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AUD Conference Audio Available
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| Kelsey |
Posted: Mon Jan 08, 2007 10:59 pm
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Site Admin
Joined: 11 Jan 2006 Posts: 133 |
The Association for Union Democracy (AUD) have posted some audio files from their October 2006 conference held in New York.
The conference was titled "Confronting Corruption in Labor Unions" and the audio files posted so far include an introduction by Judith Schneider, and talks by Herman Benson (founder of AUD) and James Jacobs. Read More... _________________ The PG is your friend. |
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| Matt Noyes |
Posted: Tue Jan 09, 2007 12:31 am
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Joined: 07 Feb 2006 Posts: 28 |
Herman Benson's talk raises a couple of points that might be controversial in uncharted territory.
For instance, Benson says that rank-and-file unionists can not get rid of hard-core corruption on their own. The government has a positive role to play in the fight against corruption in such unions, and the combination of rank-and-file insurgency and government intervention (RICO suits, government trusteeships) is the key. Should we trust the government? If not, what should we do? What do you think? _________________ "the practice of democracy in organizing is the organizing of democracy in practice" |
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| Pearson |
Posted: Tue Jan 09, 2007 9:22 pm
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Joined: 03 Feb 2006 Posts: 1416 Location: Sun City AZ |
Quote: Should we trust the government? If not, what should we do? Hey Matt; Jacob's conclusion is where i want to begin. My problem is i still struggle to believe the problems of organized labor are all because the "mafia" took over the labor movement. Clearly there are some Internationals where organized crime was far more prevalent. Clearly corruption has played a role in it's demise. That said, i think there are far more significant factors in our slide into oblivion. Several SEIU locals were some of the worst; where the criminal element took control. To Stern's credit, he helped wipe out many of the bad guys. That said, what did he replace them with? Are they more democratically run now then before the trusteeships. The new leadership may not go by the name Guido, but have they become havens of democracy? Jacobs said; we may just replace one despot with another. Seems to me that was a quote that filtered through on the old MFD site. Worse yet, it has been more than a saying all too many times. In many cases, reformers have simply become what their predessessor's were. I know this is a difficult position to put you in; sorry. Herman has been one of those who has spent a lifetime trying to get the criminals out of organized labor. AUD has been a leading proponent in that fight. The folks on the panel, the authors and scholars, have similar viewpoints and courageous stories and careers built on the same foundation. They clearly are of the mind that is our biggest problem. Do you feel that way? In your experiences, do you think labor is being sucked dry by guys with pinkie rings and and last names ending in vowels? My exposure is/was to the ufcw. While you could find an occassional local under the influence, it certainly wasn't the majority, and by no means the driving force in our demise. I could find a dozen other valid reasons as to why we were/are dieing. My real fear is we spend a lifetime getting rid of the criminal element and nothing changes. Stern's course is pretty well set. Using the ctw he appears to be fixated on bigger unions, bigger locals and less democracy. Is AUD and Herman on the right track? Ultimately turning to the government to get the criminals out, when that isn't the primary reason we are broken, leaves us no hope for real change. _________________ If we don't do it, who will? |
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| Matt Noyes |
Posted: Wed Jan 10, 2007 1:17 am
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Joined: 07 Feb 2006 Posts: 28 |
Hi Bill, nice to see your voice.
