As worker actions continue nationwide, White House highlights how administration is helping unions
FATIMA HUSSEIN
Mon, August 28, 2023
Striking writers and actors picket outside Paramount studios in Los Angeles on Friday, July 14, 2023. As worker actions continue from Hollywood to Detroit, and new labor unions crop up at firms like Starbucks and Amazon, the White House on Monday was highlighting its effort to bolster worker organizing throughout the U.S.
Biden administration makes the case for organized labor with potential autoworkers strike loomingFATIMA HUSSEIN
Mon, August 28, 2023
Striking writers and actors picket outside Paramount studios in Los Angeles on Friday, July 14, 2023. As worker actions continue from Hollywood to Detroit, and new labor unions crop up at firms like Starbucks and Amazon, the White House on Monday was highlighting its effort to bolster worker organizing throughout the U.S.
(AP Photo/Chris Pizzello, File)
WASHINGTON (AP) — As worker actions continue from Hollywood to Detroit, and new labor unions crop up at firms like Starbucks and Amazon, the White House on Monday was highlighting its effort to bolster worker organizing throughout the U.S.
President Joe Biden is counting on critical labor support as he campaigns for a second term in office, holding his first re-election campaign rally at a Pennsylvania union hall in June, declaring: “I'm proud to be the most pro-union president in American history.” The White House and Treasury on Monday issued a joint analysis on what the administration sees as the importance of unions, and also the White House efforts to safeguard and bolster them.
There is “evidence that unions strengthen the middle class and grow the economy” by raising wages of members and improving health care, retirement and predictable scheduling plan benefits, according to the analysis.
“There have been recent signs of a reinvigorated labor movement, as union election petitions in 2022 bounced back from the pandemic to their highest level since 2015,” the analysis says “and public opinion of labor unions is at its highest level in over 50 years.”
Vice President Kamala Harris, who leads the White House Labor Task Force, created to work with federal agencies to use their existing authority to support labor organizing and bargaining, told reporters unions were critically important.
“When union workers bargain for higher pay, it increases pressure on non-union companies to raise pay as well to stay competitive in the labor market,” she said.
The administration's show of support comes as unprecedented worker organizing — from strike authorizations to work stoppages — hit multiple industries this year, including, transportation, entertainment, hospitality and healthcare.
Workers calling for higher wages, better working conditions and job security, especially since the end of the pandemic, have been increasingly willing to walk out on the job as employers face a greater need for workers.
The Cornell School of Industrial and Labor Relations Labor Action Tracker logged 424 work stoppages — which includes 417 strikes and seven lockouts — involving approximately 224,000 workers in 2022.
Despite the coverage of strikes and an administration that claims it is friendlier to unions, membership numbers are still waning nationally. A January BLS report states that 11.3 percent of U.S. workers were represented by a union in 2022, down by 0.3 percent from a year ago. Globalization, automation and the deterioration of legal support to workers over decades has brought down union participation numbers, administration officials said.
Hollywood writers have been striking since early May and have not yet made a deal with the studios. Starbucks workers have unionized at more than 350 stores across the country and a collection of Amazon workers have joined the International Brotherhood of the Teamsters, in hopes of gaining union recognition.
Most recently, auto workers represented by the United Auto Workers union— which still has not endorsed Biden’s 2024 presidential run — voted overwhelmingly to give leaders the authority to call strikes against Detroit car companies Stellantis, General Motors and Ford if a contract agreement isn’t reached.
The contract is set to expire in September.
Since Biden took office, the administration has implemented a slew of executive orders, made it easier for union representatives to organize on federal property, and strengthened retaliation protections for private sector workers.
The nation's top labor organizations, including the AFL-CIO, American Federation of Teachers and the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees, have endorsed Biden’s 2024 campaign.
Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said the administration's findings on unions “challenge arguments that unions hold back growth.”
“Unions could contribute to reversing the stark increase in inequality we’ve seen in recent decades, promoting economy-wide growth,” she said.
WASHINGTON (AP) — As worker actions continue from Hollywood to Detroit, and new labor unions crop up at firms like Starbucks and Amazon, the White House on Monday was highlighting its effort to bolster worker organizing throughout the U.S.
