A LABOR NOTES GUIDE REBUILDING POWER IN OPEN-SHOP AMERICA

7435 Michigan Ave., Detroit, Michigan 48210 labornotes.org/openshop #472 July 2018 Laborers Local 79 HOW WE GOT HERE

Unions are vulnerable to opting out, as members wonder what’s in it for them. The good news is that members will stick with a union that’s visible and vocal in the workplace.

It’s official: the Supreme Court ruling union members in right-to-work states. big red target on the remaining 5 million in Janus v. AFSCME means that all 7 It’s fair to say we’re now living in Open- private sector union members in states million unionized city, county, school Shop America. that still allow an . district, state, and federal public em- The consequences will hit us all— ployees now work in a “right-to-work” driving down standards, draining union THE THREAT IS REAL environment. coffers, diminishing labor’s political The Janus decision is the latest hit in They join 2 million private sector and community power, and painting a a decades-long onslaught by employers and the 1%, bent on weakening work- ers’ power and drawing wealth upward. This isn’t the first blow, or the second. Union leaders are right to be scared they will lose members. They see the WHAT THE JANUS DECISION DOES sad state of our unions, with dwindling Here’s a quick refresher on what the ruling means: numbers, few victories, and many mem- Till now, while public sector union contracts couldn’t legally require employees to belong bers wondering what’s in it for them. to the union that represents them, they could require them to pay a fee, somewhat less than They see the sad state of members’ fi- full dues, instead of joining. nances and know that many will quit if These “fee-payer” non-members saved a bit of money and lost the chance to have any- they get the chance. thing to say about the union. The union was still bound by law to represent them in bargain- The looming threat of Janus has ing, or if they got into trouble. forced many unions to try to reconnect After Janus, non-members will no longer have to pay these “agency fees.” That ups the in- with their own members—but often the centive to quit the union. It’s predicted to decimate union treasuries, not to mention solidarity. approach is too shallow.

PAGE 2 JULY 2018 LABOR NOTES www.labornotes.org/openshop What’s needed is not a better sales transforms each of us in a way the bosses pitch. It’s getting back to basics. Pro- can never undo. It teaches us that we have spective members will be won by deeds. power—and how to use it. Why would you join an organization Look at the mess we’re in—most jobs unless you’re convinced it has power? suck, the government's being unraveled, REBUILDING POWER A union’s power rests on how many part-time is the new normal, bad guys are workers will act together and how laughing their way to the bank, and our IN OPEN-SHOP AMERICA strong an action they will take. planet is on the verge of eco-catastrophe. labornotes.org/openshop Even dues-payers represent only po- Turning it all around will require millions tential power. The more important num- of righteous people to put their shoulders bers are how many workers have caught to the wheel. CONTEXT the spirit of solidarity, how many will Your workplace, and every workplace, is stand together on the job, how many are the training ground to build a better world. 2 How We Got Here training their co-workers to see through the boss’s agenda, how many will go to 4 Who’s Next? the mat for the union because it’s their organization. It becomes their organization when OUR PRESCRIPTION 6 The Anti-Union Game Plan “the union” doesn’t mean “those peo- ple down at the hall” but “you and me acting together every day on the job to 1. BE DEMOCRATIC. We need to DIAGNOSTICS defend our rights.” It’s people collec- exponentially expand the number of tively keeping supervisors in line, en- us who have the skills, confidence, 8 Exercise: The Open-Shop forcing their right to take breaks, finding and authority to be the union. Leaders Stress Test ways around over-monitoring, making should welcome, not begrudge, rank- sure the new hires are welcomed and and-file initiative, and do everything they can to help it happen. 10 Quiz: Assess Your Danger schooled. Level If union members are tackling these questions, people will flock to join— 2. FIGHT THE BOSS. People will join open shop or not. a union that they see winning fights BRASS TACKS IT'S SIMPLE, BUT NOT EASY that matter. Getting into the right fights, and winning some of them, is What’s required to make unions real just as important to your union’s post- 12 Be Democratic to their members is no mystery. That Janus survival as asking people to sign doesn’t make it easy. Getting back to ba- a membership card. sics requires breaking old habits, bulk- 14 Fight the Boss ing up unused muscles, and a lot of lis-

tening. But we’d be fooling ourselves to 3. TURN UP THE HEAT. To win big Turn Up the Heat say there’s an easier path. fights takes more than action and 16 This pamphlet starts off with a review passion—it takes a plan, and it takes of where we stand now and a warning of time. A series of gradually increasing 18 Ask People to Join what’s coming down the pike. Anti-union actions, such as a contract campaign, aims maximum pressure at your tar- maniacs won’t stop at the open shop. get… and builds members’ confidence 20 Count Noses Next are exercises to assess the threat and unity along the way. level for your own union. Try the “open- shop stress test” to start a conversation in 22 Don't Go It Alone your next steward meeting. Take the quiz. 4. ASK PEOPLE TO JOIN. They Then we get down to brass tacks. won’t join if you don’t ask. Asking 24 Labor Notes Can Help Here’s our prescription for a union that them to become members should can withstand the worst the employers become a natural step in your ev- will dish out. (See box.) eryday organizing—not a separate project that sucks energy from other WHAT'S AT STAKE campaigns. There’s one more reason not to give up hope in open-shop America: we can’t afford to. 5. COUNT NOSES. Create maps and Think about the people in your union charts to track participation—and who have stuck with it. It’s usually be- know how to recognize a natural leader. Editor: Alexandra Bradbury cause the union means something deep- Assistant Editor: Dan DiMaggio er to them than a single issue or a cold Staff: Chris Brooks, Jonah Furman, cost-benefit analysis. They feel other 6. DON’T GO IT ALONE. Shrinking Adrian Montgomery, Jane Slaughter, workers’ fights as their own. They feel unions can’t afford to isolate our- Samantha Winslow the struggle in their bones, connected to selves. But why would we want to? Design: Sonia Singh their deepest-held values. Isn’t that true Our interests are the public interests. Cover photo: Laborers Local 79 for you? Labor Notes is indexed in the Alternative Press Index. The world needs legions more peo- You’ll read more about each of these six Articles may be reproduced in any non-profit publica- ple like that. Struggle in the workplace steps in the pages that follow. tion. Credit is appreciated. ISSN 0275-4452.

www.labornotes.org/openshop LABOR NOTES PAGE 3 JULY 2018 WHO'S NEXT?

3. Your public sector allies will take Even if the open shop hasn’t hit your union a hit. Loss of members and money means unions can’t spend as much on yet, don't get too comfortable. political work, so more enemies of la- bor may be elected at all levels. Expect a If you're one of the lucky ones—say, tighter budget too for anything that pub- 2. Public services will suffer. Weak- lic sector unions help to fund—such as a Teamster in California or a telecom ening unions in government agencies, worker in New York—what do you local coalitions, labor councils, or com- hospitals, classrooms, and universities munity groups. care? How does the rise of open-shop makes it harder for employees to do a America affect you? Four ways: good job for the public they serve, from 4. Public sector wages and benefits the ER to the local library. Unions will 1. You’re next. Right-to-work propo- will decline, making it harder to main- be less able to press for better funding tain your own standards. Expect unfa- nents want to finish the job. Expect to of services. be targeted with local, state, or national vorable comparisons at the bargaining right-to-work efforts. table. Experience shows that right-to- work laws depress wages all around.

