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Labor Unions: Boom or Bust?
September 1, 1999
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Today, there are more than 16 million union members in the United States. That includes a jump of 100,000 union members in 1998. A quick survey of these numbers may lead one to believe that the labor movement is making a comeback. But, even as the total number of union workers is rising, the percentage of the U.S. workforce that is unionized is declining.
According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, 490,000 U.S. manufacturing jobs have been lost since March 1998. There's also another component: Union busting. When faced with attempts by workers to establish a union, 80 percent of private sector employers in the United States hire anti-union consultants and law firms.
On this program, we take a look at efforts by big business to quash union drives and how organized labor is responding, including tactics used by private sector employers to affect union organizing in the workplace, union organizing drives and campaigns; an insider's view of stike-breaking tactics including falsifying productivity reports. This program also features a Women's Desk segment with two women organizers talking about their experiences during union drives and the unique issues women face during such times.
Featuring:
Kate Bronfenbrenner, director of labor education research at Cornell University's School of Labor Relations; Floyd Palmer, attorney with Littler-Mendelson (a law firm cited by the San Francisco Chronicle as a tough advocate for employers against unions); Mike Jakabul, activist.