The starting point for the AUD conference was that corruption and organized crime influence in labor unions is a serious problem that rarely gets addressed. Not the only problem, not in all unions, but a big problem all the same, and one that deserves attention. Opponents of unions will expose corruption, it's practically the only labor story you can find in the news, but their criticisms are in bad faith. They want workers to have less power and fewer rights, not more. Supporters of unions generally avoid the subject; as you go up the hierarchy of unions, the silence gets louder and louder. Labor is so silent about corruption that workers often turn to sources like NLPC -- a totally anti-union outfit -- to get news. As for labor leaders, Benson's description of how they "handle" the problem of corruption with praise and golden parachutes is right on, I think, and fits SEIU perfectly. Rank-and-file and independent sites like uncharted do talk about corruption and are valuable because they don't just expose corruption but also talk about what to do about it and about other problems as well. I agree, corruption is not the only issue or even the primary issue for most unions. As you know AUD addresses many issues facing unionists, not just corruption. This is our first conference on corruption, our last conference was on organizing for democracy in the Building Trades. We are particularly interested in efforts to counter the trend to consolidation and autocracy seen in the CTW unions, and others. But, for many rank-and-file members, and for officers at the local level, corruption and organized crime remain serious problems and pose a serious obstacle to union transformation/reform. Labor's silence on the issue leaves workers who want democracy even more isolated. So, it's important to talk about. The other reason for the conference is that enough time has passed that we can now try to assess the record of efforts to fight corruption. Have we been successful? (The conference is remarkable, in my opinion because it brings together so many people who have not just talked about corruption but have fought it.) Benson's take is that rank-and-file action alone has not been sufficient to get the mob out, government action has been needed. But for various reasons (and that's where Jacobs is interesting) the government is not interested in union democracy and reform and will not do much beyond attacking organized crime. So, you need a combination of rank-and-file self-organization and government intervention. Will the best efforts all lead to naught? Will the despots just come back in new form? Of course, unless we organize democratically to build democracy. The struggle for democracy and member-control in unions, like in society in general, is ongoing and requires constant organizing. Sounds like a platitude, but isn't that your experience? Is it enough to get the mob out? No. But we have seen again and again how corruption undercuts rank-and-file insurgency. Getting the mob out creates a space for rank-and-file reform. The ILA is a great example of this. So, I think you and I agree, but am I missing something? _________________ "the practice of democracy in organizing is the organizing of democracy in practice" |
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| Plutodog |
Posted: Wed Jan 10, 2007 5:22 am
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Joined: 06 Feb 2006 Posts: 300 Location: Oregon |
There's some spill-over or before/after between corruption and organized crime. Part of the problem, I think is that in the name of labor peace, the gov and business and too many labor "leaders" have conspired to hobble the power of united workers, sabotage through "law and order" and pure brute force any active union group having too much success leveraging back against management through direct action. Kinda leaves union leadership too often as a management type job in a field where what should be the great measures of success -- workers winning excellent contracts, benefits, getting justice in the workplace and shutting down bad bossism/injustice -- well that's not so attainable. The folks who might stick around and be the best of leaders can't be entirely faulted for not sticking it out and continuing to stick their neck on the line to try to right the ship/do the right thing etc.
And government -- go after the bad union guys if we hand them the evidence -- but do nothing to truly balance the power between union and management, and do much to undermine the whole idea of union as a good thing...well that's the same bad kind of government that makes so much of life in general many notches below satisfactory (understatement). Ideal government, kinda like ideal union, where it truly IS of/by/for the people and they participate actively in it -- government which really acts like a fair arbiter -- well that kinda government could sure be of value. Presumably that kinda government could reform oversight functions such as labor department OSHA, etc to be what they're supposed to be. Maybe it's needed in addition to good union at least to get a good running start, maybe it's long going to be needed just because of human nature but that's not something we need to decide in my lifetime. All I can see right now is the need for the members to trust/accept no politican/self-seeking union leader to paternally help them out. We got to get out on the street and wildcat until they don't dare call it wildcatting anymore...call it True, Active Unionism Fighting For Workers Justice and Workers Rights EVERYWHERE -- recognize it as salt of the earth people who will not be bullied, cowed or ripped off any more or you'll be our next target. No justice, no peace. And no more of that "Law and Order" crap that "sanctifies" the raw corrupt power of the corporates and their bought and paid for law. 
Rant over. (C'mon, Wm Pasz -- we need your next installment!) _________________ "I'm not a humanitarian,I'm a hell-raiser" -- Mother Jones |
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| catbear955 |
Posted: Wed Jan 10, 2007 6:19 pm
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Joined: 20 Feb 2006 Posts: 136 Location: Upland, Ca. |
Corruption can't exist if there is transparency from the top down. We need to clean our own houses. But as we all know, there are ways to get around the system where "democracy" is concerned, and it's hard to initiate sweeping reform just by an election or two.
