The labor movement fight for economic justice continues on.
Labor Day was likely first observed on 5 September 1882 when some 10,000 workers amassed in New York City for a parade. Today as then, labor movement workers continue to face fearsome opposition from wealthy people and politicians funded by special interests. Labor Day at AutoInformed this year is of particular significance given the ongoing struggles of a resurgent United Auto Workers Union trying to negotiate a new contract that would give UAW members and the middle-class communities they sustain some security and a piece of profits that CEOs and Board of Directors at the Big Three want to retain for themselves or others.
“As we head into Labor Day, we ought to take a step back and take note of the fact that America is now in one of the strongest job-creating periods in the history of our country, President Biden said three days ago when the latest jobs report was released.” However, AutoInformed along with the UAW observes that there are dark forces at work against working people.
Lately very little of the awesome profits of the auto industry generates trickled down to the people who put the vehicles together even though they are at the center of the business. The core issue remains the vast differences in wealth accumulation, retention and expansion among different classes and races. The existing and growing inequalities make a mockery of the “We the People,” the collective opening of our founding Declaration. (AutoInformed: Ford UAW Offer – Pay Increases, Tiers Gone. UAW says No)
Click for more.
Let us pause here to remember and reflect on Walter P. Reuther (1907 – 1970). “There is no greater calling than to serve your fellow man. There is no greater satisfaction than to have done it well,” he famously said. Reuther built the United Automobile Workers into one of the most awakened and progressive forces in American history. A fierce champion of collective bargaining, Reuther also had a much larger vision of American society then many of our mere politicians – then or now. He viewed the labor movement in the context of community – the whole community. Led by Reuther, the UAW fought for civil rights, health care, affordable housing, environmental protections among other things. But most of all the UAW promoted democratic trade unionism (small d) globally.
It’s not surprising to AutoInformed that majorities of Americans continue to see the long-term decline in the share of workers represented by unions as a bad thing for both the country and working people in the United States. According to a Pew Research Center survey conducted from 27 March to 2 April 2 of this year: The share of U.S. workers who belong to a union has fallen since 1983, when 20.1% of American workers were union members. In 2022, 10.1% of U.S. workers were in a union.
“While there are modest demographic differences in the perceived impacts of the decline in union membership, partisan differences are much more pronounced,” Pew said. “Roughly three-quarters of Democrats and Democratic-leaning independents (76%) say the decline in the percentage of workers represented by unions in recent decades has been very or somewhat bad for the country, and an identical share say it has been bad for working people. Among Republicans and so-called GOP leaners, 40% say the decline of organized labor has been bad for the country and 45% say it has been bad for working people.
However, AutoInformed notes this: “Among Republicans, there are sizable age, educational and income divides in views about the impact of the decline of union membership on working people. The differences among Democrats are more modest,” Pew said. Specifically, younger people who said they were Republican stand out. The party is badly out of step with many of the people in this country – including its younger members on a wide variety of issues. (AutoInformed: Republicans Increasing Support of IRA Climate Perks?)
“Older Republicans are more likely than younger Republicans to view the decline in union membership as good for working people: 64% of Republicans ages 65 and older say the decline of unions has been very or somewhat good for working people, compared with 39% of those under the age of 40. Upper-income Republicans (65%) are more likely than their counterparts in the middle- (53%) and lower-income (44%) tiers to view the decline in union membership as very or somewhat good for working people,” Pew said. Therefore even young Republicans try to build lives are not comfortable with the ways things are, and the way the party is heading.
It’s time to Change Things for a Better Common Good
“And it wasn’t that long ago that America was losing jobs. In fact, my predecessor was the – one of only two presidents in history who entered his presidency and left with fewer jobs than when he entered,” President Biden said. (The last one was Republican Herbert Hoover who ushered in the Great Depression – AutoCrat. Ironically, Biden has his own problems with the UAW, even as Bidenomics is clearly working: UAW Blasts Biden and Inflation Reduction Act)
That first NYC Labor Day parade prompted similar events across the country. By 1894 more than half the states were observing a “workingmen’s holiday” on one day or another. Later that year, Congress passed legislation and President Grover Cleveland signed into law on 29 June that the first Monday in September was designated “Labor Day.” The turnout this year remains to be seen, but it will likely be large, perhaps an overwhelming endorsement of the need for change. (Cleveland was a Democrat and mayor of NYC, Governor of New York and the 22nd and 24th president of the United States during a period when Republicans dominated national politics.)
