Union Wages
Are Higher
Are Women Stereotypes Really Fading?
Stereotypes of female employes
seem to be fading among male
managers, according to a survey
conducted by the University of
Wisconsin. However, survey results
show some ambiguity -between what
male managers say and how they
actually feel.
Wages for union workers are
higher, than those for non-union
employes, especially in times of
inflation, according to figures
released by the Labor Department.
In 1980, wages of unionized
employes rose 10.9 percent, while
wages for non-union workers in
similar positions rose only 8.0
percent. This disparity in wage
increases has grown steadily since
1975, when, according to the AFL-
CIO, increases for union and non
union employes was virtually the
same.
The new Labor Department
figures also support a trend that
drew attention in 1979, when the
Labor Department released figures
showing that unionized workers’
wages average $41 per week more
than non-union employes.
SEIU to Merge
With Retail Union
A merger by the Service
Employees International Union
(SEIU) and the Retail, Wholesale
and Department Store Union
(RWDSU), is complete except for
resolution of a few issues involving
“internal mechanics.”
The new union would be the fifth
largest in the AFL-CIO.
In surveying over 8,000 male
managers, the University of
Wisconsin’s Alma Baron found that
85 percent do not feel that women
lack technical knowledge and can
not understand technical matters. In
addition, Baron found that approxi
mately 60 percent of those ques
tioned do not accept the notion that
Under the proposed agreement,
the new 910,000 member union
would be led by SEIU President
John Sweeney; RWDSU President
Alvin Heaps would become execu
tive vice-president.
“Most of the issues that remain to
be resolved involve internal
mechanics of a merged union,” an
SEIU spokesperson said. “The
intent and momentum for a merger
are clearly there and a breakdown
of merger talks at this point is
extremely unlikely.”
However, Baron said that nearly .
50 percent of the respondents to
her survey are reluctant to work for
a female. Slightly more than half of
those surveyed said that women are
not as career-oriented as men, but
56 percent said they feel threatened
that women Will be promoted faster
than they will be.
Nearly 90 percent of those
responding to the survey rejected
the notion that women move up the
corporate ladder through sexual
favors.
Federal Grant Pays for Anti-strike Book
Costs of publishing a strike
manual that will be used against
Missouri public workers and their
unions is being picked up by the
federal government.'
The federal Office of Personnel
Management has granted the
Missouri Municipal League a $4,250
grant to publish the manual. The
manual is being developed to allow
state municipalities to effectively
deal with a public employe work
stoppage, according to documents
filed with the Missouri group’s grant
Pay Equity
Upheld by
Federal Judge
application.
The funds were provided through
the Intergovernmental Personnel
Act (IPA), which provides funds to
state and local governments for
management training. Unions are
barred from receiving IPA grants.
The Reagan Administration is
proposing to cut all IPA funds.
The Missouri group’s proposed
manual would be similar to one
produced in 1977 with IPA funds by
the California Municipal League.
S
The company segregated men
and women into two departments.
The men handled canned goods,
frozen foods and perishables. The
women handled drug and toiletry
items, household goods and
sundries. The company paid the
men at least $4.80 an hour. It paid
.its women employes an average of
$3.10 an hour.
When the women brought suit,
the judge found that the jobs all
require little skill, education or
experience. Consequently, he found
that “women were assigned lower
wages because they were women,
and not because of an evaluation of
worth of their jobs’ content.”
A nationwide management firm is
pointing to its survey of over 600
firms to show that clerical workers
are making more money.
The Administrative Management
Society (AMS) said its survey shows
that clerical salaries rose 9.5
percent from the first quarter of
1980 to the first quarter of 1981. In
dollar figures, monthly clerical
salaries surveyed by AMS increased
from $800 before taxes in 1980 to
$876 before taxes in 1981.
The organization found that
about one-third of the companies
surveyed give 11 paid holidays per
year; about the same as 1980. The
remaining two-thirds all give less
than 11 paid holidays, according to
AMS.
Schools Add Parents to Negotiations
School districts have been
incorporating parents into all phases
of the negotiating process. Some
systems, such as Rochester, NY,
have parents serving as full
members of the negotiating team,
attending all bargaining sessions,
caucuses, work sessions and
impasse procedures.
In a major court victory for
comparable worth, a federal judge
has Upheld the concept that
requires pay equity for jobs of
comparable skill, education or
experience.
The judge ruled that Charley
Brothers Co., a wholesale grocery
supplier in Pennsylvania, Ohio and
West Virginia was guilty of “inten
tional sex discrimination” in main-
taining differential wage rates.
Plans for the proposed merger
were announced in a statement by
the executive boards of both
unions. However, the merger is still
more than a year away and would
have to be approved by the
membership of both unions.
women are reluctant to take job-
related risks.
Something for
Clericals to
Shout About?
Experiments1 by public school
systems to include parents in the
negotiating process are gaining
increased support of management
and can be expected to move into
the government sector, according to
the National League of Cities.
Management contends that union
demands threaten to cut into funds
that could be used in other areas of
education. The reasoning that
follows is that parents will then act
as an advocate on the side of
management in order to “protect
the childrens’ interests,” according
to some school officials.
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