Talking Union: A Project of the DSA Labor Network

Happy May Day everyone!  See my previous diaries .(1) (2) for more about this important day.  Today's diary takes you to the on-line place for a broad range of labor activists to discuss ideas for the renewal and strengthening of the labor movement.  Since strengthening the labor movement is srengthening the Democratic Party, everyone should want to know about this source of important information.  Today's lead article is the Manifesto of the
International Trade Union Confederation. (ITUC)  I am curious about how serious the Democratic Party is about these goals.  Let us look into this matter more deeply

How many of us know what the International Trade Union Confederation. (ITUC) is?  In their words:

It has been the historic role of trade unionism, and remains its mission, to better the conditions of work and life of working women and men and their families, and to strive for human rights, social justice, gender equality, peace, freedom and democracy.

More than ever in its history, confronted by unbridled capitalist globalisation, effective internationalism is essential to the future strength of trade unionism and its capacity to realise that mission.

The Confederation calls on the workers of the world to unite in its ranks, to make of it the instrument needed to call forth a better future for them and for all humanity.

First let us look at their Manifesto:

ITUC May Day Manifesto
Brussels, 29 April 2008 (ITUC OnLine): On this day, the 1st of May, millions of working people across the world join together to celebrate the achievements of more than a century of trade unionism. The high principles of equality, justice, human dignity and peace which have found expression through the trade union movement are just as relevant today as they were when working men and women first came together to fight for their rights at work. These principles gave rise to the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and ILO Convention 87 in 1948. But the fundamental rights enshrined in these celebrated instruments are far from reality for much of humanity.

For most of the world’s people, decent work is but a distant dream. Millions of children are at work instead of school, workers are deprived of their fundamental rights and subject to exploitation by unscrupulous employers and repressive regimes, and inequality is growing within and between countries as a small minority accumulates incalculable wealth at the expense of others.

Not for many decades have the failings of global governance by "market solutions" been more apparent. Contagion continues to spread through world financial markets, with working women and men bearing the brunt of the unwillingness of governments to face up to the need for financial regulation. 100 million people more than last year do not have enough to eat as the global food crisis grows by day, threatening the very fabric of societies and fuelled by the legacy of decades of damaging policies at the world level. Action on climate change, perhaps the greatest test of human history, is feeble compared to the magnitude of the challenge. And the United Nations MDGs, goals which the global community set for itself, are far from being reached.

The means to deal with all these challenges exist, but the political will to resist the powerful interests that stand in the way of progress is lacking. Trade unions everywhere are confronting these interests, campaigning to put social concerns and sustainable development at the centre, rather than the margins, of policy. We demand a fundamental change to global governance, putting decent work at the core of a new globalisation and making the global institutions respond to the real needs of people instead of following the erroneous policies of the past.

On October 7 2008, the World Day for Decent Work, trade unions across the world will join together to issue a global call for rights at work. We will bring to the fore the great traditions of solidarity which have been the mainstay of trade unionism since its earliest days, and which are essential to solving the problems which confront the world today. We will show how decent work is central to ending poverty and ensuring equality for all men and women, and demonstrate our abiding commitment to solidarity with the marginalised and the dispossessed. We remain steadfast in our quest for a better world and renew our commitment to bring this about through united action of working people from every corner of the planet.

Read that over again and then there is a question I'd like you to answer at the end of this diary. The reason you need to answer this question should be clear.   The themes of "Unity" and "Change" have  been echoing around lately and I see them as joined in an inseperable way.  If we want true change then we must also want justice for working people and if we want that we must support the world wide unity of those people.  But not just that.  A broader and deeper unity is called for.  If one believes in unity among our human brothers and sisters in this world then one must make a committment to supporting the efforts of working people to obtain justice no matter what one's own station in life happens to be.

Easier said than done I'd say.  The challange here parallels that of the various movements to deal with ecosystem problems globally.  What is the biggest impediment to such global movements?  Nationalism is of course.  That was as glib as I ever get yet it needs to be said that way.  Nationalism is the key to an enourmous web or network of interlocking problems, immigration not being the smallest among them.  Nationalism is deeply connected to patriotism and its counterfeits including questions about flag pins, damning America for its sinful behavior, and even chickens that often come home to roost.  This network is surfacing as something much too large for one diary so I'd better get back to a more limited discussion with the hope that you will have been tweeked to look for more of these as I make the story more complete.

The Talking Union Website has as its second entry, Harold Meyerson's commmentary in yesterday's WaPo that I wrote about yesterday:Harold Meyerson on why the Democrats need unions.  I did not know that until I looked at the Talking Union Site today, but I am not surprised.

I am beating this drum because I believe that all the interest in the presidental primary and the upcoming presidential election can be a distraction from these important topics.  You do not have to be union member to understand how vital to your own basic interests being a union supporter is.  We need, as a party, to realize that unions are not just another group to pander to at election time.  They are the heart and soul of America and we have alowed them to atrophy.  The harm that comes from that atrophy is summed up by the ravages on all of us by the Bush administration.  Understanding that should lead to an integration of support for unions and their ideals into the basic election strategies we pursue as democrats. Brothers and Sisters, which side are you on?