Union Membership Grows in California;
Organized Labor Adds Half Million to Rolls

Despite overall economic uncertainty and generally anti-union, anti-working people attitudes emanating from Washington, D.C., the strength and numbers of organized labor in California continue to buck the national trend and show a healthy increase.

Hopefully, as it has done so often and for so many reasons, California could be a national trend setter, as increasing numbers of working men and women realize that, truly, “In Union There is Strength.”

According to a lengthy report issued by the University of California’s Institute for Labor and Employment, and detailed in the Los Angeles Times, organized labor in California has added some 500,000 new members since 1997. This is very encouraging news. Equally positive is the fact that in 2002, some 18% of California wage and salary workers were union members—up from 16% in 1997. This is in contrast to the national trend in union membership, which declined from 16% to 13% during the same five years.

While membership numbers and the percentage of the workforce in unions are down from one of organized labor’s “glory periods,” in the 1950s—when more than a third of both state and national working people belonged to unions—there are optimistic signs in California’s “up-tick.”

More and more working men and women are realizing that a strong, active union is their only shield against employers who would, in the name of profit, strip away not only hard-won gains, but even basic, fair wage and benefit levels, if they could. Corporate “bottom-line” mentality, bludgeoned against workers throughout California and across the country, threatens the strong working middle class that the union movement has built up over the past half century.

Simply put, unions are working families’ line of defense against corporate greed. As the California State Federation of Labor recently noted:

• Union members earn 26% more than their non-union counterparts.
• More than 75% of union workers have health benefits; less than half of non-union workers have health coverage.
• Nearly 70% of union workers have a pension; only 14% of non-union workers have one.
• The 10 states in which unions have the most influence enjoy higher earnings; better health coverage; less crime; more civic participation; less poverty, and better schools than the 10 states in which union membership is lowest.
• It is no coincidence that more and more American working people want the benefits and strength of union membership; in fact, more than 42 million non-union working men and women say they would join a union if they could.

In sum, what can be called the “union premium” in California (the amount of higher pay and benefits earned by union members over non-union workers in similar jobs) averages out to a very significant—and positive—16%!

The Corporate Anti-Union Effort

The trend towards increased union membership in California (and growing awareness of the benefits of union membership across the country) is fueled by two things: 1) the shaky economy that still threatens the security of tens of millions of working families, and 2) unchecked corporate greed, anti-union efforts and slavish adherence to “bottom line” mentality and policies.

The first factor, the uncertain economy, continues to dog this country following the strong economic prosperity of the 1990s. While allowances must be made for 9/11 and its aftermath, and our changed world, in which the threat of terrorism demands significant expenditures, the fact remains that the current Presidential administration tilts heavily towards corporate America, towards the notion that big business can solve all our problems and kick-start the economy if only workers would “get with the program.”

The problem is, that “getting with the program” usually means more employee give-backs, lower wages and weaker benefit packages, and repeated attempts to gut health and pension plans. The corporate “bottom line” is being boosted on the backs of working men and women.

The second factor, the corporate anti-union “crusade,” is exposed by the following statistics, which detail the harassment and deterrents thrown up by management to discourage union organizing and membership. Not only are these tactics wrong, they are very often simply illegal.

• 25% of employers illegally fire at least one worker for union activity during legitimate organizing campaigns.
• 75% of employers hire “union-busters” to fight union organizing and harass and threaten workers who want union protection.
• 78% of employers force employees to attend “briefings” with anti-union supervisors.
• 52% of employers threaten to call the Immigration and Naturalization Service during legitimate organizing campaigns aimed at undocumented workers.
• 51% of companies threaten to close a plant if a union wins an election; however, less than 1% of them ever follow through on that threat!

California Unions Increase Rolls and Influence

As of 2002, union membership rates were higher in California than the national average in all industrial fields except manufacturing. It is significant to note that the state’s union growth trend has been in both the public and private sectors. Additionally, and this is a very positive sign, more and more minorities—especially African-American and Hispanic—have joined unions in California. Statewide union membership is no longer centered in the Bay Area; both the northern hub and greater Los Angeles boast union membership of about 16%. Some 54% of public-sector employees in California are union members. And that number continues to increase.

The growth of public-employee unions, among others, has helped increase organized labor’s clout, both with management and in the halls of government. Bigger union rolls mean more “muscle” at the bargaining table, increased organizing campaigns, more influence in supporting or opposing particular legislation, and campaigning for or against political candidates and ballot initiatives.

The outlook for the union movement in California is good. Under strong, determined and politically savvy state and county leadership, organized labor has made great strides and is continuing to advance trade unionism. When the rest of the country catches up to California, then truly the foundation of our society—the working middle class—will be strengthened and its influence will be felt politically, socially and economically, as it should.

In unity,

BRIAN D’ARCY, Business Manager