President Joe Biden is counting on critical labor support as he campaigns for a second term in office, holding his first re-election campaign rally at a Pennsylvania union hall in June, declaring: “I'm proud to be the most pro-union president in American history.” The White House and Treasury on Monday issued a joint analysis on what the administration sees as the importance of unions, and also the White House efforts to safeguard and bolster them.
There is “evidence that unions strengthen the middle class and grow the economy” by raising wages of members and improving health care, retirement and predictable scheduling plan benefits, according to the analysis.
“There have been recent signs of a reinvigorated labor movement, as union election petitions in 2022 bounced back from the pandemic to their highest level since 2015,” the analysis says “and public opinion of labor unions is at its highest level in over 50 years.”
Vice President Kamala Harris, who leads the White House Labor Task Force, created to work with federal agencies to use their existing authority to support labor organizing and bargaining, told reporters unions were critically important.
“When union workers bargain for higher pay, it increases pressure on non-union companies to raise pay as well to stay competitive in the labor market,” she said.
The administration's show of support comes as unprecedented worker organizing — from strike authorizations to work stoppages — hit multiple industries this year, including, transportation, entertainment, hospitality and healthcare.
Workers calling for higher wages, better working conditions and job security, especially since the end of the pandemic, have been increasingly willing to walk out on the job as employers face a greater need for workers.
The Cornell School of Industrial and Labor Relations Labor Action Tracker logged 424 work stoppages — which includes 417 strikes and seven lockouts — involving approximately 224,000 workers in 2022.
Despite the coverage of strikes and an administration that claims it is friendlier to unions, membership numbers are still waning nationally. A January BLS report states that 11.3 percent of U.S. workers were represented by a union in 2022, down by 0.3 percent from a year ago. Globalization, automation and the deterioration of legal support to workers over decades has brought down union participation numbers, administration officials said.
Hollywood writers have been striking since early May and have not yet made a deal with the studios. Starbucks workers have unionized at more than 350 stores across the country and a collection of Amazon workers have joined the International Brotherhood of the Teamsters, in hopes of gaining union recognition.
Most recently, auto workers represented by the United Auto Workers union— which still has not endorsed Biden’s 2024 presidential run — voted overwhelmingly to give leaders the authority to call strikes against Detroit car companies Stellantis, General Motors and Ford if a contract agreement isn’t reached.
The contract is set to expire in September.
Since Biden took office, the administration has implemented a slew of executive orders, made it easier for union representatives to organize on federal property, and strengthened retaliation protections for private sector workers.
The nation's top labor organizations, including the AFL-CIO, American Federation of Teachers and the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees, have endorsed Biden’s 2024 campaign.
Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said the administration's findings on unions “challenge arguments that unions hold back growth.”
“Unions could contribute to reversing the stark increase in inequality we’ve seen in recent decades, promoting economy-wide growth,” she said.
Sam Fossum
Mon, August 28, 2023
Jacquelyn Martin/AP
The Biden administration made its most detailed argument to date on the benefits of organized labor with a potential autoworkers’ strike looming as negotiations between the United Auto Workers and auto companies continue and the president works to convince Americans to support his “Bidenomics” vision.
The report, which Vice President Kamala Harris delivered to the president, comes days after the UAW union approved possible strikes at the country’s automakers next month if a deal can’t be reached with management as they work to win back many concessions that were made over 15 years ago. The UAW, which backed Biden in 2020, has yet to say whether they will endorse the current president, saying their members still need to see more from Biden before lending him their support..
The White House is staying abreast of the negotiations and continues to encourage both parties to come to an agreement and stay at the table, a senior official told reporters Monday.
It has been a summer heavy with union activity across a variety of industries, from Starbucks baristas to delivery drivers and manufacturers. Just last week the Teamsters union ratified a deal with UPS, securing its key negotiating goals and averting a potentially crippling strike for the US economy. The Hollywood writers and actors’ strikes also continue as they battle with the studios over how streaming services have upended the business and with AI threatening further destabilization.
The new government report, released Monday by the US Treasury, shows the administration’s argument that labor unions provide beneficial spillover effects to non-unionized workers and the broader economy, as well as help tackle challenges faced by many middle-class Americans, such as stagnant wages and high housing costs.
