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| Sandy Pope accepts nomination for Teamster president |
Sister Pope is a member of the Teamsters For a Democratic Union (TDU) and is endorsed by that organization and Labor Notes. This blog also recommends to readers who are Teamster members to vote sister Pope the Union’s new General President. She is the obvious choice in this race and has pledged a more grassroots campaign relying on mobilizing the membership.
Having said that we would like to raise some issues for discussion because, as we saw in Wisconsin, Union members were mobilized (after moving in to action from below) but completely accepted concessions----only demanding to keep the right to negotiate them. We read over sister Pope’s campaign literature and watched some videos to get an idea of what she intends to do that is significantly different from the present leadership. Much of the campaign material talks of the candidate’s work history and personal integrity which is relevant and naturally important to anyone who plans to vote for her. But if personal traits are made a dominant issue in an election, what are we saying about an opponent who also claims integrity? It becomes a personal popularity contest. There are some issues that those of us who support this blog think are crucial if the present direction Union leaders like James Hoffa and others have taken us is to be reversed. We think it’s important to encourage public discussion about this.
Team Concept
This is the most damaging strategy put forward by the strategists of organized Labor today and to our knowledge no major Union official publicly opposes it. There appears to be no mention of the Team Concept in the reform candidates’ campaign material that we are aware of; no pledge to abandon it. In fact, she makes the point that the Teamsters under her leadership will “take on the non-Union competition” which appears to be a continuation of the policies that flow from the Team Concept strategy. It is possible that by using the term, “take on” sister Pope meant take them “on” board as Teamster members. She does talk about a long-term goal to organize non-Union trucking but her position is not clear on this and from our point of view we cannot begin to turn things around if this policy is not abandoned.
The candidate correctly slams the politicians, “who couldn’t care less about us” and points out that the Union spends lots of money on them. But there is a tendency for top Labor officials to condemn politics in general and blame the betrayals on personal failures or an example of bad character which is the disposition of all politicians. But the problem is that organized Labor traditionally supports the Democratic Party, a party of Wall Street that will always represent the interests of capital. A political party does not exist in a vacuum; it has class content. The Democrats betray us because they are representing opposing interests, not because of personal character flaws.
Organized Labor has the structure, finances and human resources to build a working people’s political alternative to the two capitalist parties on a platform that actually campaigns and fights for what people need to live a decent life. This could attract millions of workers and youth and transform the balance of class forces in the US. To continue to support the Democrats is the political equivalent of the Team Concept in the workplace and is a mistake. There is a tendency for the Labor hierarchy to support politicians as individuals (who are usually Democrats.) due to the disdain most workers have for the political parties in the US, but politics is not about individuals.
Sister Pope argues that to bring back the power of the Union a new leadership needs to “communicate more” and have the members “talk to their neighbors” “People should demand what we have not the other way round” she says which is exactly right. Every concession we agree to drives us all down further and further.
The public sector Union leaders have supported massive concessions giving away jobs, benefits and rights that took years to win in order to help the public sector bosses compete with the private in a so-called “difficult economy” and the Teamster reformer was asked about this in a CNN interview. She responded that if elected her leadership will “educate members so they understand where their interests lie”. Strengthening class-consciousness among workers, teaching about our history and the great struggles of our past like the rise of the CIO and industrial Unionism and the general strikes and plant occupations that took place in the 1930’s is always positive thing along with learning from the weaknesses like racism and sexism in the Unions. But it is important to recognize that in the past period whenever workers have gone on the offensive to defend our interests against the employers’ attacks they have come up against a wall of resistance from their own leaders whose Team Concept idea leads them to defend the employers.
Sister Pope also commented on CNN that workers/Union members, “can’t just be anti-tax” and that “taxes are good” when they go to support Medicare, education and the elderly etc. We agree with her but this is a slippery slope as even multi-billionaires like Warren Buffet and George Soros are calling for increased taxes on their money. This is due to the danger of social unrest spreading in the aftermath of the economic crisis. These people have all sorts of ways to avoid taxes and it is clear Obama is going to use the issue of taxing the rich as he is being pushed to the left somewhat by the OWS movement.
We are all for making the rich pay for a crisis of their making. But the politicians in the two Wall Street parties will always design tax reform in a way that leaves their constituents a loop hole and will use minor tax concessions from the rich to force further concessions from workers under the guise of “shared sacrifice”. No increased taxes on workers or the middle class would be a safer bet. Money can come from corporate America and from the corporations that are hoarding it as well as by ending the wars. But we need a mass movement to make that happen and the Teamsters can play a powerful role in this.
The Union movement can take the lead here by organizing the unorganized and fighting to increase the minimum wage by 50% at least. By actively including the unorganized workers and our communities we can build a movement that can win a shorter workweek, increased pay and strengthen the Union presence on the job. “Coordinating bargaining” and simply helping locals with administrative resources, grievance handling and research for negotiations etc. is important but it is clear that it is not at the negotiation table where victory can be assured.