Still Standing: Private Sector Union Members in States with Agency Fees

Over 1,000,000

100,000 - 500,000

Under 100,000

PAGE 4 JULY 2018 LABOR NOTES www.labornotes.org/openshop BY THE NUMBERS KNOW YOUR LINGO In an open shop, workers have the 136 MILLION workers in the U.S. option to receive the benefits of a union without being a member or paying a 14 MILLION union members fee. In other words, you can choose to be a free rider. 5 MILLION private sector union members The opposite case is an agency in agency-shop states shop, where the agreement includes a union security clause. That means everyone in the must either be a mem- ber and pay dues, or pay a fair-share fee (also known as an agency fee) to cover the cost of union representation. So-called right-to-work laws make it unlawful for a collective bargaining agreement to contain a union security clause—that is, they outlaw the agency shop. These laws usually affect both the public and private sectors. The Supreme Court’s 2018 Janus decision invalidated the union security clause in all public sector contracts na- tionwide. It also invalidated any state laws requiring public sector workers to pay agency fees, such as in New York. The effect was immediate; there is no grace period. Sometimes a state right-to-work law comes as part of a larger legisla- tive package attacking public sector unions. For example, Wisconsin’s Act 10 limited public sector unions to bargain- ing over only one topic, wages, capped at inflation. It also banned dues deduc- tions and mandated annual member votes to recertify the union. Individual states do not have the au-

Jim West, jimwestphoto.com Jim West, thority to make most of these changes in the private sector. Congress could do it. THE RACIST HISTORY OF RIGHT-TO-WORK

“Right-to-work” laws originated in the King, Jr. said in 1964. “It is a law to rob us 1940s as a strategy to maintain Jim Crow of our civil rights and job rights. in the South. “Its purpose is to destroy labor unions The biggest pusher of the idea was and the freedom of collective bargaining Vance Muse—a well-heeled corporate lob- by which unions have improved wages and byist, white supremacist, anti-Semite, and working conditions for everyone…Wherever professional anti-unionist from Texas who these laws have been passed, wages are saw the New Deal as a Communist Jewish lower, job opportunities are fewer, and there conspiracy. are no civil rights.” According to Muse and his followers, the That’s still true. Union organizing has CIO was sending labor organizers to the ru- proven the most effective measure out there ral South to inflame a contented but gullible for lifting wages in general, and for reduc- African-American population and to force ing racial inequality. The upsurge of public white workers to join unions together with sector unionism in the 1960s and ’70s was a Black workers and call them “brother.” particular boon to Black communities, since To stop this menace, his group teamed they were strongly represented in public up with employers to push the first right-to- —and Black workers led many work laws, enacted in 1944 in Arkansas and of those union fights, often inspired by the Florida. (Californians voted no.) Many other civil rights movement. states followed. Today workers of color remain strongly “In our glorious fight for civil rights, we represented in the public sector, and the must guard against being fooled by false slo- attacks on public sector unions still have a gans such as ‘right to work,’” Martin Luther racist character.

www.labornotes.org/openshop LABOR NOTES PAGE 5 JULY 2018 Laborers Local 79 THE ANTI-UNION GAME PLAN

The open-shop offensive is part of a multipronged plan to ‘defund and defang’ the labor movement. Opt-out canvassers may show up on your doorstep next.

Don’t get the idea that Mark Janus, a proliferated. These people know how to 1. RIGHT TO WORK child support specialist in Illinois, took get their talking points out in the press You know this one. They’ve got most his case all the way to the Supreme and their bills introduced in statehouses of the low-hanging fruit at this point— Court by himself. His lawyers are paid across the country. It helps that they the whole public sector, plus the private for by the National Right to Work Le- have so much money to throw around. sector in 27 states (voters in Missouri gal Defense Foundation and the Liberty Here’s one name to learn: the State will decide this fall whether to make it Justice Center, the legal arm of a right- Policy Network (SPN). It’s a web of the 28th). wing think tank. 66 corporate-financed “free-market It’s unlikely that SPN affiliates and al- These groups get their money from think tanks” spread over all 50 states, lies will be able to flip the most union- a whole slew of foundations dedicated dense states, such as California or New financed by corporations and billion- to bankrolling anti-worker lawsuits and York, anytime soon. political candidates. One you might aires. And it has a nationally coordi- So the union busters are pursuing have heard of is the Walton Family nated plan to “defund and defang” the local right-to-work ordinances, aimed Foundation (that’s the Walmart family). labor movement. at paving the way for statewide laws. There’s no doubt that the employer This anti-union plan includes four These have been passed by counties in class has its act together. Since the primary tactics, each designed to whit- Kentucky (before it went right-to-work Business Roundtable formed in 1972, tle away union support. They’re deadli- statewide), New Mexico, and Illinois. the think tanks and lobbying groups est together. More are likely to follow. advancing the employer agenda have Here’s what’s coming down the pike: President Trump has pledged to sign PAGE 6 JULY 2018 LABOR NOTES www.labornotes.org/openshop national right-to-work legislation if it How unions are coping: them of the obligation to represent non- gets to his desk. Wisconsin’s 2011 Act 10 was the members in hearings, though How unions are coping: That's what first law in the country to mandate an- these workers are still covered under the the rest of this pamphlet is about. nual union recertification votes. Many union contract. Florida has a similar unions folded up shop. But some, such l aw. as the Milwaukee Teachers Education But in SPN’s version, the purpose is 2. OPT-OUT CAMPAIGNS Association, use recertification as a to fragment unions, who will represent Public employees in some states, such union-building exercise. an ever smaller subset of workers while as Washington, have been subjected to “We have leadership infrastructure the employer dangles incentives to drop a systematic public relations campaign in 137 buildings that can run the vote out. For example, an employer might that uses traditional and social media, themselves,” said Vice President Amy initially offer non-union workers a home mailings, robocalls, and door-to- Mizialko. “We get better at it each year.” “merit pay” bonus on top of what union door canvassing to push them to resign After a similar law passed in Iowa, 99 members get. But don’t expect perks to their union membership. percent of teacher union locals recerti- last once the union is a shell. According to internal SPN docu- fied. Teachers created vote trackers in a ments, “well-run opt-out campaigns can shared Google Spreadsheet. How unions are coping: cause public-sector unions to experience “We were constantly communicating To date, no state has passed SPN’s 5-20 percent declines in membership.” with our team and updating the tracker model legislation, though it has been Opt-out campaigns hinge on SPN af- in real time," said history teacher Nick introduced in Michigan and Missouri. filiates' getting lists of personal contact Convington. "It was a great way to bring A variation affecting only teachers was information of government employees. reps from all 16 buildings together to hit adopted in Tennessee in 2011. Now These lists are obtained through open our goal.” teachers there have to negotiate a con- records laws, which vary by state. tract jointly among three parties: the Different variables determine wheth- employer, the union, and a boss-friendly er or not the government will hand over 4. ENDING EXCLUSIVE rival organization. the requested information. Sometimes REPRESENTATION it comes down to a choice by a particu- One more experimental tactic is what lar government employee. SPN calls “Workers’ Choice.” This legislation goes a step further How unions are coping: than right to work. Workers who opt In a few blue states, unions are getting out of the union could also opt out of laws passed to exclude government-em- the collective bargaining agreement and ployee contact information from open negotiate their own individual employ- records requests. ment contracts with the boss. SPN af- New Jersey did this, and also limited filiates tout this as a form of “members- MORE DETAILS the period when a government employ- only unionism.” Check out the current issue of In ee can drop union membership to a 10- A similar concept appeals to some These Times for a detailed look by La- day period beginning on the anniversary unionists reluctant to represent freeload- bor Notes’ Chris Brooks at the billion- of hire. In many states, the opt-out win- ers. New York’s public sector unions aires’ 50-state anti-union battle plan dow is the same for all workers, which recently got a law passed absolving makes it easier for SPN affiliates to time an opt-out blitz. Unions have launched campaigns to inoculate members, alerting them to who the SPN affiliates are, who financ- es them, and what their goals are. SEIU 32BJ in Pennsylvania has been handing out “Union Household—No Solicit- ing” window clings for members to post on front doors or windows. Stewards should make members aware that opt-out campaigns are part of a well-funded pro-business effort to weaken their union and cut their pay.

3. RECERTIFICATION CAMPAIGNS Wisconsin, Iowa, and Florida have all passed laws that force unions to expend time and resources to win rep- resentation votes by the workforce at Daniel Mendez Moore regular intervals. If the union loses, it is decertified. SPN affiliates call this legislation “Worker Voting Rights.” Expect more states to follow. www.labornotes.org/openshop LABOR NOTES PAGE 7 JULY 2018 THE OPEN-SHOP STRESS TEST

Try this exercise in your next union meeting to start a conversation about how members see the union now.

HOW DO MEMBERS SEE THE UNION? Print out these four graphics. (You can 1 download them from our website.) Tape them up in the four corners of the room. REPRESENTATIVE "Let’s look at our own union and see what are our strengths and weaknesses."

Ask participants to 2 choose a corner.

“Get up and move to the cor- ner of the room that you think best represents how the average member sees our union. Not the executive board member, not the steward, but the less-than-active member.” DUES COLLECTOR

3 Ask to hear some examples from each corner. “Why did you choose this corner? How do members experience the union? Why?”

Write the answers on a flipchart.

MOVEMENT

PAGE 8 JULY 2018 LABOR NOTES www.labornotes.org/openshop WHAT EXPERIENCES DO MEMBERS HAVE WITH THE UNION? Sum up the types of experiences you heard, and organize them into three categories: Negative, 4 Transactional, and Inspirational. 1. Negative: The union is the organiza- 3. Inspirational: The union is our or- tion that takes money out of my check. ganization. My participation matters, "When I called about a grievance, the and our power is collective—we all have union never called me back." each other's backs. "We went on strike to defend our pen- 2. Transactional: The union is the or- sion. We won by sticking together." ganization that negotiates our contract and health insurance. We pay dues and sometimes we get back our money's worth. "The union bargained a raise for us."

