By Bryan O'Keefe

The Wall Street Journal has an excellent story this week on the fate of workers displaced from plant closings in the automotive industry. As it turns out, many of these workers are now turning to the health care field for jobs. One person interviewed for the story said that they were using the money from a buyout to help finance their college education in a medically related field. Others also indicated that they were going back to school for work in health care. The move certainly makes sense for workers – as the baby boomers begin to retire and eventually become senior citizens, there will be a greater demand than ever for health care services. It’s also an ironic one since health care benefits themselves are what has caused many of the financial problems for the Big Three.

While the story did not specifically mention this point, the switch from workers building cars to workers in health care has also been mirrored in labor union membership and influence. At one point, the UAW was the most influential union in America. Now, a persuasive case can be made that the mantle belongs to SEIU, which has a heavy concentration in health care.

Whether labor unions can capitalize on this growth in health care jobs might actually determine if organized labor as a whole makes a membership comeback or not in the future.

Bryan O'Keefe is a labor policy analyst in Washington, D.C.  He is a frequent contributor to EFCA Updates and WorkplaceHorizons.com.