The Ithaca Journal (New York), September 30, 2006, Saturday

The Ithaca Journal
September 30, 2006, Saturday

Leader of breakaway unions speaks at ILR school
By Gabriel Arana
Special to The Journal
http://www.theithacajournal.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060930/NEWS01/609300338/1002

ITHACA — A leader of Change to Win, a group of unions that broke away a year ago from the AFL-CIO, came to Cornell University's labor relations school Friday with a message about the necessity of unionization domestically and across national borders as salaries for CEOs skyrocket and the income disparity between rich and poor widens.
“Distribution used to be better when workers had a voice,” Anna Burger, chairwoman of the Change to Win Federation, told a gathering at Cornell's School of Industrial and Labor Relations. “We have to have enough clout to get elected officials to work for us.” If union density is a suitable measure, the clout of unionized workers has eroded significantly since the 1950s. In 1954, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reports that union density peaked at 35 percent. In 2005, only 12.5 percent of total workers were unionized. For workers in the private sector, the union density is even lower, at 7.8 percent.
“Power is something you have to use to hold onto it,” Burger said.The emphasis on maintaining and increasing this power was at the heart of Change to Win's split from the AFL-CIO, still the country's largest federation of unions.
A year ago, the loose coalition of unions called Change to Win, which had fought for an internal restructuring of the AFL-CIO and pushed for greater focus on registering new members, announced its departure from the AFL-CIO. The move has been viewed as controversial, with some critics suggesting that it could weaken the labor movement by dividing it.
For the most part, Burger steered clear of the issue, mentioning only that Change to Win concentrates more on organizing workers. She added that because of economic globalization, this organizing effort must also include collaboration with unions in other countries.
“The only way to improve standards here is to improve standards in their countries,” Burger said, citing the fact that corporations can now be headquartered anywhere and still employ American workers.
While globalization may broaden the playing field, Burger mentioned that outsourcing is of less concern to the service industry workers that Change to Win represents — hotel, farm, and carpenter workers, to name a few. These jobs, she said, “are not going anywhere.”
Before fielding questions from the largely student audience, Burger encouraged them to use their unique skills to assist the labor movement.
“Students have long been at the forefront of fighting for social change,” she said.
Reminding those present of the privilege of education, Burger asked them to take notice of the service industry workers that help keep the university running.
“We want you to learn how to step up, how not to look the other way,” she said.