5 Sum up what was said. One example: “From the feedback in the room, it’s clear that many members recognize the good work unions do. But they still often view the union in transactional terms, REPRESENTATIVE where they pay dues and get something in exchange.” HOW CAN WE START TO TRANSFORM OUR UNION?

6 Ask: “Of the three types of experiences, what keeps members involved for the long haul?"

And: “What are some steps we could take to shift toward creating more 'inspirational' examples?"

(There are ideas throughout the rest of this issue.) FIREFIGHTER

The fundamental task is to help fellow members see the union as our organization, where our power comes from standing up to- gether. How do we do that? The union has to have a visible presence in the workplace, and has to fight for things members care about.

www.labornotes.org/openshop LABOR NOTES PAGE 9 JULY 2018 Laborers Local 79 QUIZ: ASSESS YOUR DANGER LEVEL

Take this self-assessment to get a snapshot of how your union’s current practices stack up and where you're vulnerable.

4. New hires first learn about the Like the stress test, this quiz works best as a conversation-starter. Hand it out in a meeting union… or steward training. Once everyone has filled it out and tallied up the scores, open the floor for discussion. The idea is to take an honest look at your union’s strengths and weaknesses A. When they notice money be- and identify some practical ways to improve. ing taken out of their paycheck, Answer each question honestly, selecting not the answer you wish were true but the one or the employer badmouths the that’s closest to reality. Rank-and-file members can answer each question as it applies to union. their own worksites. Union leaders might want to consider an average worksite, or repeat the quiz to evaluate different worksites separately. B. When they receive a newsletter in Then score yourself with the key. the mail. C. When a steward eventually meets with them. 1. What usually happens when a mem- C. Members call for help, and D. During orientation, when the ber approaches a steward with an indi- the files a union meets with all new hires vidual grievance? grievance. right away. D. Members call for help, and the A. No grievance is filed. union representative works with Points: ______B. A grievance is filed. The mem- them to make an action plan. ber waits six months to find out 5. Union stewards are… whether he won or lost. Points: ______C. A grievance is filed. The member A. What’s a steward? is given regular updates on how 3. What is the average member’s im- B. A small number of people who’ve the grievance is going. pression of a union meeting? had the role forever and are seen D. A grievance is filed. The member as ineffective. works with the steward and at- A. “I have no idea when meetings C. Competent but distant from tends grievance meetings. happen or what they’re about. I most members. They can get don’t know anyone who goes.” the job done if you can get their Points: ______B. “Meetings are pointless. They attention. read the minutes from last time, D. Numerous and active. They are 2. What happens when a workplace and the same five people talk.” always making the rounds and problem arises that affects many C. “Meetings are good for stewards seeking out co-workers’ concerns. people? to attend, but not for regular members like me.” Points: ______A. Members are too afraid or un- D. “I’ve attended useful union meet- aware of their rights to file a ings on topics I cared about, or to grievance, much less take collec- help decide important questions.” tive action. B. Members call for help, but the Points: ______union representative doesn’t act. PAGE 10 JULY 2018 LABOR NOTES www.labornotes.org/openshop ADD UP YOUR SCORE

Key: A = 0 points, B = 1 point, C = 2 points, D = 3 points Total: ______

0 to 10 points: Red Zone You’re at risk for a big drop in membership. If your union is going to survive, it’s urgent to clean house. Look back at each question where you marked A or B; those are immediate areas to improve your union’s practices. (D is the goal.) Which one can you start with?

11 to 20 points: Yellow Zone Take heart—you’re not starting from scratch, but you do have room for improvement. If you marked any As or Bs, those are danger areas to focus on first. If not, look at the Cs. For each one you can turn into a D, you will fortify your union against a possible employer attack.

21 points or more: Green Zone You’re doing well! Still, management never lets up—organizing is an ongoing project. Keep lifting up a vision that inspires members to fight. Anywhere you marked an answer other than D, that’s an area where your union could improve.

6. When it’s time to bargain… 9. A member tells a steward that she 10. What is the most common pitch wants to get more involved. What’s union activists make about why every- A. Proposals and progress are kept the most likely response? one should be a union member? secret. B. We get regular updates on prog- A. She is ignored or told that there’s A. There is no pitch. ress, but we play no role. nothing going on. B. “You can get a discount on movie C. A few members participate in B. She is told to come to the next tickets, and the union is your in- some contract activities, such as union meeting in three months. surance on the job. It costs less an issue survey. C. She is invited to a union social than a cup of coffee.” D. Members help make the strategy event next Thursday. C. “The union is the reason you and many participate in a series D. She is asked to do something im- have this pay scale and benefits. of actions building to a peak, portant, like hand out a bargain- It’s unfair not to pay your share.” such as a strike deadline. ing survey. D. “Management knows whether the union is strong or not. We Points: ______Points: ______need you to join so we can show our unity and act together.” 7. After the union’s most recent con- tract was settled, how did the average Points: ______member feel about it?

A. “We lost a lot. The employer walked all over us. Our union is useless.” JUMP-START A WEAK UNION FROM BELOW B. “It’s a mixed bag. I wish our union fought harder for us.” What if you’re caught in a union that's not • Brainstorm goals collectively, and C. “We came out pretty well. I trust doing a good job? reach out to others who might be re- our bargainers did their best.” What if your union is mostly invisible, or ceptive. Use that to build a network. You D. “We got the best contract we only reaches out when there’s a crisis, or might even develop a statement that ex- could, because we made a smart doesn’t fight for good contracts, or is too presses your “Vision for the Union.” plan and fought for it together.” cozy with the boss? Perhaps when some rep • Take action. The best way to show comes around asking you to recommit, you the value of what a union can be is by get- and your co-workers are saying, “Really? ting members involved in solving problems Points: ______Why should we?” in their own worksites. You don’t need to You might even be tempted to stop pay- wait for permission—just start talking among 8. If a new steward called the union ing dues yourself, as a form of protest. Don’t yourselves about what the problem is, what office for a member list, what would do it. In your heart you know workers need solutions you’d propose, and how you’re go- be the response? a union to have any shot at building power ing to work together to bring it to the boss. on the job. • Reflect on your organizing as a A. “What list?” But you also know your union needs dra- group, and brainstorm next steps. Is it B. “We have a seniority list provided matic changes. Here are some ideas on how time to run a slate for stewards or for higher by the company.” to start making them: offices? • Spend time with co-workers you Warning: This bottom-up approach to C. “We keep track of who is a mem- problem-solving on the job might fly in the ber and who is not.” trust and whose values you share. Ask them: What kind of union would you like to face of your union’s way of doing things. D. “We keep track of membership be a part of? Be very practical—for exam- Some of your co-workers and officers might status, contact information, and ple: “Would you like to hear more from offi- be dismissive of your efforts, or even hostile. participation in union events.” cers about what’s happening in bargaining?” Stay steady, be patient, and keep going. Offer examples, but mostly listen. Points: ______www.labornotes.org/openshop LABOR NOTES PAGE 11 JULY 2018 THE ESSENTIALS • Be transparent with information and decision-making - • Encourage members to take initia BE DEMOCRATIC tive, and support those who do • Ask people personally to do specific things - • Make meetings interesting and wel coming—but think beyond meetings Organizing in its best sense—helping people • Make sure no group is excluded work together to achieve what they want—is from union activities at the root of .

