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old tricks in the new economy by Nick Mamatas (nillo@agoron.com) - July 28, 2002 |
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| In the Brave New World of the Information Economy, shooting one's employees is frowned upon. The anti-union tactics of the Nineteenth and Twentieth centuries: intimidation, sparking riots, shooting workers in the back as they ran off, etc., are no longer acceptable in the United States, though these methods are widely practiced in the Third World, where much of the planet's manufacturing base has moved. The New Economy has created a new, slicker form of union busting, one that slips a velvet glove over the iron fist of a Pinkerton goon. The first pitched battle between management and labor in the US took place in 1877, along the railroad lines. In many cities, the police sided with the workers against the rail barons, so federal troops were called in and the bodies stacked up. Eighteen were killed in Baltimore, twenty-five in Pittsburgh. Wanting a piece of the action, Allan Pinkerton's Pinkerton Detective Agency branched out into union- and head- busting. Killing workers was much easier than trying to catch Jesse James, after all! The violence against the American working class kept the steel and other industries union free until the Great Depression. In fact, the first private use of a machine gun in the United States was against striking miners in Ludlow, Colorado. The corporate elites did have to deal with unions for the second half of the century, though the 'business unionism' of the 1960s took much of the sting out of the movement. Organized labor was a deer in the headlights in 1980, when Ronald Reagan swept into office and permanently replaced striking air traffic controllers organized by PATCO. While it had previously been legal for striking workers to be permanently replaced, few people had ever done it before. The floodgates were opened and unions were busted all over the United States. Both union membership and average wages declined (coincidence? I think not), and 'company unions' (unions operated by management for management) increased in popularity. Today, the union movement is seemingly dead. In the New Economy, everyone, even the lowest mail room worker, is a 'professional' and above mere solidarity. The use of perma-temps allow employers to save on taxes and benefit payouts. Indeed, more than a few permanent temporary workers find their jobs after being fired from the same position, and being rehired by the company as a temp. Public unions are under attack thanks to cost cutting and workfare, which regularly replaces trained and highly paid union workers with welfare recipients making just over minimum wage. This past December, the City of New York roused a judge out of bed to levy millions of dollars in fines against the Transit Workers Union, which was considering a strike. Law firms specializing in union busting campaigns continue to foil organizing efforts, and some companies are even refusing to deal with unionized firms. Office Depot (which offers overnight delivery of its products in the United States), will not deliver to unions or to workplaces with organized workforces, fearing the contagion of unionization may spread. Too late for them though, Office Depot workers are organizing a union anyway! There are some signs of a turn around. The 1999 World Trade Organization "Battle In Seattle" showed that unions still had some muscles to flex, and a few major strikes, such as UPS in 1997, have won. College students, taking advantage of the tight labor market, have formed the Dirty Jobs Coalition, which encourages people to 'jam' corporate recruiters. The 'jammers' attend recruitment sessions, act interested in working for major polluters like Ford, and then, as a group, decline the jobs, striking before even being hired. Even conservative campuses like Tulane are engaging in protests to stop unfair labor practices. Now that's something new about the economy! The views expressed above represent the writer and not necessarily those of The Disinformation Company Ltd. |
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New Tactics For Labor The Un-'Fair Labor Association' Borders' Position On Unions Employer May Bar Union Organizer From Cafeteria Intel Wins E-Mail Case Tulane United Students Against Sweatshops Do Strikes Lead To Violence? Yes, By Employers And The Government A More Perfect Union Buster Labor Slaps The Smug New Face Of Union Busting Retail Worker Disinformation Dossier On The Battle In Seattle Disinformation Dossier On The World Trade Organization |
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