With all due respect to hard working labor union members in the United States, this Labor Day marks a landmark event. A shift in labor union membership, that ought to concern every business owner who is expected to compete for sales in the marketplace, has occurred in 2010. In fact, the shift in labor union membership ought to concern every taxpayer in the United States.
According to the Heritage Foundation, this Labor Day marks the year in which public sector (government) union members surpassed private sector union members. Public sector union members now stand at 52% of the union population.
The New York Times weighed in with: "Notwithstanding the recession, government employment grew last year, inching up 16,000, to 22,516,000, according to the bureau [BLS]." The article, "Most U.S. Union Members Are Working for the Government, New Data Shows," went on to say that "the rate of private-sector unionization fell because two sectors where unions are especially strong -- manufacturing and construction -- suffered especially large job losses", during this recession.
Why should this be a concern to employers? First, you do not compete on a level playing field. Government paid for or subsidized employment and products are not subject to the ebbs and flows of the competitive market place. Public sector labor union salaries are not dependent on competition for business or sales.
The numbers also indicate a decline in America's industrial base. In some industries, to use electronics as an example, it is impossible to find a product that is made in America. My new Lenovo ThinkPad was made in and shipped to me from China, for example. Flat screen televisions are another.
Who Pays Union Members?
Compensation paid to organized workers is provided by American taxpayers in a marketplace that provides few checks and balances. Furthermore, a portion of every dollar paid to many union members funds political action committees (PACs) that make direct contributions to election campaigns and support political causes. Not a problem? Think about it. Your tax dollars fund political causes that you may or may not support.
(This is one of my periodic columns that highlight economic numbers - see here and here - that should interest employers.)
All Topics | Most Popular | Newsletter | HR Forum | Join Susan: Twitter | LinkedIn | Facebook | RSS