Anti-union politicians claim that ENCOURAGE INITIATIVE right-to-work laws free workers from The heart of union democracy is paying a third party. Union activists that members feel they have the ability, rightly counter that there is no third par- smarts, and permission to take action. ty, emphasizing to co-workers that “you One of the Arizona teachers we met are the union.” this spring decided to join the union But just saying it doesn’t make it so. The only after she had organized a sickout Gage Skidmore for Arizona Education Association uncomfortable reality is that many unions at her school. To grow, unions need to don’t afford rank-and-file members much support bottom-up initiatives when they power over their own organizations. appear—and foster many more of them. Too few get the chance to help make the Officers, staff, and stewards should be union’s plans; instead they are simply careful not to make the union an exclu- asked “Are you in, or are you out?” sive club. If members are hot about an This democracy deficit has conse- issue, it’s the union’s job to help them quences. When members are treated as think through a plan. an ATM for predetermined priorities, When your fellow member starts it’s no wonder they feel disconnected— circulating a homemade leaflet, pulls and may opt out. On the other hand, workers who know that the union is theirs will be glad to stick around and invite others to be part of it. That’s why building a more democratic organization is the best av- enue to strengthen the union. HOW TO GET A MEMBER INVOLVED OFFER A WAY IN Local officers are often frustrated • ONE-ON-ONE CONVERSATION. If you want people to do something, ask them with low attendance at union meet- personally! A general call for volunteers in a newsletter or on social media will rarely ings and a lack of volunteers for com- do the trick. People appreciate being asked, and in a one-on-one conversation you mittees—and then they get an earful of can find out what they want to do. complaints about how the union is run. “We’re not keeping anybody out,” these • ASK ABOUT THEIR INTERESTS. What would this person like to see changed at officers say. “We’d love to have more in- work? Who else might want to work on the same problem? volvement, but all we can do is to open the door.” • START WHERE THE MEMBER IS AT. Someone getting involved for the first time It’s true that anyone trying to pro- will gain confidence by taking on tasks that come easily. Ask what they think they can mote member involvement is up against do. Have some suggestions ready, but be flexible. Can they talk to the co-worker they the “let the experts do it” reflex that know best? If this person likes to draw cartoons, can you incorporate that into a union we learn in community life as well as campaign? in unions. Being a passive member has definite attractions for workers with • GIVE POSITIVE FEEDBACK. When a newly active member does something to help plenty of other demands on their time, build the union, no matter how minor, make them feel good about it. Let them know from kids to church to overtime. that they’re helping build a powerful organization that can fight for all of us. Ask what But often low participation is because they think is their next step. the union seems to have no power, or participation seems to make no differ- • KEEP IN TOUCH REGULARLY. Share progress on union campaigns. Solicit ideas. ence. What’s the point? Ask them to do another task—maybe something slightly bigger than before. You are When people see results from involve- helping each co-worker to climb a ladder, one rung at a time. ment, more will want to get involved. PAGE 12 JULY 2018 LABOR NOTES www.labornotes.org/openshop MAKE MEETINGS WELCOMING AND USEFUL

• Publicize the topic in advance. It should be a hot issue, • Make meetings participatory. Put lengthy reports in not “old business.” writing so they don’t use up too much time. Break into small • Choose a time that makes it easier to attend. Ask groups sometimes, so everyone gets to speak. Role-play. for ideas to encourage turnout. Before or after a shift? Try Agree on action plans and next steps. mixing it up—some weekend mornings, some weekday • Review the agenda when the meeting starts. Let people evenings. add items. Put a time on each point. • Choose an appealing location. Would a restaurant be • Timekeeper. Appoint someone to keep the meeting on track. relaxing, or too noisy? Someplace near the workplace? • Firsts before seconds. Everyone who wants to speak gets a Does someone belong to a faith community or social chance before anyone speaks a second time. organization that will welcome a union meeting? Organize • Stack. When many people want to speak, get a show of carpools. hands and write down a list. • Offer language interpretation. Translate printed materi- • Next steps. Members and leaders should take assignments, als too. and these should be summed up at the end. • Be family-friendly. Arrange childcare. Invite spouses and • Have social time afterwards. Keep the meeting short so let them speak. people don’t drift out before then. • Welcome newcomers. Designate a greeter. Ask current • Hold workplace meetings too. A half-dozen people hud- active members to sit with first-timers. dling in the breakroom can accomplish a lot. Some people will • Run the meeting democratically. Many people find never come to an after-hours meeting, but they could still be Robert’s Rules clunky and complex. Instead, consider powerful activists on the job. simple rules like these:

together an impromptu meeting in the important points to the co-workers he interpretation, “workers came up and breakroom, or starts a workplace social has lunch with. said, ‘I’ve been coming to these meet- media page, that’s a good thing—even if To bring the union meeting to even ings for years, and this is the first time it isn’t done exactly the way you would more workers, you’ll need to identify that I understood what was being said do it. and recruit more volunteers like Bob. and what was going on.’” Feel free to debate strategy with your When you do that, you will have a A crisis like the Janus decision can fellow workers. But rein in any impulse communication structure: a member- inspire short-term thinking. Remember to be territorial. Welcome the Johnny- to-member network that can share your long-term vision, of a union that’s come-latelys to your side. information about far more than the strong because everyone is involved. After all, to build a movement that monthly meeting. gets more done, we need more of us Make the workplace, not the union who feel empowered to act in the name hall, the main place where union is- of the union. It can be hard for people sues are discussed. Often the most hon- to put themselves forward—and even est and imaginative discussions about TURNING THE BUS harder if union leaders are going to union strategies happen informally at squelch it and say, “We know best.” work—on breaks or at lunch, or waiting How did Nashville bus drivers raise Instead, the union should offer train- for the copier. their union membership from 60 to 80 ings like “how to march on the boss,” percent in a year? It took a turnover in INCLUDE EVERYONE ideally at the workplace. When a griev- leadership. Members booted out officers ance or action campaign is won, stew- If the union hall seems to have the who wouldn’t even let them see the ten- ards and the union newsletter should culture of a white male comfort zone, tative agreement before they voted on it. trumpet the details and ask who else has suspicion will run high among women, Bus driver Patrick Green ran for union president on a very different platform. the same problem. Black workers, Latinos, and other left- out groups. Same goes for a union that He and his slate pledged transparency THINK BEYOND MEETINGS ignores the concerns of its lower-tier and member participation in negotia- tions. They organized town hall-style de- Has a co-worker—let’s call him Bob— members, a teachers union that ignores bates at a local restaurant, where mem- ever asked you, “What happened at the paraprofessionals, and so on. bers showed up with their families to eat union meeting yesterday?” Did you feel In the same vein, every member breakfast and lob questions. like saying, “You shoulda been there”? should be able to participate—for in- Green and his slate won the election But what does Bob’s question say stance, read the contract, attend meet- and in the next round of bargaining, about him? That he’s more interested ings, and vote in elections—regardless achieved strong gains—starting wages than all the members who have never of whether he has a disability or what went up by $3 an hour—in a contract asked. Instead of getting mad at Bob for language she speaks. that all members got the chance to read what he doesn’t do, be glad he’s inter- It might take organizing to push your before casting their votes. Officers and stewards use every op- ested—and design a small request that local to add a wheelchair ramp, trans- portunity to talk with drivers and hear he is ready for. late materials, or provide interpreters, their concerns, including at new-hire ori- You can make a deal with Bob: if you but it’s worth the effort. According to entation, during training, and when they find him every month and give him a Belinda Thielen of the Food and Com- meet to bid for jobs. The membership short report from the union meeting, mercial Workers, after the meatpack- increase followed from there. he will agree to pass along the most ing division began providing Spanish www.labornotes.org/openshop LABOR NOTES PAGE 13 JULY 2018 THE ESSENTIALS - • Involve workers in griev ances—but go beyond grievances FIGHT THE BOSS • Always be on the lookout for good organizing issues • Confront workplace problems with collective action You’re not asking co-workers to join • Get creative in your tactics • Help members discover what a social club or an insurance plan. it feels like to fight and win You’re asking them to join a fight over issues that matter.

Why do any of us pay ? workplace problems to fix. On a dan- It’s because we feel our union fights for gerous job where fatal accidents were us, and we consider it important to our on everyone’s mind, they made safety a lives. So one key to surviving an open top union issue. BASICS OF A PLAN shop is to do the essentials that union- Because the local went on strike when ists should be doing anyway: Win griev- necessary, members had good wages ances. Fight for a good contract. Report and health insurance—the value of the 1. WHAT EXACTLY DO YOU WANT? your victories and struggles. union contract was self-evident. And Identify the solution you're after, and Consider the Jeffboat shipyard. In the stewards were systematic about always make sure it's one that's winnable. years after Indiana went right-to-work, asking new hires to join. only one person dropped out of the INVOLVE WORKERS IN 2. WHO HAS THE POWER TO FIX union—in a workforce of 700. GRIEVANCES Teamsters Local 89 held onto mem- THE PROBLEM? It’s not enough to bers’ loyalty because it had a deep bench Grievances are one common way that say “management.” Figure out which members see the union fighting—or person in management could say yes of stewards who actively sought out to your solution.

