WHAT HAS HAPPENED TO THE US LABOR MOVEMENT? Union Decline and Renewal

Abstract

For many years, US trade unions declined in union density, organizing capacity, level of strike activity, and political effectiveness. Labor's decline is variously attributed to demographic factors, inaction by unions themselves, the state and legal system, globalization, neoliberalism, and the employer offensive that ended a labor-capital accord. The AFL-CIO New Voice leadership elected in 1995, headed by John Sweeney, seeks to reverse these trends and transform the labor movement. Innovative organizing, emphasizing the use of rank-and-file intensive tactics, substantially increases union success; variants include union building, immigrant organizing, feminist approaches, and industry-wide non-National Labor Relations Board (or nonboard) organizing. The labor movement must also deal with participatory management or employee involvement programs, while experimenting with new forms, including occupational unionism, community organizing, and strengthened alliances with other social movements.

Lost in the Ocean of Deregulation?

“…Researchers have suggested changes to be implemented in internal union organizational schemes, pointing out case-study level successes when unions have adopted a more flexible approach to the on-the-spot presence of union representatives and shop stewards (Charlwood, 2004;Clawson and Clawson, 1999;Fairbrother et al, 2007). Others have recommended a more "inclusive" and open-minded policy on the part of unions with regard to recruiting new members, especially low-wage, flexible workers who are subject to discrimination (Fitzgerald and Hardy, 2010;Oxenbridge, 2000).…”

New Turf for Organizing: Family Child Care Providers

“…First, high turnover and small, decentralized units of employees make organizing child care providers quite difficult (Montilla, Twombly & De Vita, 2001;Child Care Employee Project, 1991). Second, membership in unions in the USA declined steadily from 1954 to 1998 (Clawson & Clawson, 1999) while the child care industry grew exponentially. It is unusual for an institution on the decline to implement a major expansion in difficult, uncharted territory.…”

Natures and wars : neoliberal discourse and the contested future of east Kentucky.

“…More broadly, just a few of many named outcomes of instituted neoliberal economic, social and political philosophies are: 1) greater class disparity (which, Harvey believes, was the point); 2) the empowerment of financial institutions over the "wellbeing" of working classes; 3) an intensive neoliberal media presence, whereby the "gospel" of neoliberalism is dispelled through think-tanks seeking bite-sized government (Harvey 2007:29-32). Importantly, neoliberalism also is associated with the demise of the labor unions in the United States (Harvey 2007;Clawson and Clawson 1999). Reagan set a precedent when he broke an air traffic controller's strike (PATCO) in 1981, a watershed moment in the history of organized labor (Clawson and Clawson 1999:104;McNeil 2011:9).…”

“…As a result, states systematically went about undermining labor organizations, and slashing benefit and entitlement programs (Hansen 2001;Clawson and Clawson 1999).…”

“…Neoliberal "think-tanks" and corporatized media (the "business-media complex") contribute to the naturalizing effect of neoliberal rhetoric (Harvey 2007;Peck 2002:132). For example, under the ethos of the Reagan era, unions were often problematized as vestiges of the welfare state and blamed for the recession of the early 1980s (Clawson and Clawson 1999;Kodras 1997).…”