WHEREAS:
The American economy no longer works for working people. Years into a strong economic recovery that has more than restored the fortunes of corporations and the richest 1 percent, incomes for ordinary Americans remain stagnant, making it harder for workers just to make ends meet; and
WHEREAS:
Working people face steep challenges caring for families, arranging affordable child care, getting time off when sick, and paying for a college education that’s more necessary than ever. And after a lifetime of work, the current generation of workers faces a financially precarious retirement; and
WHEREAS:
At the same time, American workers are less and less able to rely on public services and infrastructure, such as accessible child care, affordable college tuition and overloaded roads, bridges and public transit systems, as funding for such essential public goods has steadily eroded; and
WHEREAS:
These economic problems are not the result of immutable economic forces or laws, and they’re not because America can’t afford to do better. They are the result of intentional policy choices that have drastically increased income inequality, with virtually all gains in income going to those already at the top of the income ladder, while also tilting the balance of power toward those same economic elites. Those harmful policy choices include weakening labor unions, cutting taxes, deregulating Wall Street and promoting trade with countries that undermine basic labor standards; and
WHEREAS:
While economic and political elites sold America these policies by claiming they would generate economic growth and jobs, in fact, just the opposite is true. As the Nobel Prize-winning economist Joseph Stiglitz has said, “The evidence of the last 35 years and the lessons of stagnation and low-wage recovery since the 2008 financial crisis show that we cannot prosper if our economic system does not create shared prosperity;” and
WHEREAS:
The most critical element to changing these harmful and unfair economic policies is to reform labor laws in our country in order to strengthen the rights of workers to form unions and the ability of unions to serve as effective counterweights to employer power. It has been known for decades that unions raise wages and improve benefits, not only for their own members but for all workers. Recent research shows that unions improve the earnings potential of members’ children, and that areas with stronger labor unions provide greater economic mobility overall, both for union families and everyone else. A strengthened labor movement will both raise living standards for members and advocate for policies that promote economic gains for all working people.
THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED:
AFSCME will work to strengthen and expand the rights of workers to organize into unions in order to negotiate better wages, benefits and working conditions on the job and to provide a voice in the larger political arena. We will fight to increase the penalties for violations of labor laws, such as illegal intimidation tactics by anti-union employers. We will defend regulations that provide for prompt union elections and bring transparency to the shadowy world of corporate anti-union consultants; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED:
AFSCME will work to prevent the passage of so called “right-to-work” laws or union-busting laws that restrict “fair share” provisions in the public sector, and to repeal any such laws that are in place; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED:
AFSCME will support raising labor standards for all by increasing enforcement against wage theft, mandating paid sick leave and paid family leave for all workers, ending unequal pay for women and minorities, and bolstering safe-workplace laws; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED:
AFSCME will work to ensure that companies receiving government contracts or taxpayer-funded subsidies pay livable wages and meet the highest labor standards; and
BE IT FINALLY RESOLVED:
AFSCME will redouble our efforts to educate members, decision makers and the public on the benefits of a strengthened labor movement for economic growth and economic fairness.
SUBMITTED BY: Tracey Abman, Delegate
AFSCME Local 2199
Illinois