3. WHICH TACTICS CAN WORK? Aim your actions to build the pres- sure on the decision-maker you’ve identified. Consider how much pres- sure it will take to win, and where your leverage is. UFCW

PAGE 14 JULY 2018 LABOR NOTES www.labornotes.org/openshop don’t. So when a worker brings up a their minds. He tore up their write-ups problem, it’s a mistake to say, “Now on the spot. leave it to me.” Instead, the steward The experience was exhilarating, and should work through every grievance it warmed up three formerly distant CHOOSE YOUR TACTICS with the affected worker as a teammate. members into union activists. A few Postal unions across the country are weeks later, one came back to the stew- • Does the action relate to your open-shop. Yet the Boston Postal Work- ard with a different problem. But this issue? ers (APWU) local hovers around 94 time, the question was “What can I do • Will it increase the pressure on percent membership. President Scott about this?” the decision-maker? Hoffman said this high rate has a lot “A subtle change, but huge,” Fabrica- • Is it simple? • Is it visible? to do with involving members in every tore said. • Is it timed for effect? union activity, including grievances. Your goal is to develop a union cul- • Is it new and different—or tried Win or lose, you want the person ture in the workplace—not just at the and true? to understand the grievance process. union hall—where people expect to • Are enough people ready to do it? “Sometimes you have to explain, ‘No, participate in defending the contract • How will others react? Will it unify that’s not going to work,’ and why,” he and defending each other. people? • How will management react? said. “Members don’t demand a victory GET CREATIVE every time. They just want to see that Could it backfire? you made the effort.” Besides being fun and effective, these • Does it violate the law or the With every grievance, ask, “Who else activities give workers the chance to contract? If so, are you prepared is affected?” Look for opportunities to learn by doing. “In essence they see for the consequences? make it a group grievance and have what the union really is,” says Steel- • Will it be fun? members submit their own statements. workers Local 675 Secretary-Treasurer Dave Campbell. “The union is them, ACT AS A GROUP and it’s their concerted, collective ac- Much more effective than a grievance, tivity on the shop floor which gives the though, is shop floor action. People who union power.” up for work with Hawaiian shirts, sun- would never act alone will find courage That’s how his union maintains 90 glasses, and ball caps,” Campbell says, to act together with others. The more percent membership in California oil re- “and the union bought the roast pig for people participate in solving a problem, fineries, where workers get a window of a Hawaiian luau lunch. When the su- the more they will develop the skills and opportunity to drop their membership perintendent saw all the workers united, confidence to take on other problems, every time the contract expires. he of course asked what the hell was and the union’s power will grow. Members have developed the habit of going on—and the supervisor who had When three West Virginia grocery acting for themselves as a union. Lead- caused all this was reassigned.” workers got unfair write-ups from the ers encourage them to bolster a griev- same manager, they asked shop steward ance with workplace action. LEARN BY DOING Auriana Fabricatore what she could do. For instance, a supervisor had forbid- Here's one more story from letter car- She turned the tables back on them. den people to wear baseball caps, sun- riers in Portland, Oregon, who manage “I think the three of you can do some- glasses, or Hawaiian shirts in the con- to keep their membership numbers well thing about it right now," she said, "if trol room. Workers collected signatures above 90 percent. you’re willing to go upstairs and con- on a petition and presented it to the oth- One time last year, carriers were told front the manager?” er supervisor, who crumpled it up and they must deliver three “full coverages” Together they marched into the office threw it away. in a single day. and gave the wide-eyed boss a piece of “We organized all four crews to show A full coverage is an advertisement that goes to every household, along with the mail. Two of the three were magazine-thick. That’s a lot of weight to carry around all day. There was general “panic and angst,” PICK YOUR BATTLES said Organizing Chair Willie Groshell. So he encouraged everyone to fill out Always be on the lookout for problems Is it winnable? It’s hard to know for a safety concern form. Some were ner- that can be solved through collective activ- sure whether you will win, but it’s possible vous, but one by one, people filed up to ity. Use these four criteria to evaluate a pos- to get a good idea of whether you can. drop their forms on the manager’s desk. sible organizing issue: Identify the decision-maker who can give About half the carriers on shift that day Is it widely felt? Many people must feel you what you want. How hard do you ex- participated. that this is a real problem and agree with pect this person to resist, and how much And that was all it took. Within min- the solution you’re pursuing. The heavy mail pressure can your group muster? utes the manager agreed to postpone the assignment is a good example—every letter Does it build the union and build heaviest item till the next day. Palpable carrier was affected. leaders? You get the most bang for your relief and power zipped around the Is it deeply felt? It’s not enough that buck when you choose an issue that will many people agree if none feels strongly draw in people who’ve never been involved work floor. enough to do anything about it. The gro- before, unite groups that don’t usually see “It’s moments like that that really do cery workers were so furious over the unfair eye to eye, or inspire your co-workers to go bring people on board, that get people to write-ups that they found the courage to one step further than they’ve gone in the understand what we can do collective- do something they’d never done before— past. That way your union gets stronger ly,” Groshell says. “You’ve got to find march into the manager’s office. with every fight. those opportunities, and when they’re there, you’ve got to try and take them.” www.labornotes.org/openshop LABOR NOTES PAGE 15 JULY 2018 Laborers Local 79 TURN UP THE HEAT

To scale up and tackle big goals takes time and planning. A good campaign starts small and builds.

Nothing builds union loyalty more That’s how factory workers who It doesn’t have to be a contract cam- than participating in a fight that wins. make heavy-truck suspensions in Kend- paign. You can plan an escalating series And while a single action might win a allville, Indiana, managed to phase out of actions over a single workplace de- small victory, the big wins that make the the two-tier wage and pension system, mand, like getting management to clean biggest difference in workers’ lives will bringing everyone up to the top tier. up a safety hazard, rehire a beloved co- require escalating campaigns. It took a vigorous contract campaign worker, or back off an unfair rule. Your campaign should include a that showed the company, Hendrickson But whenever you do have a contract way for everyone to get involved—and International, that members were ready expiring, definitely organize an escalat- for everyone to come up with fun tac- to strike. And in its first new contract ing campaign. It’s the way to flex maxi- tics. It starts with low-intensity actions since Indiana’s right-to-work law had mum muscle and win the best deal. It’s and turns up the heat till the boss cries taken effect, the local maintained 99 also a golden opportunity to strengthen “Uncle!” percent union membership. your union—giving your co-workers lots of chances to take active roles, sign up as members, and experience the power of collective action. FIND PRESSURE POINTS WHY ESCALATE GRADUALLY? Start by identifying the pressure point that will give you maximum leverage. • TAKE THE HIGH ROAD. By starting • EACH ACTION HAS A GREATER Every boss has a weak spot. Is there a small, you show you are reasonable and bottleneck in the work flow, or a poten- credible. You did try asking politely. IMPACT THAN THE ONE BEFORE. As your actions get more and more tial bottleneck? Will there be big prob- intense, managers begin to understand lems if inventory items don’t arrive on that you mean business. You also keep time? Does management rely on work- • IT BUILDS YOUR GROUP. If you start ers’ willingness to work overtime? Is off with low-intensity actions, members them guessing. When supervisors get who have never done anything before flustered and make mistakes, the bal- image in the community crucial? Does will be more likely to participate. As you ance of power shifts in your direction. the boss hate publicity? Do clients need escalate, make sure not to leave people continuous coverage from 9 to 5? behind. • DON’T PLAY YOUR ACES TOO SOON. All those situations create ways to If you do your worst first, there’s produce a mini-crisis that will make the nowhere for your campaign to go boss more receptive to your suggestions. • THERE’S STRENGTH IN NUMBERS. What if everyone took their break at the If you start with risky actions and only but down. It’s more effective when a few people participate, the boss managers can see there’s a lot more same time? What if all the workers in might single them out. With a few to come—and there’s still time to save shipping and receiving were suddenly illegal disciplines, management can themselves a headache by giving in. off their game? What if teachers called teach a lesson: stick your neck out and in sick on standardized-testing day? get burned. In a contract campaign, often the peak you are building towards is a PAGE 16 JULY 2018 LABOR NOTES www.labornotes.org/openshop CAMPAIGN MOUNTAIN PHASESPhases OF of A a Campaign CAMPAIGN HOW TRUCK PLANT The Peak of Our Strength WORKERS DID IT

Visualize your escalating tactics by arranging them on a thermometer, with Resolution each action “hotter” than the last. Here are the steps the Kendallville truck plant workers took to defeat two-tier, begin- Escalation Period ning from the bottom:

