Happy Labor Day and the Future of Oragnized Labor

Happy Labor Day! For many, it is a nice day off marking the unofficial end of summer.

Labor Day was initiated to celebrate the contributions of labor.  As we celebrate labor, let us not forget the importance of immigrant workers in the U.S. economy, includi9ng many undocumented workers who find themselves exploited in the labor market..  

Bob Hennelly on Salon has a thoughtful piece (“There’s a future for organized labor — if it welcomes immigrants and supports them.”).  He notes that labor unions have a deeply mixed record on immigration and that most now understand that an alliance with immigrant workers is necessary for a resurgence of organized labor.  Hew writes:

“An alliance between unions and immigrants offers a path forward, as Trump escalates his aggressive campaign to exacerbate racial tensions and target the undocumented immigrants that labor unions are hoping to organize. The relationship between immigrants and labor, in fact, is at the very center of the bitter battle over how the United States chooses to define itself in the 2020 presidential election.

Historically, there have often been political fault lines between undocumented workers and rank-and-file union members. But after years of losing millions of members, labor activists say their movement depends on embracing and elevating immigrants. Today, labor is in a struggle that is not just an ideological fight for social justice, but one for their very survival. As organizations that are defined by a collective effort that purports to be empowered by and for workers, what really matters is where you work, not where you were born.”

KJ