Workers of Wisconsin, Unite!

Another labor clash is developing in Wisconsin, pitting the same cast of characters against each other in a battle over labor rights. Pro-union activists are holding their ground against the encroachment by conservatives who seek right-to-work legislation. The goal of right-to-work is to allow the choice of joining a union (closed shop workplaces compel union membership). Both sides are entrenched, but these opponents aren’t fighting for workers, they’re fighting for their own self-interest.

If the focus of the organized labor debate is the worker, both sides have failed. Parties on both sides of the issue aren’t representing ALL workers; each side unifies to protect their interests and crush their opponents’.

United Against Closed Shop Unions

As the wounds from Act 10 begin to scar over, conservative activist group Wisconsin Right to Work is rekindling the idea that Wisconsin should become a right-to-work, open shop state. “Wisconsin's public employees have already demonstrated their strong desire for their right to choose as evidenced by the sharp decline in enrollment in the teacher's unions since the passage of Gov. Walker's [Act 10],” said Lorri Pickens, executive director of Wisconsin Right to Work (Journal Sentinel).

While Governor Scott Walker has little appetite to duke it out with pro-union supporters, calling it “not part of his agenda” and a “distraction”, he may be drafted by the far-right conservatives he heavily relied on during his reelection campaign. His voter base may flaunt the $2 billion savings or the ability to replace ineffective teachers that resulted from the Act 10 reforms as justification for taking the anti-union movement further. Walker may not have any choice but to go along.

Anti-union conservatives view the labor movement as economic saboteurs headed by corrupt union bosses who stuff their over-sized pockets with workers’ hard-earned money, all while hindering profitability along the way. Dues are compelled by force in exchange for biased representation. Closed shop environments are said to stifle initiative, inhibit modernization, and reward sloth, a deadly combination for profitability. “They're trying to sneak in any way they can," said South Carolina Governor Nikki Haley of unions trying to establish in her state. “My job is to make sure I keep kicking them out.”

A lighter tone with similar result is set in the Wisconsin State Legislature. “The benefits to Wisconsin are pretty simple, and the statistics are very clear: If we pass legislation like right to work, we’re going to see an increase in the number of jobs available, and I fully expect to see an increase in incomes,” said Republican State Rep. Chris Kapenga, who announced he will introduce a right-to-work bill.

Workers of Wisconsin, unite against the closed shop union!

United for Strong Unions

It wasn’t always this way. In 1952, Republican President Dwight D. Eisenhower said: “Today in America unions have a secure place in our industrial life. Only a handful of unreconstructed reactionaries harbor the ugly thought of breaking unions. Only a fool would try to deprive working men and women of the right to join the union of their choice.”

Wisconsin has a noble legacy as the first state to grant collective bargaining rights to public-sector unions (NY Times). Walker began his history of fighting unions when he proposed right-to-work legislation in 1993 as a freshman in the State Legislature (Journal Sentinel). Prior to this year’s election, Walker’s campaign quipped on social media: “Big Government Union Bosses said they have "a score to settle" with Scott”, which was followed by a call to donate. Opposition to unions results in a big payday for conservative candidates. As conservatives contend that the labor movement is diametrically opposed to Republican ideas, unions are used as the Boogeyman to incite fear in a right-leaning electorate--fear used to funnel money into campaign coffers.

Union-bashing is red meat for a conservative voting base. The Republican National Committee (RNC) glaringly declined to recognize Labor Day 2014, a slap in the face to people who work hard for a living. Republican candidates, in an effort to appease these anti-union conservatives, have played to the fool and ignored the union worker and the labor movement’s contributions to the workplace.

Union leaders, members, and supporters can see that conservatives aim to remove the labor movement from business. “Wisconsin is powered by our middle class — by the nurses, steel workers, teachers and construction workers who help shape our future, keep us safe and drive our economy. Right-to-work would roll back the clock on workers' rights and take Wisconsin in the wrong direction,” Wisconsin AFL-CIO president Phil Neuenfeldt said (Journal Sentinel). In an effort to protect collective bargaining rights, union advocates are threatening to protest to keep unionized workplaces closed and insulated from the crumbling affects of reduced membership.

United for Workers’ Choice

Anti-union conservatives want to promote the choice of workers to become union members, but would prefer they do not unionize. And pro-union advocates want to promote the choice of workers to unionize, and encourage them to do so. It seems odd that two groups arguing for workers’ rights are so bent on limiting the laborer’s choice, relying on coercion to either prevent or compel union membership. Compulsion is no choice at all.

The decision to join a union belongs to workers. If the pro & anti-union groups really want to advocate for the workers’ rights, they’ll support the right of a worker to join a union or abstain. Workers of Wisconsin, unite for choice!

(Also published at the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel - Purple Wisconsin)