Oh, Wherefore Art Thou (Union) Brother?

When unions first took hold, a local could count on nearly every single member being present for monthly meetings.  They were involved and they were active – they saw that they had a very real stake in what took place at the meetings and what came of those meetings.  When it came time to consider negotiation of a contract, the members were there, ready to put in their two cents, and ready to see that the officials conducted the negotiations according to their desires.Then, gradually, the attendance began to wane.  There were yards to mow, kids to raise, football games to watch – in short, there were a thousand different excuses available to anyone who just didn’t feel like putting out any effort. “Let the union officials take care of it – that’s what I elected them to do.”

It exactly parrots what so many people say about government. And then, suddenly, we find that those people we “hired” to take care of things have done so in a way that is more self-sevice than public service! 

How dare they!  What gives them the right . . .

We do . . . did . . . No, do.

It is well known that a ship, without someone at the helm will wander its own course, taking whatever current is easiest and most convenient to follow, leading it to a destination far, far different that the on intended by the passengers.  And that is exactly what has happened, not only in government but in unionism.  We the people have ignored our own responsibility to oversee, advise and direct those individuals who we elected to represent us, and if representatives receive no direction, they will, without exception and without hesitation, take the route that they, themselves, see best or to their best advantage.

When we look at the decline in union membership, we must also look at the correspondent decline in the activity of union members within that union.  When we look at the erosion of worker’s rights to organize, we must look at the erosion of members to demand those rights of their representative in Washington and home states.  When we look at the weakening of representation in the negotiating room, we must look at the weakening of spirit and dedication of the rank and file to take and interested part in and failure on the part of the that rank and file to take the responsibility put upon them to keep the union strong.

It can be said, with a great deal of truth, that in so doing, they have, themselves, relinquished their right to have a voice in their own futures – by their very disinterest, they have put a bomb with a lit fuse underneath their best friend and frittered away the hours until it exploded.

Oh!  Not that there isn’t enough blame to go round!  There is plenty!  Congressional opportunists who are far too ready to listen to the interests of the businesses and lobbies that may very well hire them when they get tired of “serving” the country; crooked or negligent union bosses who convince union members to take contracts that are sweetheart and that sell them down the river; the very real efforts of businesses to undermine and discourage, even intimidate those who would even think about organizing – all these are the villains, to be sure.

But, in the end, those who refuse to be enslaved and who are ready to fight for their rights are the ones who are most likely to get those rights.  Those who are willing to continue that fight after the rights are gotten are the ones who are most likely to keep those rights.

There is a new hope – thank you Ronald Reagan for that phrase – for this country beginning on January 20, but whether or not it is realized, and whether or not workers regain and retain their rights will hinge on how much they are willing to work to get them back – and how hard they are willing to work to keep them.

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