice. So he has a little bit of job security: union contract gave one years" notice, he thinks there"s only collective solutions. Teacher"s working conditions are students" learning conditions: keith"s father hates unions, teachers union problems >makes harder to organize. People see themselves more as middle class instead of working class. They have this certain prestige what they think. Tries to make them see that they should take action. Janus case trying to take this away. Arguing that labor going to lose this case he"s arguing for free-speech.
