Omaha Steve's Labor Group

douglas9

(4,474 posts) Sat Jan 22, 2022, 09:39 AM Jan 2022

Here's Why American Workers Are (a) Screwed and (b) Quitting

So, 2021 was a banner year for American workers, right? Wages rising, unemployment low, the revival of the strike, unions’ approval rating at its highest level (68 percent) in 50 years, and the most pro-labor administration in American history—things looking up, no?

No. Not by a long shot.

Yesterday, the Bureau of Labor Statistics released its annual count of unionized workers, which made clear that the 70-year decline of unions—that is, of worker power—continues apace. The share of unionized American workers dropped from 10.8 percent last year to 10.3 percent this year (tying the all-time low set in 2019), and the rate among private-sector workers also hit a new rock bottom of 6.1 percent, which is about one-seventh of its level in the middle of the 20th century.

With so much apparently going workers’ way, including their record-high level of support for unions, how do we explain this continuing decline?

https://prospect.org/labor/heres-why-american-workers-are-screwed-and-quitting/

3 replies

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Here's Why American Workers Are (a) Screwed and (b) Quitting (Original Post) douglas9 Jan 2022 OP

The people fighting most passionately against unions are those who would beneft from them Orrex Jan 2022 #1

Our media is giving us a false picture of our economy, including continuing to call price gouging, ShazamIam Jan 2022 #2

If you were born in 1980 or after, all you've ever heard is that unions are bad. CrispyQ Jan 2022 #3

Orrex

(64,105 posts)

1. The people fighting most passionately against unions are those who would beneft from them

Reply to douglas9 (Original post)

Sat Jan 22, 2022, 10:06 AM

Jan 2022

But they've bought into the bullshit dispensed by Fux Noise and other Reichwing propaganda nozzles and are happy to lick their owners' boots for decreasing relative wages & benefits.

ShazamIam

(2,702 posts)

2. Our media is giving us a false picture of our economy, including continuing to call price gouging,

Reply to douglas9 (Original post)

Sat Jan 22, 2022, 10:12 AM

Jan 2022

inflation. when there is not much gain in wages, the increases are random, and many from states that have increased the minimum wage. Here is California's increases in the minimum wage increases for the last several years.

The current minimum for California employers with 26 or more employees is $15/hr.

https://www.dir.ca.gov/dlse/FAQ_MinimumWage.htm

List of other states with higher than the Federal minimum:

https://www.dol.gov/agencies/whd/mw-consolidated

CrispyQ

(38,266 posts)

3. If you were born in 1980 or after, all you've ever heard is that unions are bad.

Reply to douglas9 (Original post)

Sat Jan 22, 2022, 10:14 AM

Jan 2022

Couple that with a public education system that has been deliberately sabotaged & probably no longer teaches about the labor movement & you have a generation of workers who don't value unions.

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