The $5 Per Hour Advantage
MFL president speaks to CUPE about the importance of organizing.
During the 46th Annual CUPE Manitoba Division Convention in Dauphin on Thursday, April 30, MFL President Darlene Dziewit spoke about the importance of union density, the percentage of the total workforce which is unionized. She pointed out that Manitoba has the second highest ratio of unionized workers in Canada, 35.9 per cent of the workforce, second only to Newfoundland and Labrador with 36.6 per cent of their labour force unionized. Not surprisingly given the type of government and labour laws they have, Alberta has the fewest percentage of unionized workers - 22.3 per cent.
Dziewit pointed out that having a high percentages of unionized workers is important because "CLC data tells us that there is a $5.00 per hour wage and benefit advantage for union workers over non-union workers. We Canadians do better for ourselves and our families when we're unionized.
"And, there is no doubt that the stronger unions are, the better off their members are. And, as we all know, there is strength in numbers - the more unionized workers there are, the more power we all have - and the better our contracts get."
That's why she finds the trend evident during the past two decades disturbing. Since the 1990s, every province has lost union density, most by more than five percent of their total. Manitoba, due to better labour laws and NDP governments, has fared somewhat better, but even here, union density has declined by about one per cent.
"The statistics for union density," she added, "are not out for Canada since the latest global economic meltdown, caused by those great global captains of industry at the large financial institutions, multi-national companies and their political friends. But just look at where the jobs in Canada are being lost - they are good union jobs in the manufacturing sector. If this recession continues, governments are going to start cutting back on spending, and therefore, the public services they are supposed to provide - more union jobs gone, and with them our bargaining power."
Dziewit said that the best way to fight back, to protect the living standards of working men and women, is to organize.
"We can go out, do the hard work and organize more union members. We have to change the culture of our unions. We have to convince all of our members, starting with ourselves, that it is in all of our best interests to organize their friends, relatives and neighbours.
"We need to push the government to pass more, not less, organizing-friendly labour laws. For example, if the majority of workers in a non-union workplace sign union cards, they should be automatically certified as a union shop, and then start bargaining for their first contract. They should not have to endure incredible pressure and threats from their employers and be required to vote for their union yet again in a vote conducted on company premises."
The way in which Dziewit says Canadian workers should be able to gain the benefits of union membership is similar to what's been proposed by President Obama's administration in the United States.