The problem with the government is two-fold. First, the Bush NLRB board has thrown us a couple of bones in the Ralphs settlement, but immediately moved to shrink and virtually eliminate bargaining unit positions by expanding the scope of management---the decisions have been as diverse as Starbucks' managers losing overtime and nurses losing their classification and being moved to management. Workers in general have been losing rights very steadily with the Bush NLRB; board agents are given quotas to meet, and there are cases that have to be dismissed because they can't be processed in a timely fashion. Miss one deadline and it's back to the drawing board!More charges are colliered---held until the grievance process occurs---than ever before. The arbitrator decides the case, and the board generally accepts his ruling. The fact is, the Bush board has been pushing the right-to-work agenda from the states to the national level---chipping away at the right to organize as well as join or form unions. Those decisions stand until there is legislation that replaces or repairs the damage done. What the board has been trying to do, and has done with some small success, is to attrcat the cases where a member has been wronged by his/her union. Forced membership, denial or delay of core membership applications, and other victimizing actions by unions against the membership are de riguer---this includes by-law violations, election irregularities and the like. That being said, if you file an NLRB charge against your union, and it has any merit at all, they will investigate it with gusto. Conversely, if you file charge after charge and they are repeatedly unsubstatiated or false---your case might get waylaid. There is a department, ummm, a sort of desk for "frequent fliers". The board is intently looking for cases that can damage unions beyond redemption, where they victimize their members. But all other stuff takes a back burner while they dig for egregious dirt. _________________ ...a dream lives on forever... |
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| Pearson |
Posted: Wed Jan 10, 2007 7:38 pm
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Joined: 03 Feb 2006 Posts: 1416 Location: Sun City AZ |
Quote: So, I think you and I agree, but am I missing something? You're not missing a thing Matt. The problem (at least as i see it)is this; the government is focused on union corruption at the highest level. The doj wants the criminal element: the dol appears to operate on a lessor standard, but none the less they want high profile big ticket players. Over the course of the last several years that kind of thinking has allowed some very ugly abuses to go by the by. So much so the boys know they have lots of rope and seldom end up being hung. For example; the idea a hand picked e-board can bless a theft of a million dollars while the members have no clue is patently wrong. Herman's assessment of what happens in institutionalized labor is 100% accurate. Thieves, scoundrels and scumbags are given pensions, retirement parties and gifts as they waltz out the door. The only honor amongst the thieves is their inability to speak out and up about really happened. Books like Solidarity for Sale leave all of us looking for the big scandal, the big bust. The reality is there is more "stolen" everyday by the good guys in labor pigging out at the trough than by the handful of crooks that get all of the attention. I'm just frustrated by it all. Doug Slaydon gets fucked six ways from sunday and what's the remedy? Nothing. The hogs go on feasting and the workers go on starving. Taking down a handful of legitimate crooks within labor will never clean up the mess we are in. The problems go so far beyond that and i fear by focusing on them, we lose sight of all of the others stuffing their face. Maybe i'll be proven wrong...i pray to God i am. My hope is the government does their job. I hope the dol digs into the abuses in 588 and one day the truth comes out. Until that time, i'll remain a skeptic. _________________ If we don't do it, who will? |
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| SharynS |
Posted: Thu Jan 11, 2007 2:17 am
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Joined: 28 Jan 2006 Posts: 2881 Location: the 'puter |
What am I missing? Aren't the guys running our governments the same guys who came from either business or labour, one private institution or another? If workers' interest wasn't a priority prior to public office then why would we trust that it would (or could) be once elected or appointed to public office?
Rather frightening (and telling) is how the goofs confuse the ability to recite an oath of office with license to play master of the rule of law. Scraping off the layers of tampering is going to be a chore. _________________ Free speech is the whole thing, the whole ball game. Free speech is life itself. - Salman Rushdie |
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| Matt Noyes |
Posted: Thu Jan 11, 2007 11:33 am
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Joined: 07 Feb 2006 Posts: 28 |
I think that's one of Benson's best arguments. Of course we don't trust the government, but that puts us in the mainstream of the population.
