September 2005 IBEW Journal
The disaffiliation of three major unions from the AFL-CIO has brought the labor movement more media attention that it has had in years—for all the wrong reasons.
President Hill and Secretary-Treasurer Walters stand with
the IBEW delegation to the recent AFL-CIO Convention.
Photo: Bill Burke/Page One
It was painful to lead the sizable IBEW delegation at the convention which marked the 50th anniversary of the AFL-CIO. In 1955, the rival American Federation of Labor (AFL) and Congress of Industrial Organizations (CIO) came together ending what had been a difficult 18-year split. Now, after 50 years of solidarity that was sometimes shaky but always held, the Service Employees International Union (SEIU), Teamsters and United Food and Commercial Workers (UFCW) have severed their ties to the federation, taking with them approximately 25 percent of the members who were under the AFL-CIO banner.
These three unions are the major players in what is called the Change to Win coalition, which also includes UNITE-HERE (the union of garment and hospitality industry workers), the Laborers’ International Union of North America, the United Farm Workers and the International Brotherhood of Carpenters, which has been outside the AFL-CIO for four years. As of this writing, the Laborers and UNITE-HERE are still in the AFL-CIO, but may leave before participating in the Change to Win convention in late September at which the coalition will formalize an alternative federation.
There was much rhetoric on both sides and in the media about policy differences being the root cause of the split. In reality, both the Change to Win union and those choosing to stay in the federation were in general agreement that the economic ground had shifted under workers’ feet and that changes were necessary. The SEIU and others proposed worthwhile ideas, many of which were recommended by the AFL-CIO Executive Council and adopted at the convention, as the accompanying article shows. There were differences over dollars and cents, but none of these were substantial enough to cause the rupture of the movement. The real reason for the union’s disaffiliation seems to be that they simply could not accept the continued leadership of AFL-CIO President John Sweeney and his administration and did not have the votes to elect an alternative candidate.
So much of this is inside baseball, a dispute between leaders at the international level. What does it mean for the men or women who go to work every day and depend on their union for their economic survival?
For IBEW members, the short term effect of the split will be minimal. Our Brotherhood has for years been emphasizing organizing, growth and consolidation within our core industries as necessary to our survival. We have confronted the need to change the way we do business, implementing changes for our locals in all industries. We have also streamlined our International Office operations to create greater efficiency and cost savings. We have been practicing the “new ideas” set forth by other unions.
The negative effects of the split, however, cannot be underestimated, especially at the local level. Many central labor councils, state federations and local building trades councils will feel the impact of lost revenue and lost participation of the departed unions. Many councils will have to make a choice between enforcing the provisions of the AFL-CIO Constitution, which holds that a local must be part of a parent union that is affiliated at the national level, or holding the movement together in their area. This could have a severe, negative impact on labor’s ability to lobby for pro-worker legislation at the state and local level and support candidates for all elective offices who stand with working people. This weakens labor’s grassroots strength at a time when we need more friendly candidates and are trying to elect more union members to office.
The situation could be worst in construction. If the Laborers leave and work with the Carpenters and Teamsters to form a parallel building trades organization, the fight for work and jurisdiction, already difficult in some places, could get much worse. The only people who would benefit from that scenario are the nonunion contractors.
There are more questions than answers at this point, but several things are clear. The IBEW remains in the AFL-CIO and will abide by its rules while continuing to work with the disaffiliated unions on issues of common concern. Our goal is the reunification of the labor movement, and we will not create hostility that fosters further divisions. We will, however, take all steps to protect the best interest of our members and, our jurisdiction and our position in our core industries of construction, utilities, telecommunications, manufacturing, government, railroads and broadcasting. We will continue to organize and grow. This is our mandate as found in the IBEW Constitution, and this is what we will do.
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