President Joe Biden has long been a proponent of organized labor, describing himself as the most “pro-union” president ever, and it’s a theme that features heavily in his reelection effort as the White House works to extol the benefits of Bidenomics and woo unions that have yet to endorse him. His first stop after announcing his reelection bid earlier this year was to a union conference in Washington, DC.
“This report reinforces what President Biden and I have always known to be true – union workers make our middles class and our entire economy more strong,” Harris told reporters on Monday.
Harris, who serves as the chair of the White House Task Force on Worker Organizing and Empowerment that commissioned the report, continued: “The president and I are building an economy where every person – not just the wealthy or well-connected – has the opportunity to thrive and simply put, that is Bidenomics.”
The Treasury Department report was commissioned by the pro-union task force, which was established in 2021 and aims to help empower workers to organize and bargain with their employers. The task force’s goals include increasing worker power in underserved communities, increasing union membership and facilitating worker organizing throughout the US.
The pro-union report finds that organized labor raises the wages of their members by 10-15%, provides union workers greater access to retirement and medical benefits, and leads to better workplace conditions and safety. The report also presents data that unions today fuel equality and can help increase productivity.
Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen, who is a labor economist by training, highlighted the findings of the report and said that they serve as a case against the argument that labor unions stifle economic growth and productivity.
“This report is the administration’s latest action to strengthen the important role of labor unions in our economy. And it’s the Treasury Department’s first major effort to lay out the rationale for why we think this is so important,” Yellen said.
Harris, Yellen tout unions' economic benefits with new Treasury report
Reuters
Mon, August 28, 2023
U.S. VP Kamala Harris meets with Mongolia's Prime Minister Oyun-Erdene Luvsannamsrai in Washington
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris and Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen held a rare joint press call on Monday to tout the benefits of union membership, releasing a new Treasury report that shows wages for union members are 15% higher than non-union workers.
THE TAKE: The White House has been pushing to support unions and expanded union membership as part of U.S. President Joe Biden's plan to overhaul the U.S. economy, fight inequality and reallocate more corporate profits to the middle class.
There are political reasons too. Union voters helped Biden win critical election battleground states in 2020 and labor unions and worker groups are expected to play an important role in the Democratic Party's grassroots operations in the 2024 election.
BY THE NUMBERS: The report shows unions boost wages by 10 to 15 percent in industries where new unions form, add to fringe benefits, retirement plans, predictable scheduling and workplace grievance policies.
It did not quantify a direct impact on overall economic output from union workforces, but said that by helping to raise wage levels, and improve working conditions, unions were contributing substantially to middle-class financial stability, which contributes "to a more robust and resilient economy."
KEY QUOTE: "Union workers earn 15 percent more in pay than non-union workers in the same occupation. Union workers also receive retirement benefits, paid sick leave, life insurance and discounts on childcare at a much higher rate," Harris said.
CONTEXT: A competitive market for workers, increased job site risks during the pandemic, high housing and food costs, tech disruptions, expiration of cyclical contracts and union-friendly policies from the Biden administration are fueling renewed interest in workers' rights in the United States.
Union membership in the private sector remains at historical lows in the U.S.
(Reporting by Nandita Bose and David Lawder in Washington; Editing by Heather Timmons and Alistair Bell
U.S. VP Kamala Harris meets with Mongolia's Prime Minister Oyun-Erdene Luvsannamsrai in Washington
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris and Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen held a rare joint press call on Monday to tout the benefits of union membership, releasing a new Treasury report that shows wages for union members are 15% higher than non-union workers.
THE TAKE: The White House has been pushing to support unions and expanded union membership as part of U.S. President Joe Biden's plan to overhaul the U.S. economy, fight inequality and reallocate more corporate profits to the middle class.
There are political reasons too. Union voters helped Biden win critical election battleground states in 2020 and labor unions and worker groups are expected to play an important role in the Democratic Party's grassroots operations in the 2024 election.
BY THE NUMBERS: The report shows unions boost wages by 10 to 15 percent in industries where new unions form, add to fringe benefits, retirement plans, predictable scheduling and workplace grievance policies.
