Workers ‘Becoming Backbone’ of Health Care Reform Effort
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The active participation of union members is changing the tone of the health care reform town hall meetings going on now during the August congressional recess. What began as forums for anti-Obama propaganda are now becoming platforms for real debate over what kind of reform is needed.
Much of the credit goes to union members who have mobilized to take back the town halls from the campaign of misinformation being waged by extremist groups, some backed by corporate donors and fueled with talking points from extremist Republicans.
Even the stalwart conservative newspaper, The Washington Times, had to admit that union members are making a difference in the tone of the town halls. In today’s edition, the Times says:
Members of the nation’s labor unions have made up a hefty segment of the audiences that flocked to town halls Mr. Obama held in the past week, and they have played an even larger role in a nationwide campaign for an insurance overhaul. Financially, and with boots on the ground, unions have become the backbone of the president’s effort.
Analysis of Labor Board Stats: Workers Who Want a Union Rarely Get One
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Time and again, the evidence shows that when workers try to form unions, they often face harassment and intimidation from their employers. In fact, an analysis of labor board elections by University of California-Davis professor David Brody shows the odds of making it all the way through the process, from filing a petition to getting a first contract, years later, are only 573 out of 2,388 or less than one in four.
Pulling facts from the latest Annual Report of the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB), which covers the fiscal year (FY) running from October 2007 to September 2008, Brody notes:
- During FY 2008, the NLRB closed 2,388 representation cases (NLRB annual report, Table 10).
- Of these, 782 were withdrawn and another 46 were dismissed, presumably before they ever got to an election (NLRB annual report, Table 10).