10. Won a good contract! 9. Set a strike deadline 8. Held their own shift meetings, on the clock 7. Hauled burn barrels in their trucks Kick-off 6. Conspicuously circu- lated a strike petition Foundation 5. Put signs in their cars and parked in manage- credible threat to strike—but there are bargaining surveys, rallies, informa- ment's spaces exceptions. Library workers in Camden tional pickets, or weekly T-shirt days to 4. Showed up en masse County, New Jersey, last year ran a con- show unity. Other tactics can be unique to bargaining tract campaign that climaxed not with to your shop—encourage your co-work- a strike, but with something else that ers to brainstorm creative ideas! 3. Held T-Shirt Tuesdays struck fear into their employer’s heart: At the Kendallville truck plant, mem- and sticker days no one signed up to “volunteer” for the bers displayed signs in their car win- 2. Invited everyone to a annual book sale. dows. On a certain day a few volun- bargaining workshop “Management was pretty shocked,” teers occupied the management parking 1. Surveyed members to said Joanne McCarty, a clerk. “We sent spots, so that managers would have to develop demands a clear message that they can’t run this walk through the whole parking lot and place without us.” At the next media- see everyone’s signs. And as the strike tion session, the county agreed to in- deadline drew near, workers hauled crease minimum pay from $8.92 per burn barrels in their trucks to show they spent months building up to it, begin- hour to $15. And in the course of this were ready to hit the picket line. ning with easier activities like wearing campaign, union membership rose from BRING PEOPLE ALONG red T-Shirts on Wednesdays and shar- 65 to 93 percent. ing selfies on social media. Collective You’ll find the same escalating pat- action builds unity and confidence. START SLOW tern if you scratch the surface of just Don’t bring out your big guns right about any successful strike. Gradually away. Start with an easy activity, like increasing the intensity keeps participa- answering a survey, signing a petition, tion high. At an industrial laundry in or wearing a button. La Crosse, Wisconsin, the first contract These mild activities allow you to campaign under right to work kicked double-check how widely and deeply off with a multilingual potluck meal THE ESSENTIALS felt the issue is, and form a network of to discuss demands at a Hmong com- • Dream big activists who can lead their co-workers munity center, so that the large number • Never waste a contract fight through the next steps. of Hmong workers in the shop would • Find the boss’s weak spots If you don’t achieve your goal be included from the beginning. Activi- • Start with easy tactics through Step One, try something that’s ties grew from there, culminating in a • Bring people along by increasing a bit harder and that pushes the boss a 45-minute —the first in UE the intensity gradually bit more. Plan your steps in advance, so Local 1121’s history—joined by every you can move smoothly from one to the worker. And the local retained nearly next and aren’t scrambling for new ideas 100 percent membership. at a crisis point. Even Arizona teachers, who seeming- Along the way you’re likely to ly burst onto the scene this spring with use some tried-and-true tactics, like their statewide walkout, had in fact www.labornotes.org/openshop LABOR NOTES PAGE 17 JULY 2018 ASK PEOPLE TO JOIN

The best approach is to integrate the membership ‘ask’ into union routines and workplace campaigns.

Unions should be able to motivate union, and about 18 of us took that in- most people at a union workplace to formation and went and talked to our become members and pay dues. After co-workers about joining,” said Aman- all, workers are under attack on the da Miller, president of the Kalamazoo job—whether it’s a bullying boss, short teachers union (NEA) in Michigan. THE ESSENTIALS “Not only did they all say yes, they did • Enlist every union activist to help sign staffing, or a grab at your pension. Pre- up members it happily. We just had to ask.” sumably your union is campaigning on • Make sign-up part of your organizing the issues your co-workers care about. Many of us shy away from encourag- routine, not a separate campaign (If not, flip back a few pages.) ing people to become members. It can • Orient new hires to the union right So it’s not hard to make the case for feel like selling something or being too away why the union matters, or to find an op- pushy. But the union is not a consumer • Don’t just ask people to sign a card— portunity to raise the topic. Make this product. Dues are an essential ingre- involve them in a movement conversation part of every steward’s dient for a strong union—fuel in the routine and every activist’s agenda in engine. every workplace campaign. The other side of the coin is that unions must use members’ dues re- TALK ONE ON ONE sponsibly. If members grow cynical or It starts with talking to your co-work- mistrustful about where their money is ers one on one. People won’t join if you going, they won’t want to pay. The more don’t ask. transparently and democratically your You’ll be surprised how many you union handles its spending, the less Union officers and staff shouldn’t be get. “We did a training on building our you’ll have this problem. the only ones asking. Letter Carriers Branch 82 in Portland, Oregon, trains stewards to sign people up. Stewards, in turn, are encouraged to figure out which members are friendly with each non-member and enlist their help. Indiana teachers formed a member- ship committee in each big school or cluster of small schools. They divide up the list of non-members, giving as- signments to school site representatives (stewards) and activists based on who has a relationship or has something in common with the potential member. Activists regularly get together to de- brief these conversations. When some- one has declined to sign, they talk it over: “What was holding this person back? Is it something we can fix?” Most non-members get a second and third at- tempt, often from someone else with a different relationship or approach. Milwaukee, Wisconsin, teachers agree that you often have to go back

Laborers Local 79 multiple times. The answer is “patience, PAGE 18 JULY 2018 LABOR NOTES www.labornotes.org/openshop in the room. Try to hold this orientation But the end goal wasn’t just to get on day one, advises Communications the membership card signed—it was Workers Local 4900 President Tim to connect those people into the union AN ORGANIZING Strong in Indiana, who reports a 99 per- and start addressing their workplace cent success rate signing up new hires. concerns. “When we catch somebody who’s “We had to let them know this wasn’t CONVERSATION been here for a week or a month, it’s just a one-time thing,” Groshell said. Your job is mostly to ask questions. much more difficult,” he said. “They’ve “You have to be honest, you have to fol- Any organizing conversation—whether gotten used to those dues not coming low through on whatever you say you’re you’re asking your co-worker to come to out of their check.” going to do, and you have to tell people a rally or to sign a membership card— Michigan nurse Heather Roe asks the truth, rather than what you think should be based on issues. orientees to define what a union is. She they want to hear.” Don’t lay on the guilt or make it about doesn’t supply the right answer—group doing you a favor. You want your co- WIN THEM OVER worker to realize: discussion always produces a good one. She asks what they expect being in a Winning people over can be a long- union will be like, and fields questions term project. In rural Monroe County, 1. She cares about a problem. Tennessee, teacher activist Sarah Amos 2. There’s a decision-maker who has like, “Doesn’t the union protect lazy the power to fix this problem. workers?” and “What do my dues pay reported in 2016 that a teacher who’d 3. The decision-maker won’t fix it for?” been refusing to join for 24 years had until someone pushes them to. “Don’t just throw a member appli- finally signed up. 4. If she really wants this problem cation at them,” she said. “Take some In fact, she became a building rep and fixed, she has to join you and oth- time to listen to them and then build union activist—“red hot and one of our ers in taking action. their understanding from a positive most active members,” Amos said. How’d that happen? “She saw us fight But just telling her all this wouldn’t be place.” Typically they all sign up. If your union doesn’t have contract lan- for everyone,” Amos explained, “for effective. Instead, ask questions that get retiring teachers, for new teachers, for her to say it herself. We tend to remem- guage or an agreement with the employer, be creative. Find out when orientations students.” The union made impressive ber what we said, not what the other membership gains that year by mobiliz- person said. happen and set up your own lunchtime meetings, or work with stewards to ap- ing members and non-members alike to proach new employees one on one. fight off a threatened pay cut and de- The goal isn’t just to sign them up, fend grievance rights. persistence, and not writing them off,” “Sometimes people think that union Vice President Amy Mizialko said, “not but to keep them as active members for the long run. Offer concrete support in members are lazy and that we need a making an enemy of this person, and contract to protect us,” Amos said. “But being very curious and non-judgmental learning the ropes of their new job, as- sign a union mentor, and look for ways then she saw us fight, and recognized about why this person hadn’t joined.” that lazy people don’t fight this hard.” Your conversation should be about a to involve them in the union right away. lot more than joining the union. Miz- CREATE URGENCY ialko tries to follow the 80/20 rule—lis- Membership should be a year-round ten 80 percent of the time, talk 20 per- priority—think monthly reports at cent. When she catches herself talking union meetings. “We try to weave it into too much, she stops and asks an open- the culture,” said Willie Groshell of the WHAT INSPIRES PEOPLE TO ended question (not yes/no), such as, Letter Carriers. “Everybody knows who “What keeps you going in this job?” or the non-members are, and everybody JOIN THE UNION? “What do you wish you could change?” feels empowered to engage them.” She listens to identify areas of common That doesn’t mean you shouldn't hold • Seeing the union win fights that ground she can build on, workplace is- matter. sign-up drives. Sometimes it’s necessary • Experiencing collective action sues this person cares about, and which to create urgency. Teachers and school firsthand. co-workers could have influence. employees often use the beginning of • Trusting that you and your co-work- ORIENT NEW HIRES the school year. A membership drive ers have each other’s backs. can create momentum for a challenging • Being asked to join, by someone you Welcome new employees into the campaign, such as a contract fight. respect. union right away. Otherwise the union Membership matters at the bargain- • Confidence that the union can protect will continually shrink as members re- ing table; a show of strength or weak- you from the boss’s retaliation. tire or quit. ness will make the boss take note. The The upside with new hires—it’s a teacher local in Maconaquah, Indiana, clean slate. Many have never been in was able to fight off a benefits cut after WHAT DOESN'T INSPIRE a union before, and almost none have increasing its membership from 58 to 70 been in your union. This is your chance percent. PEOPLE? to introduce what the union is—where In Oregon, two postal unions teamed it came from, what it stands for, and • A guilt trip. up to knock on non-members’ doors in • A sales pitch. what it has won. pairs. They found a few people who’d • Fear-mongering. Many employers will do their best to never been asked and were happy to • Comparing dues to the price of a latte sour people on joining. So don’t wait. join. Others had reservations, and the or a gym membership. You want contract language that allows home visit allowed a more productive, • Perks, such as retail discounts or li- a union rep or steward to meet with all relaxed conversation away from the ability insurance. new hires on the clock, without the boss boss’s ears. www.labornotes.org/openshop LABOR NOTES PAGE 19 JULY 2018 COUNT NOSES