It did not quantify a direct impact on overall economic output from union workforces, but said that by helping to raise wage levels, and improve working conditions, unions were contributing substantially to middle-class financial stability, which contributes "to a more robust and resilient economy."
KEY QUOTE: "Union workers earn 15 percent more in pay than non-union workers in the same occupation. Union workers also receive retirement benefits, paid sick leave, life insurance and discounts on childcare at a much higher rate," Harris said.
CONTEXT: A competitive market for workers, increased job site risks during the pandemic, high housing and food costs, tech disruptions, expiration of cyclical contracts and union-friendly policies from the Biden administration are fueling renewed interest in workers' rights in the United States.
Union membership in the private sector remains at historical lows in the U.S.
(Reporting by Nandita Bose and David Lawder in Washington; Editing by Heather Timmons and Alistair Bell
Treasury touts labor unions during ‘summer of strikes’
Tobias Burns
Mon, August 28, 2023
A new report from the Treasury Department is singing the praises of labor unions as several high-profile strikes and labor contract negotiations reverberate across the economy.
The report situated unions within the concept of the middle class and found that unions help to raise wages and benefits for workers and have economic “spillover effects” that lead to improved social norms.
5 big questions about the ‘summer of strikes’
“Union workers have been the backbone of America’s middle class, and yet for too long the contributions of union workers have not been fully appreciated,” Vice President Harris, who serves as the head of the White House task force on worker organizing, said about the Treasury’s findings on a call with reporters Monday.
The report lauds many social knock-on effects of unionization, including improved health and safety standards, pay increases within industries that affect nonunion workers, and heightened democratic activity.
“Unionization … has spillover effects that extend well beyond union workers,” according to the report.
“Heightened workplace safety norms can pull up whole industries. Union members improve their communities through heightened civic engagement; they are more likely to vote, donate to charity, and participate in a neighborhood project.”
The Biden administration has often had positive things to say about unions even as it has worked against union wishes on some notable occasions.
Teamsters ratify new UPS contract, avoid massive strike
A railroad strike at the end of last year was narrowly avoided after the administration and Congress got involved, leaving many railroad workers angry and frustrated.
“A disruption to our nation’s economy and supply chain has been averted. But the Senate also voted to reject the bill that would provide paid sick leave for all railroad workers. This leaves me baffled, exasperated, and deeply saddened,” Tony Cardwell, a railroad union president, said in a statement in December.
Teamsters General President Sean O’Brien also asked the White House not to intervene if union-represented UPS employees went on strike before they eventually struck a new contract with the powerful shipping company.
Following a period of high inflation that was triggered by the pandemic and has led to a cost-of-living crisis for many Americans, popularity for unions has hit its highest level since 1965.
More than 70 percent of Americans now approve of labor unions, a Gallup poll found last year.
Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen described her agency’s report Monday as “the administration’s latest action to strengthen the important role of labor unions in our economy.”
“It’s the Treasury Department’s first major effort to lay out the rationale for why we think this is so important,” she said.
Despite the approval from the Treasury toward organized labor, union membership has been in long-term decline. The percentage of wage-earning workers who are members of unions was 10.1 percent in 2022, half of what it was in 1983 when data on membership was first recorded.
Still, unions have been grabbing the spotlight this summer and forcing a national conversation on labor.
UAW workers vote to strike against Big Three automakers if they don’t get ‘fair deal’
“Any platform you can get to show and demonstrate how important it is to take care of our working people, take care of the working class and hold corporate America accountable — that’s a great platform to be in,” O’Brien told The Hill in an interview in July.
Strikes in the entertainment industry have also been highly visible, with productions of U.S. films and television shows shutting down even as summer blockbusters have attracted audiences.
The Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers — a negotiating cartel among ostensible competitors in the media market — hired a new “crisis [public relations] firm,” according to The Hollywood Reporter, showing anxiety among studios.
“Look who’s running Hollywood. You got Amazon, you got Netflix, you’ve got all these corporate companies, global companies, right? Do you think they care about the workers? No. They care about the bottom line and their balance sheet,” O’Brien said.
To what extent the administration’s views on unions take hold within the economy remains to be seen, but they represent a significant departure from the previous Republican presidential administration, which discouraged union membership by canceling the tax deductibility of union dues in the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act.
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