Organize the South

Amazingly, there were three workshops I could have attended yesterday. There was one titled "Keep Making Peace" put on by the United Methodist Church in East Lansing. Soulforce put on one in Ypsilanti discussing modern social tools in activist work. I went to the third (and shortest, only 3 hours) put on by the Workers World Forum in Detroit.

The main speaker was Dante Strobino, a field organizer for United Electrical Workers and the Southern Workers Assembly. His talk was about the origins of Right-to-Work and ways to deal with it.

Back in 1935 Congress passed the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA), which guaranteed the rights of trade unions to enter into collective bargaining and to strike as a means of negotiation.

Of course, corporations didn't like it and tried many times to overturn all or part of it. None succeeded until the Taft-Hartley Act of 1947. This prohibited unfair practices on the part of unions (NLRA was about unfair corporate practices). According to Strobino, a big effect was to allow states to supersede the NLRA. The 12 states of the South (less industrialized than the North) promptly did just that. Reason: racism -- to make sure blacks could not effectively organize. Yeah, white workers couldn't organize either, but as long as blacks could not, they were apparently cool with that. Note this law was passed before many blacks were able to vote.

As a result 10 Southern states have no framework for collective bargaining (we in Michigan at least have that). The other two, North Carolina and Virginia, ban it outright. That means the union cannot sign a contract with the employer (and certainly can't require everyone in the shop be a member or demand payment of dues -- the equivalent of Right-to-Work). Because of that union participation is quite low -- 2 to 5% across the South. As a result, the 10 states with the lowest median income are in the South.

Which is why foreign companies are flocking to the South to set up factories. Interest and investment is quite large, even during the Great Recession. Southern governors and mayors scramble to outdo each other to award tax rebates and other incentives, now amounting up to $1 billion a deal. This is money that doesn't go to such things as education and infrastructure, leaving the South much more vulnerable to natural disasters and with a less educated workforce.

Of course, politicians get their pockets lined. They also get to brag about the number of jobs they brought to the area. No mention of the quality (pay level) of those jobs and the worsening of the society due to bad roads and uneducated citizens.

RTW, according to Strobino, is not about giving workers a choice whether to pay union dues (as Gov. Snyder likes to claim). It is to weaken the power of unions. It does so in these ways:

* Unions must divert significant resources simply to collect dues, and to convince workers to pay up, that union representation is beneficial to all of them.

* Unions no longer have the time and money for training workers in the practical (this is how you file a complaint) and political (this is what that bill in Lansing means) details a worker should know about.

* Unions have less money for supporting politicians in political campaigns.

* As more members stop paying others say, "If he isn't paying why should I?"

Even though workers in the South are racist (which corporations exploit), the white workers could benefit from unions too. All workers have a reason to organize.

And how might workers fight back?

Though unions can't sign contracts in North Carolina, they can be at the bargaining table. But having the union present has to come from the workers.

Here are ways to organize:

* Do actions that don't require a majority of workers to recognize the union.

* Start by campaigning for one demand. The easiest to work for is a paid Martin Luther King holiday. It seems the white employees like that one too. That success prompts other workers to join for the next demand.

* Campaign for a workers bill of rights. That usually includes such things as a living wage, safety, access to corporate info, handling of grievances, paid sick leave (the big one), recognition of overtime hours. If that can't be done through bargaining with the company, try working for a city or state law.

* Watch out for a worker forum, which corporations set up to head off a union.

* Think about what the union would do for the worker and go after those things individually. This is worker empowerment and requires training to make it happen, but it is a constant struggle. It isn't like voting in a union and letting it handle everything.

* Look for allies -- leaders of faith, civil leaders, labor leaders -- to create informal labor boards. These put public pressure on the corporations.

* The management won't pay attention until their means of making money is threatened. There are ways to slow down production, even if a strike isn't possible. Golly, boss, I just can't work any faster and still follow all those rules you placed on me.

* Though unions may not legally picket a site (depends on the relation of the union and the site), ordinary citizens can, hopefully encouraging workers at the site to join them.

* Watch for and avoid ways the bosses pit workers against each other. Look for ways to pit the bosses against each other.

* Look at international labor rights and make noise over which ones the corporation violates. This would be especially effective against international corporations. NAFTA includes a section called NAALC, which demands corporations must have a minimum way to treat their employees. It was intended to prevent Mexican companies from taking advantage of their labor to undercut American workers. But those same provisions can be used against American companies.

Southern workers were mighty annoyed when RTW hit Wisconsin because worker concern didn't extend outside of Wisconsin and certainly not to the South where RTW came from. It is time for a national worker effort. Top of the agenda is repeal Taft-Hartley.

That national worker alliance won't happen until the workers of the South are organized. This is the root of the national struggle. Until that happens employers can threaten, "Do what we want or we'll send your job to the South."

After Strobino spoke, the floor was opened for questions and comments. One man (I think he is a leader in the local effort) was disappointed in the UAW leadership. They seemed to be focusing their efforts on defeating Gov. Snyder in 2014. The big question: What if they fail? That's what happened in Wisconsin. UAW contracts won't be renewed until 2015. Will leadership change its tune if they face those negotiations while RTW is still in effect? A better idea (according to this guy) would be for leaders to lead the UAW in calling and implementing a general strike of all employees across the state. That is about the only way to get the attention of Lansing.