Restore an economy that works for the middle class
By U.S. SENATOR
JEFF MERKLEY
Labor Day is a time to honor the
hard work of working Americans and
to celebrate the great advances driven
by our unions. And it’s a good time —
especially this year — to ask ourselves
how to restore an economy that works
for working Americans.
Since the 1970s, our economy has
become a massive engine that turns the
hard work of millions into vast wealth
for the few. Americans have become
steadily more productive over time,
creating more wealth. Yet the average
family today is working more hours,
with higher expenses, for virtually the
same income as 30 years ago.
That’s technically economic
growth, but it’s not success. Our eco-
nomic success shouldn’t be measured
by corporate profits or income growth
of the top few percent. We succeed
when most Americans have the chance
to get ahead, and their hard work re-
sults in higher incomes.
The good news is that we have a
chance to rethink our economic poli-
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cies in the coming months. At the end
of December, the Bush tax cuts and
some Obama tax cuts expire, huge cuts
to defense and non-defense spending
kick in, and extended unemployment
benefits run out.
The coming debate about this “fis-
cal cliff” isn’t just about spending lev-
els or tax rates. It’s about what kind of
economy we want. I think we need
three priorities as we face our fiscal
cliff choices.
First, don’t choke off our sputtering
recovery. We’ve seen in Europe the
danger of driving the economy back
into recession by slashing spending too
quickly. The sooner Americans are
back to work, the better our long-term
economic prospects and the lower our
long-term deficits.
S EN . M ERKLEY
Second, make smart investments in
the building blocks of America’s future.
We need to upgrade our infrastructure.
We need to up our game on education
and do a better job training our work-
force for today’s (and tomorrow’s)
jobs. Cutting these investments dam-
ages our ability to compete.
Third, ensure that we have a sus-
tainable federal budget for the long-
haul. The goal is not just lower deficits,
but a vibrant economy that keeps the
budget sustainable. That won’t happen
by shifting more of our national tax
burden onto the middle class. We
should overhaul our tax code to drive
the kinds of smart investments we
want, to create incentives for busi-
nesses to create good-paying jobs here
in America, and to reward the hard
work of middle class families.
Doing nothing and going over the
fiscal cliff clearly fails on these priori-
ties. That choice means higher taxes for
everyone, cuts in discretionary spend-
ing, a probable dip back into recession,
and a degraded Medicare system.
The Romney-Ryan budget similarly
fails, weakening our economy in both
the short- and long-term and piling new
burdens onto working families.
As we look to the next few months,
the stakes couldn’t be higher. This is a
chance to re-examine what we do as a
government, why we do it, and who we
do it for. America can’t stay on top if
our middle class continues to decline.
It’s the economic success of America’s
workers that defines America’s success.
Let’s rebuild an economy that works
for working Americans.
(Editor’s Note: Jeff Merkley is a De-
mocrat from Portland, Oregon, serving
in his first term in the U.S. Senate.)
...UAW courts Nissan workers at Mississippi plant
(From Page 19)
at Volkswagen’s plant in Chattanooga,
Tennessee.
Many had thought the union’s odds
were better at a VW, BMW, or Mer-
cedes plant, because the strong German
metalworkers union IG Metall could
pressure management. In Japan, auto
unions are famously cozy with man-
agement.
But it’s unclear how hard IG Metall
is pressing German manufacturers to
lighten up in their U.S. plants. A year
ago Bernd Osterloh, who represents la-
bor on Volkswagen’s supervisory board,
said he would not actively promote the
UAW’s efforts in Chattanooga. It was
up to the employees themselves to de-
cide on union representation, Osterloh
said — the same line used by manage-
ment.
A meeting in March 2011 among
King, the IG Metall president, and top
worker officials of German car makers
reached no agreement about supporting
UAW organizing. King now calls the
German union “very, very supportive,”
but some German observers speculate
that IG Metall leaders fear looking bad
if they go all out for the UAW — which
then loses.
Martinez thinks Nissan should stop
fighting the union “tooth and nail” in
the U.S. when its plants in Japan,
Brazil, France and elsewhere all oper-
ate union.
S HINE A L IGHT
Union supporter Rosalind Essex
says management is pushing back.
A half hour after she challenged
managers in a roundtable meeting, a su-
pervisor gave her a verbal warning—
over parking tickets.
Essex, an engine inspector hired in
2004, says “all the jobs are overloaded.”
She called the UAW when her hands
started hurting in her first year.
Carter also wants a “balanced work-
load.” He says if anyone leaves, more
tasks are put on those who remain. He
says he wants a union so that the com-
pany can’t do whatever it wants with no
input. “Whatever they come up with,
we have to take it,” he said, pointing to
escalating health care costs.
He’d like to deal with the problem of
temps, “because they’re willing to do
the same job I do for less money.” The
union says they should all be made per-
manent.
Rafael Martinez wants a raise. “They
can’t keep using Mississippi as an ex-
cuse and compare the auto industry to
Walmart or McDonald’s,” he fumes.
“This is not a grocery store, this is a
multibillion-dollar company which is a
union company across the world.”
Martinez is also tired of hearing that
there are no unions in Mississippi (the
rate is 6.5 percent). His wife works for
the post office and he has uncles and
cousins who’ve been union members.
“Nissan’s thing is to keep people in
the dark,” Martinez says. “Every chance
I get I come with a flashlight.”
(Editor’s Note: Jane Slaughter
writes for Labor Notes magazine,
www.labornotes.org. The article was
reprinted with permission from the au-
thor.)
K NoW Y oUr r IgHTs
I f you are Injured at work but
not sure you need medIcal
treatment or fIle a claIm , at
least gIve the employer notIce
that you may have hurt your -
self at work to protect your
rIghts later , should you need
to fIle a claIm .
PAGE 24
NORTHWEST LABOR PRESS
AUGUST 17, 2012