National Journal's CongressDaily, March 19, 2007, Monday
Copyright 2007 National Journal Group, Inc.
National Journal's CongressDaily
EDITION: pm
SECTION: LABOR
HEADLINE: Dems Strengthen Union Ties While Stressing Moderation
BODY:
Organized labor's clout in Congress has skyrocketed since Democrats assumed control, even as union membership hovers at around 7 percent of the private sector workforce, the lowest in modern history. Since January, the House has passed labor's No. 1 priority, a "card-check" bill that would make it easier for unions to organize, and it has approved prevailing wage requirements for federal contractors working on water projects. The House and Senate approved a measure allowing Transportation Security Administration workers to form unions. Sources say labor's new heft also is contributing to shifts on immigration legislation, and the relatively small International Association of Fire Fighters legislative conference received national attention with visits from high-profile Republican and Democratic presidential candidates. "It's remarkable, I think, that they would disproportionately influence [Congress] compared to their membership," said Jefferson Cowie, associate professor of labor history at Cornell University's School of Industrial and Labor Relations. "It's their political due. . . . They give a ton of money, of course, to Democrats, and they never really received anything." Since the Taft-Hartley labor law passed in 1947, he added, "Labor law reform has been their No. 1 priority, and it never happens."
International Association of Fire Fighters spokesman Jeff Zack said the union's success in attracting Republicans and Democrats to its legislative conference reflected the union's reputation for moderation. About one-third of IAFF's endorsements go to Republicans, and at least as many members vote Republican. But, Zack added, IAFF has had trouble in Republican-controlled Congresses getting action on even narrowly tailored union issues relating just to firefighters. "Democrats are more supportive of worker rights and worker issues," he said. For Zack, it is not a surprise that long-simmering labor issues are being placed at center stage since Democrats assumed control. "Labor does an overwhelming amount of the work that needs to be done every election year to get Democrats elected," he said. "Democrats know where their bread is buttered." Union-endorsed Republicans are not off the hook, Zack said. "We have built friendships with a number of Republicans in the past decade. . . . Now, those friendships are going to be tested."
Business lobbyists and Republicans engaged in rebuffing union successes say that Democratic leaders may be more dedicated to strictly union issues than rank-and-file members and that the legislative successes may not play well with the electorate at large. One Republican staffer described the House's swift action on the card-check bill as "ripping off a Band-Aid" by passing a bill quickly and early that could hurt Democratic efforts to show the new majority is governing from the middle. With President Bush's veto threat hanging over the card-check bill, Cornell's Cowie said, some Democrats might view supporting it as a free vote. If a Democrat wins the White House in 2008, he said, "then the vote will have actual consequences." The potential of a Democratic White House is prompting businesses to continue communicating with Democrats who voted in favor of it, according to a business lobbyist. Business, the lobbyist said, is delivering the message: "After November '08, there might not be a veto threat. ... This bill is not going to go away."
-- by Fawn Johnson
<< Home