You’ll need a system to track members and potential members, with maps and lists. Get to know the informal leaders in the workplace.

Here’s the baseline: an active union MAINTAIN A GOOD LIST All this data needs to be stored, needs to know where all its members For starters, you need a complete whether it’s a big Excel sheet or a cus- and non-members are, and how to con- and accurate list. Don’t trust manage- tomized database. Your list will need tact every represented worker. ment to produce this. The union should constant updating—it’s only as useful as But your data should go much deeper maintain its own seniority list, periodi- it is accurate. Stewards should take on- than that. The better you know the inter- cally checked against any list manage- going responsibility for filling in miss- nal dynamics of your workplace—who ment sends over with the dues check. ing contact info, adding new people and talks to who, how does information Keep track of personal emails, cell removing outgoing ones, and asking the travel, when are the crunch times each phone numbers, shift or start time, de- non-members to join. day—the more effective you will be at partment or location, and whether each One or two leaders should take charge recruiting members as well as building worker is a member or not. Then think of tracking and coordinating with other power on the job. about what other information you’d like stewards to get cards into non-members’ to keep track of. hands. Is Rosie a steward? If not, who’s as- MAKE A MAP signed to communicate with her? Is she If you have a lot of non-members, an identified leader in her department? don’t panic—and don’t assume the best Which union actions has she participat- approach is to work your way down an ed in? Is she hardcore anti-union? alphabetical list, talking to every non- If you don’t have a list, start with member. You’ll want a more nuanced whatever employee list you can find (be plan. resourceful, be discreet). Enlist stewards For starters, look for patterns in to check the information for their own who the non-members are. Are they departments. MAPPING YOUR WORKPLACE Start with a physical map of the work- • Identity. Look at gender, race, lan- place. You want to show where your co- guage, and sexual identity. Does the union workers are, and where they move through- reach every group? Do stewards reflect the out the day. diversity of the workforce? Use sticky dots to show each member • Membership. Where are union mem- and non-member, with colors to indicate su- bers and stewards clustered? Which groups pervisors, stewards, union activists, or dif- show the biggest gaps in union involvement? ferent jobs. • Issues. How does each group relate Making and analyzing the map should be to management? What are its biggest prob- a group activity. Look for patterns and dis- lems? Which issues could be addressed cuss these questions: through collective action? • Work groups. Who is grouped by job, These conversations will help you de- work area, or shift? Which groups see each vise a strategy for who to talk to first, and other? Which are hard to reach? find potential organizing issues. Your map • Social groups. Who carpools togeth- will also show you good places to talk with er? Who speaks the same language? Who co-workers, away from the prying eyes of socializes at lunch? Who’s related? Who are supervisors. all the smokers? Laborers Local 79

PAGE 20 JULY 2018 LABOR NOTES www.labornotes.org/openshop concentrated in a certain department, Association uses a “Go Green” system which are weak. Make a big version to job, shift, or group where you’ve never to motivate worksite leaders. Schools put on the wall and a spreadsheet you had much union activity? below 50 percent membership are coded can carry with you. Your goal isn’t just to get member- red, those above 50 percent are yellow, The simplest form of chart is just your ship cards signed, but to build a living and those above 70 percent are green. list, sorted by work area and shift, and union that reaches every part of the The color scheme helps officers and color-coded to show who the members workplace. Wherever your union net- reps (stewards) prioritize which schools, and non-members are and who hasn't work has a hole, you'll need a strategy and even which parts of buildings, need been asked yet. Mark each steward or to involve that group. You might need the most help. activist who is helping to sign people up, to get the right leader on board or plan a Last year the Eastern Howard Educa- and each identified leader you are hop- campaign on the right issue. tion Association, north of Indianapolis, ing to recruit. Here’s a great tool to help you un- formed a membership committee and cover these gaps and devise these plans: divided up the list of non-members. make a map. (See box.) Each person took two or three people to talk to. ENLIST NATURAL LEADERS Through these conversations, they Rather than try to talk to everyone on discovered a unifying issue: a point your lunch or break, think about who system that required teachers to meet you should prioritize because they have unrealistic criteria based on attendance THE ESSENTIALS influence. and degrees in order to get a raise. So Maintain an accurate list Every workplace has informal leaders the union bargained a pay scale in- • who aren’t elected or appointed; they • Map the workplace to understand stead. The campaign of conversations, groups, relationships, and issues just are. combined with the issue fight, boosted • Identify natural leaders and Think about your co-workers, and membership from 56 to 70 percent. recruit them ask around. Who do they go to for help CHART YOUR PROGRESS • Focus on areas where the union or advice? Who do they ask when they is weak want the facts? Who do they admire? A chart is a good way to track your • Fill the gaps by helping leaders- Certain names usually come up over progress. It’s easy to update and allows build campaigns to solve prob and over. In one hospital, a certain nurse you to see at a glance which depart- lems collectively was known on his floor as “the mayor.” ments are strong on membership and • Chart your progress Fundamentally, a leader is someone who has followers. That means there are others who will take an action—sign the petition, wear the sticker, attend the rally, join the strike—when this person asks. Leaders often correspond to groups. Different leaders might have sway among the younger workers, the moms, the basketball players, the people who work in a certain department, or the night shift. The people who already have follow- ers are the ones you most want to get Storage involved in the union. They will be the best at recruiting and inspiring others; they will be able to sustain their co- workers’ trust in the face of an anti- Desks union campaign. Go out of your way to get to know them, learn what they care about, and help them develop campaigns that move others into action. Time spent with these leaders will pay dividends. 'BIGGEST-WORST' FIRST For the biggest results, focus first on the area where you have the most non-members. Water At the Milwaukee Teachers Educa- tion Association, an organizing team of staffers and release-time members chooses six schools each semester. Or- ganizers tailor a plan to raise member Union activist Supervisor numbers at each targeted school based on its particular history and challenges. The Indiana State Teachers Not yet involved www.labornotes.org/openshop LABOR NOTES PAGE 21 JULY 2018 THE ESSENTIALS • Fight for the public good • Link up with allies who have interests in common • Build on the community relationships your members already have DON'T GO IT ALONE • Stick with your allies for the long haul • Don’t try to substitute community ties for organizing on the job To succeed, your organizing has to combine action on the job with a fight for justice in the wider society.