Finally, we think it is necessary for any Union reformer to raise the issue of the obscene salaries that top Union officials make. Campaigning for no paid Union official to receive pay greater than the average wage of the members they work for would receive tremendous support from organized Labor’s rank and file and we hope sister Pope will consider making this an issue. Being a Union leader should not be a road to riches profession. Our movement was built through great heroism and sacrifice and while everyone deserves a decent wage, it is the honor of serving working people and being willing to sacrifice that should be the motive for any candidate running for election.
Labor Notes has more on the Teamster election here
The candidate correctly slams the politicians, “who couldn’t care less about us” and points out that the Union spends lots of money on them. But there is a tendency for top Labor officials to condemn politics in general and blame the betrayals on personal failures or an example of bad character which is the disposition of all politicians. But the problem is that organized Labor traditionally supports the Democratic Party, a party of Wall Street that will always represent the interests of capital. A political party does not exist in a vacuum; it has class content. The Democrats betray us because they are representing opposing interests, not because of personal character flaws.
Organized Labor has the structure, finances and human resources to build a working people’s political alternative to the two capitalist parties on a platform that actually campaigns and fights for what people need to live a decent life. This could attract millions of workers and youth and transform the balance of class forces in the US. To continue to support the Democrats is the political equivalent of the Team Concept in the workplace and is a mistake. There is a tendency for the Labor hierarchy to support politicians as individuals (who are usually Democrats.) due to the disdain most workers have for the political parties in the US, but politics is not about individuals.
Sister Pope argues that to bring back the power of the Union a new leadership needs to “communicate more” and have the members “talk to their neighbors” “People should demand what we have not the other way round” she says which is exactly right. Every concession we agree to drives us all down further and further.
The public sector Union leaders have supported massive concessions giving away jobs, benefits and rights that took years to win in order to help the public sector bosses compete with the private in a so-called “difficult economy” and the Teamster reformer was asked about this in a CNN interview. She responded that if elected her leadership will “educate members so they understand where their interests lie”. Strengthening class-consciousness among workers, teaching about our history and the great struggles of our past like the rise of the CIO and industrial Unionism and the general strikes and plant occupations that took place in the 1930’s is always positive thing along with learning from the weaknesses like racism and sexism in the Unions. But it is important to recognize that in the past period whenever workers have gone on the offensive to defend our interests against the employers’ attacks they have come up against a wall of resistance from their own leaders whose Team Concept idea leads them to defend the employers.
Sister Pope also commented on CNN that workers/Union members, “can’t just be anti-tax” and that “taxes are good” when they go to support Medicare, education and the elderly etc. We agree with her but this is a slippery slope as even multi-billionaires like Warren Buffet and George Soros are calling for increased taxes on their money. This is due to the danger of social unrest spreading in the aftermath of the economic crisis. These people have all sorts of ways to avoid taxes and it is clear Obama is going to use the issue of taxing the rich as he is being pushed to the left somewhat by the OWS movement.
We are all for making the rich pay for a crisis of their making. But the politicians in the two Wall Street parties will always design tax reform in a way that leaves their constituents a loop hole and will use minor tax concessions from the rich to force further concessions from workers under the guise of “shared sacrifice”. No increased taxes on workers or the middle class would be a safer bet. Money can come from corporate America and from the corporations that are hoarding it as well as by ending the wars. But we need a mass movement to make that happen and the Teamsters can play a powerful role in this.
The Union movement can take the lead here by organizing the unorganized and fighting to increase the minimum wage by 50% at least. By actively including the unorganized workers and our communities we can build a movement that can win a shorter workweek, increased pay and strengthen the Union presence on the job. “Coordinating bargaining” and simply helping locals with administrative resources, grievance handling and research for negotiations etc. is important but it is clear that it is not at the negotiation table where victory can be assured.
Finally, we think it is necessary for any Union reformer to raise the issue of the obscene salaries that top Union officials make. Campaigning for no paid Union official to receive pay greater than the average wage of the members they work for would receive tremendous support from organized Labor’s rank and file and we hope sister Pope will consider making this an issue. Being a Union leader should not be a road to riches profession. Our movement was built through great heroism and sacrifice and while everyone deserves a decent wage, it is the honor of serving working people and being willing to sacrifice that should be the motive for any candidate running for election.
Labor Notes has more on the Teamster election here
Sandy Pope’s campaign video here
Interview on CNN Here
* For an excellent account of Hoffa read: Hoffa and the Teamsters by Ralph and Estelle James which also gives a detailed account of Farrel Dobbs' contribution to the Union and his influence on Hoffa
* For an excellent account of Hoffa read: Hoffa and the Teamsters by Ralph and Estelle James which also gives a detailed account of Farrel Dobbs' contribution to the Union and his influence on Hoffa
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