Union membership falls to lowest share on record

[Common]

Most of you have missed the point on the real reasons union membership is down.

First let me make this statement, I was a Union Man all my life public and private, I come from a long family history of full union support and DEMOCRATS.

Union Support began to dwindle when first Union Leaders negotiated for themselves, no show jobs, big fancy full paid for automobiles, and no longer were happy with the pay of the working position they had when they were elected to the union. Ill give some examples a NJ teacher averages around 80,000 a year, the head of the NJ State Education association makes over 550,000 per year plus car plus expenses, plus free travel, all this while NJ teachers have had their pensions and benefits PUMMELED by a Democrat Legistlation that their UNION gives millions of dollars in donations too. Teachers for the first time are opting out of the UNION, their dues are absurdly ridiculously high.

The teachers got PISSED, imagine that.

Categorically Union Leaders have enriched themselves while providing far less service to their membership and DONATING to politicians without membership input as to whether they want their money used for that purpose or that Politician.

The union leaders can blame everyone and anyone they want including the GOVT, the core of the problem is THEM, their corruption, their greed, and their UTTER LACK OF PERFORMANCE for the last 15 yrs for thier membership.

Theres many Older long term union people that are STUCK in thought of what UNIONS WERE, what they were they are NOT, they are greed machines used to enhance the income of Elected leaders and their politicians of choice.

Just like Democrat workers who do not want their union dues going to Republicans they hate, Republican workers do not want Democrats enriched by their dues either.

This is not your fathers union or your unions from the 60s-70s. These are present day arms of the Democrat Party

[PJL]

Public Unions have had their influence greatly diminished and they have not only been under assault from Republicans, in NY and NJ its the democrats that have gone after public unions and reduced benefits. State Workers in NJ have been without a contract I believe 6 yrs The Senate boss in jersey Democrat Steven Sweeney a retired pension collecting double dipping Iron Worker Organizer has done more to screw Unions than anyone before him. Union membership fell to 10.3% of the nation's workforce in 2019, down two-tenths of a percentage point from the previous year, marking the lowest level since the Labor Department began keeping track in 1983. The Bureau of Labor Statistics reported Wednesday that the total number of workers belonging to unions had declined by about 150,000 members to 14.6 million, while the size of the overall workforce grew. The decline follows a long, steady trend for the labor movement, which has seen traditional stronghold industries, particularly manufacturing, shrink, and that has struggled to organize new industries, such as the tech industry. A decade ago, the unionization rate was 12.3%. It stood at 20.1% when the Labor Department first began tracking the figure in 1983. The AFL-CIO, the nation's largest labor federation, blamed the decline on the federal government. "A highly politicized National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) is abandoning its mission to uphold and protect workers' right to form unions and bargain collectively," the federation said. The current union workforce is roughly equally split between the private sector, which accounted for 7.5 million members, and the private sector, which accounts for 7.1 million members. However, the unionization rate for private sector workers is just 6.1%, while it is at 33.6% for public sector workers. Private sector union membership is facing pressure following a renewal in popularity in state right-to-work laws, which prohibit workers from being forced to join or otherwise financially support a union as a condition of employment. A total of 27 states have the laws, up from 22 in 2012. Public sector unions are facing similar challenges following the Supreme Court's Janus v. AFSCME decision in 2018, which effectively extends right-to-work protections to public sector workers. https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/p...hare-on-record

Neither democrats nor republicans have the slightest interests in the people having a voice...they have both railed against it for as long as I can remember . It's the same in Australia , and its the same in Britain.....this is the main reason why wages and working conditions have deteriorated steadliy over they years......Unions ARE the people.

[Peter1469]

It is no coincidence that the greatest prosperity America ever had was when Unions were at their strongest!

The battle has always been management vs. labor, and labor gains were fought hard for and cost many lives.

The ones who prosper now with weak Unions are large elitist companies, and the worker has to beg for concessions today.

If not for the workers, the company has nothing!

Or, that was at a time before globalism and off shoring of US industry. Once US companies were directly competing globally, the bloated Union compensation and benefits packages sunk US business.

[Common]

Neither democrats nor republicans have the slightest interests in the people having a voice...they have both railed against it for as long as I can remember . It's the same in Australia , and its the same in Britain.....this is the main reason why wages and working conditions have deteriorated steadliy over they years......Unions ARE the people.

Exactly but they both do it in different ways, so the people have to choose which way they like the least

Divide and Conqueor

[gamewell45]

It was no mistake when clinton passed a huge tax package and included in it that all Social Security Recipients pay federal tax on their social security, he changed the formula for Social Security COLAs and attempted to raise the ages

Clinton did nothing by accident gamewell, he reduced taxs paid for most if on the backs of Retirees.

I cannot disagree with that. The same could be said for GW Bush and his war based on weapons of mass destruction which were never found or Carters handling of US Embassy attack or Reagans voodoo economics or Obama's Benghasi. No of these decisions were made by accident.

[Reason10]

My nephew was in a class taught by a union thug and he made the mistake of saying, "We have to remember we're here for the children." The reaction was immediate and vicious. With finger jabbing he got, "You are not. You are here for the union first, the teachers second, and there is no third."

