Today’s opinion pick: “Why We Need Stronger Unions, and How to Get Them”
Why is this recession so deep, and how can we fix it? Writing on his personal blog, earlier this week former U.S. Labor Secretary Robert Reich explains why this recession is deep, and how to fix it.
Excerpt: (Robert Reich’s Blog, Jan 27, 2009)
In 1955, more than a third of working Americans belonged to one. Unions gave them the bargaining leverage they needed to get the paychecks that kept the economy going. So many Americans were unionized that wage agreements spilled over to nonunionized workplaces as well. Employers knew they had to match union wages to compete for workers and to recruit the best ones. Fast forward to a new century. Now, fewer than 8% of private-sector workers are unionized. Corporate opponents argue that Americans no longer want unions. But public opinion surveys, such as a comprehensive poll that Peter D. Hart Research Associates conducted in 2006, suggest that a majority of workers would like to have a union to bargain for better wages, benefits and working conditions.
I found this link at Talking Points Memo.