“I have often said that the middle class built this country and that unions built the middle class. On Labor Day, we honor that essential truth and the dedication and dignity of American workers, who power our Nation’s prosperity,” Biden said in his Labor Day proclamation. “They have built the railways, highways, and waterways that connect us from coast to coast, have forged the look and feel of American cities, and have protected our communities and families as first responders. Organized workers have fundamentally transformed how we live and work in this country – from securing the 8-hour workday and overtime pay to mandating standard safety practices in workplaces and earning better health care, pensions, and other benefits for all workers.
“American workers are the best in the world, but over the past few decades, too many leaders embraced an economic theory that failed them and our unions. It is called trickle-down economics It is the belief that we should cut taxes for the wealthy and big corporations and wait for the benefits to trickle down to workers and American families. It is a belief that we should shrink public investment in infrastructure and public education. It is a tax policy that encourages corporations to move operations and jobs overseas,” Biden said.
“On Labor Day, we stand in solidarity with all the workers who lift our Nation to new heights and all the labor unions who give all workers power and voice. May we continue working to restore the American Dream for every person willing to work hard in our Nation by embracing what has always been the foundation of our country’s success: investing in America and American workers.
“Now, Therefore, I, Joseph R. Biden Jr., President of the United States of America, by virtue of the authority vested in me by the Constitution and the laws of the United States, do hereby proclaim September 4, 2023, as Labor Day. I call upon all public officials and people of the United States to observe this day with appropriate programs, ceremonies, and activities that honor the energy and innovation of working Americans.”
Labor Day – UAW Struggles Are Key to The American Dream
The labor movement fight for economic justice continues on.
Labor Day was likely first observed on 5 September 1882 when some 10,000 workers amassed in New York City for a parade. Today as then, labor movement workers continue to face fearsome opposition from wealthy people and politicians funded by special interests. Labor Day at AutoInformed this year is of particular significance given the ongoing struggles of a resurgent United Auto Workers Union trying to negotiate a new contract that would give UAW members and the middle-class communities they sustain some security and a piece of profits that CEOs and Board of Directors at the Big Three want to retain for themselves or others.
“As we head into Labor Day, we ought to take a step back and take note of the fact that America is now in one of the strongest job-creating periods in the history of our country, President Biden said three days ago when the latest jobs report was released.” However, AutoInformed along with the UAW observes that there are dark forces at work against working people.
Lately very little of the awesome profits of the auto industry generates trickled down to the people who put the vehicles together even though they are at the center of the business. The core issue remains the vast differences in wealth accumulation, retention and expansion among different classes and races. The existing and growing inequalities make a mockery of the “We the People,” the collective opening of our founding Declaration. (AutoInformed: Ford UAW Offer – Pay Increases, Tiers Gone. UAW says No)
Click for more.
Let us pause here to remember and reflect on Walter P. Reuther (1907 – 1970). “There is no greater calling than to serve your fellow man. There is no greater satisfaction than to have done it well,” he famously said. Reuther built the United Automobile Workers into one of the most awakened and progressive forces in American history. A fierce champion of collective bargaining, Reuther also had a much larger vision of American society then many of our mere politicians – then or now. He viewed the labor movement in the context of community – the whole community. Led by Reuther, the UAW fought for civil rights, health care, affordable housing, environmental protections among other things. But most of all the UAW promoted democratic trade unionism (small d) globally.
