As unions decline, inequality rises

[discocrisco01]

Source:EPI

To a remarkable extent, inequality, which fell during the New Deal but has risen dramatically since the late 1970s, corresponds to the rise and fall of unionization in the United States.

The passage in 1935 of the National Labor Relations Act, which protected and encouraged unions, sparked a wave of unionization that led to three decades of shared prosperity and what some call the Great Compression: when the share of national income taken by the very rich was cut by one-third. The “countervailing power” of labor unions (not just at the bargaining table but in local, state, and national politics) gave them the ability to raise wages and working standards for members and non-members alike. Both median compensation and labor productivity roughly doubled into the early 1970s. Labor unions both sustained prosperity, and ensured that it was shared; union bargaining power has been shown to moderate the compensation of executives at unionized firms.

However, over the next 30 years—an era highlighted by the filibuster of labor law reform in 1978, the Reagan administration’s crushing of the PATCO strike, and the passage of anti-worker trade deals with Mexico and China—labor’s bargaining power collapsed. The consequences are driven home by the figure below, which juxtaposes the historical trajectory of union density and the income share claimed by the richest 10 percent of Americans. Union membership has fallen and income inequality has worsened—reaching levels not seen since the 1920s.

Read more at: https://www.epi.org/publication/unions-decline-inequality-rises/

[walkingman]

1. I'm a retired union member who has a pension and good healthcare due

to the fact I had a union representing me for over 30 years. Although I see union staging a comeback of late and winning some battles it is by no means anything like it was prior to the 80's.

American corporations and politicians have destroyed the US labor movement. I saw union approval begin to decline in the 80's and by the turn of the century union members began to not appreciate the things that unions were doing for them. At the local level there are a lot of everyday grievances some significant and many trivial. However, the primary benefits and importance of Unions comes at the National Level. Companies have a "contractual obligation" for benefits, pensions, wages, and even day-to-day work rules.

Corporation like to "play like" they care about your well-being and they do in the sense that a satisfied employee is more productive that a dissatisfied one but when times are "lean" all of that goes out the window and you are just a number - expendable, an expense, much like middle mgmt.

Executives, like union members, have a contract and with that rights and contractual obligations and are not so easily dismissed.

The American worker needs to more clearly understand UNIONS and maybe forget the mindset of getting rich quick and instead have a work life that is fulfilling and dependable so they can better enjoy their time at work and also away from work.

Just my opinion....based on my life experience.