Labor

Jimmy Hoffa and the boys have changed the rules of airline union elections, and now are rubbing their hands together in anticipation of achieving one of their Holy Grails — the increased prospects of unionizing Delta Airlines in the wake of its merger with Northwest Airlines.

One obstacle standing in their way is today’s Senate vote on S. 30, by Sen. Johnny Isakson (R-Ga.), which would reject the new election rules and restore 75 years of precedent on how union elections are held in the railroad and airline industries.

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This just in from the gop.gov website: Democrats want a new national energy policy!

Well, that isn’t exactly what they said. They said the Democrats and labor unions want a new national energy tax. They also made some baseless claims that the labor unions plan “to change Senate rules” to get what they want in a post-election congressional session.

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You've heard how rank-and-file government workers are working together, throughout the U.S. and with citizens, to provide better and better public service. Their dedication has been consistently impressive, particularly during some bad years.

I've been chatting recently mostly with federal workers, though the following is true of all large organizations, including private industry. Read more...

In what can aptly be compared to answering the casting call for a union boss thug-like thespian to issue heavy-handed threats to politicians, Richard Trumka, secretary-treasurer of the AFL-CIO, has fallen into character in his best "Godfather" imitation to date, preparing himself for his future role as the union's president.

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While we as a nation certainly won’t face a food crisis in the foreseeable future, it’s indisputable that the quality of our food has declined.

The corn, lima beans and potatoes one finds on supermarket shelves have declined in nutritive value, and lost much of that hearty feel they once had.

Today’s American farms, more aptly called “agricultural conglomerates,” focus not so much on producing good crops but on producing a profitable operation. They operate under strict theories of agricultural economics, which dictate that they control production and corner markets. Read more...

For those who expected that the Democrats would transform themselves into the most ethical group of politicians in history, I have got some news for you. Not gonna happen!

Further evidence of this fact came when the Labor Department moved to get rid of a regulation that was aimed at rooting out financial corruption of Big Labor.

The new Labor Department decided that there was no need to keep an eye on the unions, because, let’s face it, there is no corruption there. No, can’t find any corruption in the labor movement. Nothing to see here. Let’s just move on. Read more...

My grandfather was one of the more interesting people I've known. His story is one of the quintessentially American stories that tells our history.

As a student at Georgetown University, he excelled at baseball and football, eventually turning down the Washington Senators to finish his studies and continue playing football. Some months later, his pelvis was broken during a tackle. So much for the dreams of becoming another Jim Thorpe.

Graduating during the Depression did not exactly put him in a prime job market, Georgetown degree or not. Instead of getting the important, financially rewarding job he sought, he found work as a longshoreman on the docks in Jersey City. He wasn't behind a desk or wearing a tie; he was loading and unloading crate after crate, day after day. The movie "On the Waterfront" was his daily reality. Read more...

The occupation of a shuttered Chicago manufacturing facility by workers claiming that they're owed benefits is in itself unremarkable.

The immediate and very public support of the group by the soon-to-be president of the United States is, on the other hand, astounding.

As John Nichols wrote Dec. 8 in The Nation:

"For the first time in the better part of 70 years, workers who are taking direct action to defend their economic rights are getting a measure of encouragement from a president who might actually 'get it.' " Read more...

$7,800,000,000,000 has now been spent bailing out Wall Street and banks, and Republicans such as John Feehery attack labor unions for being "out of touch, counterproductive, inefficient, unnecessary, corrupt and anachronistic.”

Earth to Republicans, earth to Feehery: Of the $7.8 trillion being spent, so far, on bailouts, one needs a microscope to find how much the unions are responsible for this fiasco. The 10-ton elephant in the room who is really responsible can be found in the Wall Street masters of the universe, and the giant banks, whom Mr. Feehery and his Republican friends aided and abetted, every step of the way, in their policies, between their fundraisers. Read more...

It was the best of times and the worst of times for America’s labor movement.

It was the best of times, because they now have the political muscle that they have been working so hard for over the last decade. Both the House and Senate are dominated by labor-friendly Democrats and the Obama administration is expected to appoint Labor-friendly David Bonior to be the new Labor secretary.

But it is also the worst of times, because the labor movement is now being exposed for what it has become: out of touch, counterproductive, inefficient, unnecessary, corrupt and anachronistic. Read more...