The issue is what do think the government will and won't do in a given situation, and why, and how do we use that analysis. Not to mention the fact that, as Jacobs points out, "the government" is not one undifferentiated thing. One problem we face is the hope for a white knight; I agree with Bill that focusing on corruption can be debilitating, in part because it comes with the illusion that someone is going to step in to deal with the outrages and abuses for us. _________________ "the practice of democracy in organizing is the organizing of democracy in practice" |
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| Pearson |
Posted: Fri Jan 12, 2007 2:19 pm
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Joined: 03 Feb 2006 Posts: 1416 Location: Sun City AZ |
Quote: The issue is what do think the government will and won't do in a given situation, The jury is still out on that question; though they have ignored it all too often. The 588 investigation is and will be an awesome test as to their real interest in "cleaning up" labor. Gotta be honest Matt, i'm not holding my breath. This past year we watched as the leadership at ufcw 951 went through an "investigation" by the dol. I spoke with Joe Crump (the former Sec Treasurer) just before his death and it sounded like the case was solid against Bob Potter. The net was Potter moved on to a different job within institutionalized labor and the local was handed over to the internationals hand picked guy (who had conviently been placed in the local just prior to the shit coming down); think they knew in advance a deal was coming down? Is that what you would call justice? Joe Crump fell over dead this summer (after being displaced to the west coast for doing the right thing). Think there was any stress related to the shit he was going through? The pressure he was under? The fact is ethically speaking, there is a huge vacuum within labor and many of the leadership. Watching the boys at Morton's order the most expensive meals, the top shelf booze and the biggest cigar always made me squirm...it was being paid for by some poor schmuck carryout making a tad over minimum wage in armpit Iowa. The DOL; the DOJ and not a politician alive will change that. The only hope for things to change is from within. The difference the government could make is to make examples of those who have stolen or abused their positions of power. It was nice they stuck Talirico in prison; but what about the others who have helped themselves to the members money? Sorry for the rant. I would be remiss in saying i really like the audio feed on the AUD site. This is a great idea and hope you stay with it. _________________ If we don't do it, who will? |
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| atuuschaaw |
Posted: Fri Jan 12, 2007 10:59 pm
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Joined: 29 Jan 2006 Posts: 780 Location: an ahwangan |
Quote: The fact is ethically speaking, there is a huge vacuum within labor and many of the leadership. I certainly appreciate what AUD has done in the past and what they continue to accomplish today. And the audio is awesome Matt! But this vacuum of which Bill speaks is void of necessary oxygen for us grunts in the trenches. Regardless how much support we get from our wonderful organizations such as AUD, LaborNotes, DoL, DoJ, and not to mention each other, we remain in a debilitating vacuum and we continue to smother. As in a vacuum, we have been propelled in a certain direction and we continue in that direction with not enough force to re-direct our paths. I know this sounds very defeatist, and I apologize, but I'm being honest about my feelings. There are so many of us who have faced the corruption, injustice, and self-serving bureaucracies only to be bureaucratically crucified at the alter of the hogs! Yes, there have been some victories for sure, but we still haven't compiled enough force to change labor's direction or alter the increased suffering which is bound to come. It's a catch 22. The more we fight against the hogs of labor, the weaker labor becomes at the hands of the government. The weaker labor becomes, the more the hogs fight to remain at the trough. We go round and round and for the life of me, while I do continue straining to see a light, I can't even find the frickin tunnel! Now excuse me while I go butt my head against the wall one more time! _________________ "Speaking the truth in times of universal deceit is a revolutionary act." George Orwell |
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| SharynS |
Posted: Sat Jan 13, 2007 1:03 am
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Joined: 28 Jan 2006 Posts: 2881 Location: the 'puter |
I liked the audios too, almost like being there. Well not quite but they do have an 'inclusion' factor. Quote: ...that focusing on corruption can be debilitating, Quote: The issue is what do think the government will and won't do in a given situation, and why, and how do we use that analysis. Not to mention the fact that, as Jacobs points out, "the government" is not one undifferentiated thing. Live down labour's reputation while hawking solidarity... I think it can be done. _________________ Free speech is the whole thing, the whole ball game. Free speech is life itself. - Salman Rushdie |
