Organizing and Collective Bargaining

Middle and working class workers in today’s world face a great number of challenges.  The cost of living is increasing at a rate faster than increases in wages, consumer debt is growing, and according to the National Coalition on Health Care, almost 82 million Americans were without healthcare at some point in 2004-2005.  Meanwhile, 1% of the US population controls 16% percent of its wealth, and the average CEO makes up to 400 times what the average worker does.  Unions are one of the only avenues where workers can raise their collective voice to address inequalities in wages, health care, and working conditions.  But this voice has been hindered by employers and union busters, who use intimidation, illegal firings and delay tactics to sabotage organizing campaigns.

The mission of Jobs with Justice is to stand with workers who are trying to organize and negotiate contracts.  This can include everything from advocating for reforms like the Employee Free Choice Act (EFCA), to directly supporting workers and campaigns in and around Portland.  

•  Despite employer unfair labor practices (including a union busting campaign) by McCall Oil, workers there were able to win a first contract in 2006, giving them union protection as well as health care and wage benefits.  JwJ helped to stage and promote actions to pressure the employer, mobilizing large numbers of volunteers and supporters in the community.  We also supported the workers during their strike. 
• JwJ has partnered with other community members and Service Employees local 49 in the quest to help organize workers at Providence Health Systems.  Workers are in desperate need of better working conditions; Certified Nursing Assistants are overwhelmed by a patient to CNA ratio which on some shifts is as high as 59 to 1, while custodial staffers are forced to use the same gloves in patient care areas that they use to clean the bathrooms.  Providence has hired union busting law firm, and at the recent Workers Rights Board (WRB) Fair Election Oversight Committee, workers testified about being forced to attend intimidating meetings and receiving misleading information from the employer.  The WRB FEOC has urged Providence to establish ground rules so a fair election process can take place.  You can view the complete WRB FEOC report here.        

Jobs with Justice supports these campaigns and others because having a strong workforce that is free to organize not only benefits the union workers, but the community as a whole.  Mary King, Chair of the Portland State University Economics Department and member of the Portland Worker’s Rights Board, says:

The clear record of economic analysis on collective bargaining is that: it raises wages at the bottom, it reduces inequality between the top, middle, and bottom of the scale; it reduces differences by race and sex; it pushes employers to provide more benefits proportionally as part of compensation; it raises productivity at the workplace and is even associated with better outcomes in places like hospitals; and by raising the bar in one part of the labor market, it creates pressure on non-union employers to raise wages an provide better benefits and working conditions, in order to compete to get the employees what they want.

View the experiences of Providence workers as they struggle to form a union.