Of course, I do recognize the the incompetent, lazy, corrupt, and brutal workers in any field need to be protected and unions fulfill that function.

Unions have bought politicians and they're accomplices in crime. A unions power comes from extortion which, if practiced by an individual, gets you jail time.

The Florida teacher's union is a little different, and quite unique, too.

It has almost NO power whatsoever. Florida is a right to work state. Teachers can come into the profession without joining the FEA (Florida Education Association). So this group has to actually offer something to teachers to earn those dues. The FEA does offer group rates on life insurance, discounts on a lot of shops, restaurants, hotels, retailers and attractions. Most important, (and the website doesn't show this but the literature we get in the teacher's lounge at the schools point this out) teachers get legal assistance in case something goes wrong on the job. (A bratty student given a C and trying to make a fake child molesting charge to get revenge, stuff like that.)

I work as a substitute teacher. If you want to open a can of worms concerning public schools in a couple of Florida counties, I can talk your ears off. I've seen things that would make you schitt yourself.

[gamewell45]

Most of you have missed the point on the real reasons union membership is down.

First let me make this statement, I was a Union Man all my life public and private, I come from a long family history of full union support and DEMOCRATS.

Union Support began to dwindle when first Union Leaders negotiated for themselves, no show jobs, big fancy full paid for automobiles, and no longer were happy with the pay of the working position they had when they were elected to the union. Ill give some examples a NJ teacher averages around 80,000 a year, the head of the NJ State Education association makes over 550,000 per year plus car plus expenses, plus free travel, all this while NJ teachers have had their pensions and benefits PUMMELED by a Democrat Legistlation that their UNION gives millions of dollars in donations too. Teachers for the first time are opting out of the UNION, their dues are absurdly ridiculously high.

The teachers got PISSED, imagine that.

Categorically Union Leaders have enriched themselves while providing far less service to their membership and DONATING to politicians without membership input as to whether they want their money used for that purpose or that Politician.

The union leaders can blame everyone and anyone they want including the GOVT, the core of the problem is THEM, their corruption, their greed, and their UTTER LACK OF PERFORMANCE for the last 15 yrs for thier membership.

Theres many Older long term union people that are STUCK in thought of what UNIONS WERE, what they were they are NOT, they are greed machines used to enhance the income of Elected leaders and their politicians of choice.

Just like Democrat workers who do not want their union dues going to Republicans they hate, Republican workers do not want Democrats enriched by their dues either.

This is not your fathers union or your unions from the 60s-70s. These are present day arms of the Democrat Party

Common, I understand your viewpoint but consider these questions/statements; if union leaders are corrupt, are they being prosecuted? Are all union leaders corrupt? If some unions were to donate to republican politicians would that make them corrupt too? What greed to they have? Are you aware that not every union uses members dues to donate to political causes?

Some older long term union people may be stuck in the though of what unions were, however many of them understand the root value of organized labor and it's role in today's workplace; if a politician is corrupt, you remove him and not the office. Reading your posting gives the impression that ALL unions are corrupt, greedy, out of control and give an utter lack of performance. If that is what you are saying, then I have to categorically disagree with you.

[Reason10]

I cannot disagree with that. The same could be said for GW Bush and his war based on weapons of mass destruction which were never found or Carters handling of US Embassy attack or Reagans voodoo economics or Obama's Benghasi. No of these decisions were made by accident.

There is no such thing as Voodoo Economics. (an idiotic campaign statement made by one of the lamest one term presidents in the history of America.) Reagan's tax cuts created the LONGEST sustained economy expansion in the 20th Century. The only item that beats it, as far as the economy goes, is the Trump miracle.

GW based his Iraq campaign on the best intel available at the time. Hussein WAS using chemical and biological agents to kill his own people and Iranians. In the first Gulf War, our soldiers were almost dying in the desert heat from the chemical suits they had to wear. Was it possible for those items to be taken somewhere else before our soldiers landed? Well, those weapons DID wind up in Syria. About the only triumph as far as GW is concerned is that he made sure Hussein NEVER AGAIN used those weapons on his people. Was he right or wrong?

Private citizen Donald Trump and President Trump disagreed with GW's actions, (which is why the Rockefeller Bush-loving sector of the GOP makes up a major portion of the Never Trumpers.) It's a crazy world we live in.

Our greatest president of all time (Trump) actually agreed with those who were against going into Iraq. Imagine that.

[The Sage of Main Street]

It is no coincidence that the greatest prosperity America ever had was when Unions were at their strongest!

The battle has always been management vs. labor, and labor gains were fought hard for and cost many lives.

The ones who prosper now with weak Unions are large elitist companies, and the worker has to beg for concessions today.

If not for the workers, the company has nothing!

No matter how much some Bizz Skule blowhard brags that he runs the company, it's his employees who make the company run.

[The Sage of Main Street]

I do recall Perot running against George Bush; if he hadn't run I think Bush would have definitely been re-elected for a second term.

That's as lame as the Demwits blaming Russian interference and the Constitution for not letting the popular vote decide. The voters realized that Bush was an indifferent snob from the Nobility With No Ability.