CLARION, Pa. (EYT) – Unions can succeed in Pennsylvania as long as they adapt to the many new jobs and represent them at the negotiation table with the realization that they want the business to succeed.
(Photo: Richard Bloomingdale, President, PA AFL-CIO, points to the dramatic change between top management and workers over the years since the decline in unions.)
Richard Bloomingdale, President, PA AFL-CIO, offered his thoughts on the state of unions in Pennsylvania at a public speech last week at Clarion University’s Hart Chapel.
Union membership across Pennsylvania and the nation has declined over the years, but Bloomingdale believes there is still a need for unions.
According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics In 2017, union members accounted for 12.0 percent of wage and salary workers in Pennsylvania, compared with 12.1 percent in 2016. Union membership rate for the state was at its peak in 1989, when it averaged 20.9 percent, and at its lowest point in 2017.
The union membership rate of public-sector workers (34.4 percent) continued to be more than five times higher than that of private-sector workers (6.5 percent).
Workers in protective service occupations and in education, training, and library occupations had the highest unionization rates (34.7 percent and 33.5 percent, respectively).
“Not many employers want to share power, and let’s be clear: this is about power,” said Bloomingdale. “It’s about the power to have a voice on the job, it’s about the ability to negotiate for wages related to your productivity. Once workers organize, they can use their solidarity to strengthen communities and lift others up. With stronger unions, we can, and have, used our power to strengthen health and safety laws, consumer protection laws, and advocate for stronger laws to protect our communities and put a check on greedy corporations.”
Bloomingdale emphasized that both sides have to come to a negotiation table with the same goal of making the business successful. The union needs to see the operating numbers from a company before negotiations start. There has to compromise, and it should not be the desire to put the company in a position to close.
Why has union membership decreased?
“There are three important factors to consider,” Bloomingdale continued.
“First, the general public has been subjected to a misinformation campaign designed by corporate special interests and extreme media outlets.”
“Second, our own members do not fully recognize or understand, what the union does for them or what they really mean to their union.”
“And finally, there are fewer of us. At one time in Pennsylvania, everyone was either in a union or had a relative in a union. Folks could see the real benefits of being a union member. They knew that working people deserve respect, and should be treated fairly. They knew that in a town or county with a lot of unionized workers that when union wages went up, everyone’s wages went up. Over the years, our density has declined, leading to a loss of that direct connection, while wage stagnation has persisted.”
Bloomingdale also pointed to charts that indicate over the years as unions decreased in prominence, a dramatic gap in salaries between top management at the CEO level and workers expanded to new heights.
Non-union employees often benefit from union contracts, and their wages and benefits often increase in order that a competing business might discourage unionization by raising their own employee wages.
“Many polls show that if given the opportunity, over half the people surveyed would join a union,” Bloomingdale said. “Many folks are never asked to organize or join a union. But, that’s what it’s going to take. Once we ask, we get to the hard part. In this day and age, it takes courage to join that organizing committee that wants to form a union. Unfortunately, employers still illegally fire people for talking about joining a union. Management is constantly watching to see whom you’re talking to. I’ve known supervisors to follow workers into the bathroom to make sure workers weren’t talking union. Why would anyone put up with the harassment? Anything worth having is worth fighting for.”
The AFL-CIO represents many professions and acknowledges that types of jobs are rapidly changing, and unions have to be aware of those changes.
Projections of key skilled high-demand occupations in Pennsylvania look at positions in 2014 versus projections for 2024 jobs, and the number one is registered nurses, followed by accountants and auditors, general and operations managers, market research analyst and marketing specialist, and computer systems analysts.
Growth in Pennsylvania industry employment jobs between 2009 and 2014 was led by education and health services, trade transportation and utilities, professional and business services, leisure, and hospitality.
Bloomingdale’s presentation was sponsored by Clarian APSCUF (Association of Pennsylvania State College and University Faculties), AFSCME Local 2326, and the Clarion University College Democrats.