One possible reaction to Janus is that leave low-income students hungry, they unions scale back on movement-build- organized food drives and offered meals ing outside the workplace to avoid alien- each day. ating on-the-fence workers. After all, An AP poll in the midst of the strike WAYS TO BUILD it’s a right-wing talking point—unions wave found that 78 percent of Ameri- spend money on causes that their mem- cans thought teachers weren’t paid COMMUNITY SUPPORT bers may not agree with. enough, and 80 percent of those who’d But going it alone isn’t an option. heard of the strikes supported them. • Have members set up one-on-one To inspire members to stick around we The strikers’ righteous stand, and conversations with community need to win fights that matter. Unions the resulting wash of public support, leaders. can’t win big if we’re an isolated mi- inspired teachers across the country to • Make a plan on who to contact, who nority—especially in the public sector, hold their heads up high—and in sev- will do it, the timeline, and the ask. • Ask to talk about the union’s contract where we’re up against well-financed eral states, to follow suit. fight in a community meeting or faith politicians adept at pitting taxpayers LINK UP WITH ALLIES service. against “greedy” workers. Even co- Especially in the public sector, often • Participate in coalitions. Ask what sup- workers (who are taxpayers, too) can be port is needed, and bring updates and susceptible to this anti-union rhetoric, we’re fighting for things that go beyond requests back to the union. and a narrow vision won’t inspire them. our contract, like better schools or com- • Mobilize members to attend actions To beat billionaire donors we need munity services. That means we have organized by other unions or com- the power of a united working-class natural long-term allies. Our employ- munity groups. movement. ers and government officials often care deeply about their reputations and will FIGHT FOR THE PUBLIC GOOD respond to public pressure. Like other public sector workers, Beyond your workplace, who has a call for help in a crisis. The union also teachers and their unions have been de- stake in the services you provide? Are backed BRU’s push for a low-income monized. So how did teachers in West they organized? How might you reach fare option, which will go into effect Virginia, Oklahoma, and Arizona at- them and collaborate? this summer, helping to alleviate ten- tract an outpouring of public support After two passengers died in a horrific sion between transit workers and riders this spring when they walked out on stabbing on a train in Portland, Oregon, who can’t pay. strikes? the transit agency upped police pres- “We feel like our fates are inter- The teachers linked their fight for ence. But the union was already work- twined,” said BRU Organizer Orlando higher pay to the fight for a good public ing closely on safety with a passenger Lopez. “It’s not just about scratching education for all children. They broke it group to promote a different solution. each other’s backs. It’s about, ‘Why is it down: because of low salaries, experi- Transit workers and passengers are of- that we’re both itching?’” enced teachers were moving to higher- ten pitted against each other, especially paying states or fleeing the profession. at the fare box. But when the two groups DRAW ON MEMBERS' ROOTS Schools were scrambling to find even held joint forums, they discovered they Unions and community groups often underqualified replacements. had many concerns in common. approach alliances in top-down style— Also, the same budget cuts that Instead of more police, Transit (ATU) “Let’s have our president and your ex- slashed salaries had left students to read Local 757 and Bus Riders Unite agreed ecutive director shake hands.” But your from tattered textbooks at broken desks they’d rather revive two job titles that fellow members have profound con- in overcrowded classrooms. Teachers used to exist—Fare Inspector and Rid- nections of their own. We’re not just made these points by sharing photos er Advocate—to staff trains and buses workers—we’re also neighbors, parents, on social media and with news outlets. with union members equipped to de- people of faith, and members of many To make sure their would not escalate conflicts, answer questions, and kinds of organizations. PAGE 22 JULY 2018 LABOR NOTES www.labornotes.org/openshop To map out this web of connec- tions, some unions conduct a survey. Do members and their families belong to churches, mosques, or synagogues? DIFFERENT TYPES OF ALLIANCES How about local sports leagues, parent- teacher associations, hunting clubs, or immigrant associations? Ask! Then WEAKEST—“PLEASE COME SUPPORT US!” Some people will come help, brainstorm how to build stronger rela- because they like us or because it is “the right thing to do.” tionships between those organizations and the union. MEDIUM—“YOU HELP US ON THIS AND WE’LL HELP YOU ON THAT!” Organizers at SeaTac airport, near Se- Scratch each other’s backs: It does help for your ally to know that you will return the favor. attle, discovered the depth of workers’ It’s stronger than a one-way relationship, but people will only go so far just to help you faith community almost by accident. with your issues. Many of the airport’s low-wage work- ers were observant Muslim immigrants STRONGEST—“WE’RE IN IT TOGETHER!” Solidarity: We are both being from Somalia. The unions weren’t seen harmed. Working together and supporting each other is the only way to fix it. “Supporting as responsive to these workers’ concerns you helps me win, too.” until 2011, when Hertz suspended 34 Somali workers for taking a brief break (Excerpted from Chicago Teachers Union training materials) to pray. Teamsters Local 117 organized a multi-faith pray-in at the Hertz counter. Muslims, Christians, and Jews joined leaders took office—approach commu- IT'S NOT EITHER/OR union and community activists, praying nity organizations as equals and build One note of caution: you can’t substi- while holding signs that read, “Respect relationships on shared issues; don’t just me, respect my religion.” Union officers tute community ties for a strong union ask for help with predetermined goals. in the workplace. and the shop steward went on national Parent, student, and neighbor groups news shows. They brought in lawyers. It’s not helpful to your community al- helped shape CTU’s campaign for “The lies if you can only offer them weak sup- After the pray-in, community doors Schools Chicago Students Deserve,” began to open. Union activists were which highlighted not only the overall port, such as the same member or two invited to speak at family night in the underfunding of Chicago schools but always attending their events. It won’t mosques. Imams talked about the union also the “educational apartheid” that help you, either. At the bargaining table, drive in their Friday sermons. was specifically underfunding and shut- all the community alliances in the world Workers warmed up to organizers at ting down schools in Black and Latino won’t make up for the basic weakness the airport, saying, “I heard you were neighborhoods. of a union whose own members aren't at the mosque,” or “the imam told us By the time the contract campaign active. about the union.” The airport campaign peaked in a massive strike, it was no sur- If you’re stuck in a weak union, gained momentum—and ultimately prise that community members came don’t despair. Find a few like-minded these newfound allies worked together out in force to deliver home-cooked co-workers—even one is enough to get to pass the country’s first $15 minimum- food, cheer the strikers on, and walk started—and start talking about how wage ordinance, kicking off a national their picket lines. you can turn things around. movement. BE IN IT FOR THE LONG HAUL Alliances with community groups should be year-round, not rustled up in an emergency, say activists in the Chi- cago Teachers Union. Community groups had tried to work with the old CTU leadership “and found they weren’t interested,” said Katelyn Johnson, director of Action Now, a community organization active on the South and West Sides of the city. “If there was something they needed they would reach out, but after that you didn’t hear from them.” Changing that dynamic was one of the first steps for a caucus that emerged to remake the union. Years before they won union leadership and led the groundbreaking 2012 strike, teacher activists got their Caucus of Rank-and- Laborers Local 79 File Educators off the ground by team- ing up with neighborhood groups to fight school closures. The same principle held once the new www.labornotes.org/openshop LABOR NOTES PAGE 23 JULY 2018 LABOR NOTES Non-Profit Org. 7435 Michigan Avenue U.S. Postage Detroit, Michigan 48210 PAID Detroit, MI Return Service Requested Permit No. 1939

Time Dated Material

SPECIAL ISSUE REBUILDING POWER IN OPEN-SHOP AMERICA: A LABOR NOTES GUIDE The moment you may have been issues their members care about, and READ MORE dreading arrived June 27, when the Su- where large numbers of rank-and-file Secrets of a Suc- preme Court imposed the open shop on members take on their own fights. cessful Organizer the public sector nationwide with its de- Many unions have SPREAD THE WORD cision in Janus v. AFSCME District 31. ordered this book in Instead of the usual mix of articles, To order extra copies of this pam- bulk for stewards or this month we’re sending you a special phlet for your workplace or union, call staff—it’s a step-by- expanded issue of Labor Notes devoted 313-842-6262. step guide to building power on the job. to one topic: our survival guide for re- TAKE THE NEXT STEP You’ll learn to map building power in open-shop America. your workplace, iden- (Are you in the private sector and think This pamphlet condenses the lessons we spell out in much more detail, and tify key issues, build campaigns to tackle this won’t affect you? Don’t get too cozy. them, anticipate management’s tricks with lots of real-life examples, in our See page 4.) Next month we’ll be back and traps, and inspire your co-workers to popular handbooks Secrets of a Success- stand together despite their fears. $15. to our usual format. ful Organizer and Democracy Is Power. Janus is a serious blow—but we have Bulk discounts are available. good news. As plenty of unions in Democracy Is Power open-shop states and sectors can testify, TRAIN UP YOUR CREW Whether you’re a it’s still possible to win campaigns and Labor Notes educators can help union officer ready to maintain high membership rates despite stewards and activists hone their skills turn the ship around the legal hurdles. We talked to workers with hands-on trainings like “Organiz- or a frustrated rank in schools, factories, buses, hospitals, oil ing in Open-Shop America,” “Beating and filer, look no refineries, grocery stores, post offices, Apathy,” and “Turning an Issue into a further for a practical and shipyards. This pamphlet reveals Campaign.” We can help you develop a manual on how to re- the principles and practical steps behind build your union from strategy to revamp member recruitment the bottom up. It cov- their successes. or get the most out of an upcoming ers democratic approaches to contracts, Here’s the punchline: the unions that contract campaign. Get in touch with grievances, communications, and leaders’ build power in open-shop America will us at [email protected] or call relationship with members. $10. be the ones that fight hard on workplace 718-284-4144.