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| wm pasz |
Posted: Sat Jan 13, 2007 3:31 pm
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Joined: 29 Jan 2006 Posts: 1219 Location: Toronto |
Quote: I think working people are already living what can and can't be expected of government. Pension scams, health and education fund scams, stock-market scams - we've learned the hard way that stealing from working people isn't a crime. When the going gets tough the powers-that-be create a board. When the going gets even tougher the powers-that-be create weapons of mass distraction. In hot pursuit of organized crime and ignoring large pockets of corruption where it can feed really doesn't make any kind of sense. Siggy has hit the nail on the head. We can't expect much more out of gov't in terms of fighting corruption in unions than we're getting right now (which in Canada is nothing) because in our corporatist society, fleecing the workers is, well, part of the natural order of things. It's the modern era equivalent of some god or other punishing you for being born into the ranks of a lesser caste. The attention that is paid to organized crime involvement in unions in the US is, I think, influenced more by the fact that the mafiosi are involved in other kinds of crimes (ones where the rich may be getting fleeced) and so there is more of an impetus to go after them. Even if I'm dead wrong on this, I doubt that our governments are going to get any more involved in going after pension fleecers and other troughers than they are today. Even if there is a will, there are a dozen good excuses for not going any further (resource constraints, other law enforcement prioirities and so on). There is also considerable evidence that even the most aggressive and intrusive campaigns to root out the rot from unions are not very effective in the long run. Are the Teamsters, Longshore, HERE and Laborers unions free from mob involvement now - after all the gov't oversight and trusteeships of the 1990's? Fat chance. The crooks just lay low for a while and got their boys back in at the first opportunity. This brings me to another point and that is that the whole legislative framework governing unions and their members makes troughing of all kinds pretty much inevitable. Whether its the local president leasing unnecessary SUV's and living on the convention circuit or the guys with see through socks and pinky rings pumping the pension plan, wherever you have a governance model that encourages "spectator democracy" (and we have just that with our mainstream "institutionalized" unions) the power/money hungry will gravitate to positions of leadership where they can easily set themselves up to rule for life and steal even longer. Sorry folks but the labour relations legal framework (with its regimentations like bargaining units, legal/illegal strike windows, bargaining exclusivity and narrow focus on short list of workplace issues that are deemed "appropriate" for polite conversation between men of power) has to go. If we are to lobby our legislators for anything it should be something that replaces the restrictive labour relations framework with something totally different - something that perhaps enshrines the rights of "communities" to determine how employers of their people will behave, not just in relation to those whom they employ to do work, but how they behave in relation to the community. I recently read a short blurb about a concept called commutiny - like community mutiny. It was described as a "The phenomenon of citizens overthrowing building proposals in their area." (the citizens of the small Vancouver Island community of Tofino apparently successfully blocked the development of a Wal-Mart store). This concept is something that I think has a lot of potential for improving our economic and social conditions because everything that affects those conditions is connected. The corporatists have always understood that and kept us enslaved through a "systematic" approach to exploitation (one where we get exploited at every stage and in every dimension of our lives - producers, consumers, investors, taxpayers, you name it. We've been kidding ourselves for a good half century thinking that we can improve our conditions in any meaningful way by confining our efforts to squeezing better compensation out of our employers. The "union" that must take place if we are to end our enslavement and multi-pronged exploitation by so-called legitimate businessmen and their illegitimate counterparts is a union within communities and not just within workplaces. Currently, I think that much of this kind of community activism can be challenged by the corporatists in the courts (you know, where they claim that their right to loot and pillage takes precedence over our right to life, liberty and pursuit of happiness (or security of the person - for us Canadians). Lobbying the government to give the interests of communities priority over those of corporations would be, I think, a worthwhile venture and one that might compel governments to actually put us ahead of the looters. _________________ Time is on the side of the oppressed today, it's against the oppressor. Truth is on the side of the oppressed today, it's against the oppressor. You don't need anything else. - Malcolm X |
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