It’s not surprising to AutoInformed that majorities of Americans continue to see the long-term decline in the share of workers represented by unions as a bad thing for both the country and working people in the United States. According to a Pew Research Center survey conducted from 27 March to 2 April 2 of this year: The share of U.S. workers who belong to a union has fallen since 1983, when 20.1% of American workers were union members. In 2022, 10.1% of U.S. workers were in a union.
“While there are modest demographic differences in the perceived impacts of the decline in union membership, partisan differences are much more pronounced,” Pew said. “Roughly three-quarters of Democrats and Democratic-leaning independents (76%) say the decline in the percentage of workers represented by unions in recent decades has been very or somewhat bad for the country, and an identical share say it has been bad for working people. Among Republicans and so-called GOP leaners, 40% say the decline of organized labor has been bad for the country and 45% say it has been bad for working people.
However, AutoInformed notes this: “Among Republicans, there are sizable age, educational and income divides in views about the impact of the decline of union membership on working people. The differences among Democrats are more modest,” Pew said. Specifically, younger people who said they were Republican stand out. The party is badly out of step with many of the people in this country – including its younger members on a wide variety of issues. (AutoInformed: Republicans Increasing Support of IRA Climate Perks?)
“Older Republicans are more likely than younger Republicans to view the decline in union membership as good for working people: 64% of Republicans ages 65 and older say the decline of unions has been very or somewhat good for working people, compared with 39% of those under the age of 40. Upper-income Republicans (65%) are more likely than their counterparts in the middle- (53%) and lower-income (44%) tiers to view the decline in union membership as very or somewhat good for working people,” Pew said. Therefore even young Republicans try to build lives are not comfortable with the ways things are, and the way the party is heading.
It’s time to Change Things for a Better Common Good
“And it wasn’t that long ago that America was losing jobs. In fact, my predecessor was the – one of only two presidents in history who entered his presidency and left with fewer jobs than when he entered,” President Biden said. (The last one was Republican Herbert Hoover who ushered in the Great Depression – AutoCrat. Ironically, Biden has his own problems with the UAW, even as Bidenomics is clearly working: UAW Blasts Biden and Inflation Reduction Act)
That first NYC Labor Day parade prompted similar events across the country. By 1894 more than half the states were observing a “workingmen’s holiday” on one day or another. Later that year, Congress passed legislation and President Grover Cleveland signed into law on 29 June that the first Monday in September was designated “Labor Day.” The turnout this year remains to be seen, but it will likely be large, perhaps an overwhelming endorsement of the need for change. (Cleveland was a Democrat and mayor of NYC, Governor of New York and the 22nd and 24th president of the United States during a period when Republicans dominated national politics.)
“I have often said that the middle class built this country and that unions built the middle class. On Labor Day, we honor that essential truth and the dedication and dignity of American workers, who power our Nation’s prosperity,” Biden said in his Labor Day proclamation. “They have built the railways, highways, and waterways that connect us from coast to coast, have forged the look and feel of American cities, and have protected our communities and families as first responders. Organized workers have fundamentally transformed how we live and work in this country – from securing the 8-hour workday and overtime pay to mandating standard safety practices in workplaces and earning better health care, pensions, and other benefits for all workers.
“American workers are the best in the world, but over the past few decades, too many leaders embraced an economic theory that failed them and our unions. It is called trickle-down economics It is the belief that we should cut taxes for the wealthy and big corporations and wait for the benefits to trickle down to workers and American families. It is a belief that we should shrink public investment in infrastructure and public education. It is a tax policy that encourages corporations to move operations and jobs overseas,” Biden said.
“On Labor Day, we stand in solidarity with all the workers who lift our Nation to new heights and all the labor unions who give all workers power and voice. May we continue working to restore the American Dream for every person willing to work hard in our Nation by embracing what has always been the foundation of our country’s success: investing in America and American workers.
“Now, Therefore, I, Joseph R. Biden Jr., President of the United States of America, by virtue of the authority vested in me by the Constitution and the laws of the United States, do hereby proclaim September 4, 2023, as Labor Day. I call upon all public officials and people of the United States to observe this day with appropriate programs, ceremonies, and activities that honor the energy and innovation of working Americans.”