How to really support unions on Labor Day
There's no freedom without workers organizing to preserve it. Here are a few ways to join the fight.
There's no freedom without workers organizing to preserve it. Here are a few ways to join the fight.
Labor unions’ approval remains around the peaks it reached in the mid-60s.
This is especially remarkable given that union membership hit a new low in 2023.
Yet it does speak to a far more positive trend that we've been calling out as part of The Quiet New Deal -- the share of win rate in NRLB elections continues to rise, along with the total number of elections, which, unsurprisingly, sank consistently in the Trump years.
"The number of workers organized in NLRB elections last year is the highest in decades, due to growing union win rate and an increase in the average winning bargaining unit size over time," noted Eric Dirnbach, in his State of the Unions 2024.
Historian Kevin M. Kruse, among many others, has pointed out that appointments to the National Labor Relations Board are one area where the Biden/Harris administration has shined, speaking to his theory that people make institutions matter.
So, as we mark this Labor Day, don't just thank a union for the day off.
"Keep your thanks," says union comms professional Brett "Solidarity 2024" Banditelli. "Fight for labor law reform so we can build stronger."
Let's remember that the decline of the working class has been aligned almost exactly with the decline of organized labor's power, which was tied to the Democratic Party's consistent failures to back organized labor at critical junctures, especially compared to the way Republicans unashamedly back pillars of their party's corporate base.
It seems Democrats have woken up and rededicated themselves to supporting unions, and all Americans (who care about all Americans) will enjoy the results. In Michigan, we know this as our trifecta repealed Right to Work, anti-worker garbage that drives down wages and benefits for workers whether they're in a union or not.
So, let's show some genuine appreciation to our union sisters and brothers this year.
Here are a few suggestions (and I’d love to hear yours):
1. Give workers some relief from the heat
Leave a comment for OSHA supporting the proposed rule that would "require employers to create a plan to evaluate and control heat hazards in their workplace."
2. Support the UAW and workers and Vice President Harris.
Get a "Trump is a Scab" shirt. This is the perfect way to show appreciation for one of the unions leading America's Labor Renaissance. It also shows your support for their passion for defeating Trump and puts you on the side of a worker-led future, with a plan for a possible general strike on May Day in 2028.
3. Help Democrats keep their trifecta in Michigan.
Repealing Right to Work is extraordinarily popular. However, the Democrats who voted to give labor one of their biggest wins of the decade in the state where labor invented the middle class could still quickly lose power this year. If only 320 votes swung the other way in 2022, Michigan would have no trifecta, and Right to Work would still be law. Our state has Hidden Trump voters. So we need your help to keep our politicians brave by rewarding them for their courage on behalf of workers.
Please consider giving generously to help keep our trifecta in Michigan.
Just think about how unhappy this will make her:
Yep, unions built the middle class in America. And they’re in a constant battle against the top 1% for survival and advancement of the middle class. The two SHOULD be working together to insure the preservation of the common good of everyone but in our country the primary goal of many one percenters is to enrich themselves as much as possible to the detriment of everyone else. Because of our trifecta in Michigan we’ve become a haven for labor. Let’s send Betsy a message through elections that she and those like her should contribute to the common good by supporting the middle class that helped built America and her family’s company. Also let her know that supporting PUBLIC education with tax money is the BEST way to promote the common good.