At the Executive Council meeting in March, James Hoffa, president of the International Brotherhood of Teamsters, said the debate (over rebates for organizing) is not about dollars, but a “vision of the future of the labor movement.” He defined his and his supporters’ vision: “to create the structure necessary to empower workers at the bargaining table, in their communities, and in the political process.” Is that the best we can hope for and fight for?
Labor leaders of the past had a richer vision that they and their union members were willing to fight and die for: eight hours of work, eight hours of rest, and eight hours to do whatever they wished. That was their legacy to us. What will our legacy be to working people of the future?
A British poet wrote: “A man’s reach should exceed his grasp or what’s a heaven for?” We have an obligation to aspire for the seemingly impossible and fight to make them come true. At the forthcoming AFL-CIO convention, let’s proclaim the kind of world, we want for our children, grandchildrenand those who come after them, where:
• Every adult who is able and willing to work can find a decent job;
• A proper safety net for the poor, disabled and elderly;
• Health insurance is universal.
• Workers have greater control of their lives on the job;
• Racial, sexual and other forms of discrimination become unacceptable;
• International labor solidarity helps workers in poor countries,
• Labor is an important factor in promoting world peace.
With only 10 weeks left before the start of the AFL-CIO convention, this is still an opportune time to discuss the future of the labor movement: what our goals are and how we hope to achieve them.
Every candidate for the three top AFL-CIO executive positions and the 54 seats on the Executive Council should be required to state their vision of labor’s future and be judged by their responses. We can no longer afford to have national leaders who get automatically re-elected without stating their views on critical issues.
It is not enough to say, as Hoffa does, that labor should be “empowered.” Sweeney also wants workers to have a “voice.” What, exactly, do those words mean? And how is this “vision” to be achieved? Sad to say, no one in the AFL-CIO hierarchy has come up with convincing answers.
What should be clear by now is that business unionism doesn’t work. If we expect to recruit millions of workers, we have to broaden our vision and our message to include issues where workers feel helpless and would welcome our assistance.
In the 1930s, organized labor was recognized as “champion of the working class.” We have some way to go to merit that image, but we should strive for it.
Our weekly “LaborTalk” and “The World of Labor” columns can be viewed at our Web site: www.laboreducator.org Harry Kelber’s e-mail address is:
hkelber@igc.org
