Yesterday's Forbes.com posted a brief summary piece on the potential sea-changes awaiting the management community following the 2008 election. The article quotes U.S. Chamber of Commerce VP for Labor, Immigration and Employee Benefits, Randel Johnson: "What's going on on Capitol Hill right now is nothing less than a radical rewrite of our nation's unemployment laws."
But the bigger focus clearly extends beyond this campaign season:
But forget 2008. "We're very concerned about the next four years," Johnson says. The prospect of Democrats controlling Congress and the White House is unsettling for foes of labor expansion. Even before Sen. Barack Obama, D-Ill., sealed his party's nomination for president this week, he'd already scooped up endorsements from big unions like the International Brotherhood of Teamsters, the United Steelworkers Union and the Service Employees International Union (SEIU).
Labor issues do seem to be front and center this election season. Obama said he would consider renegotiating the North American Free Trade Act to keep more American jobs from being outsourced. Democrats in Congress have been firm about ensuring that labor clauses are part of international trade agreements, some of which are still pending. Labor disputes were reportedly part of what derailed merger discussions last week between UAL and US Airways Group. SEIU has waged a highly public campaign to close tax loopholes on so-called "buyout billionaires"--private equity and hedge fund managers.
Teamsters spokesman Galen Munroe says, "It's pretty much accepted that Americans want change after the Bush administration," adding that the Employee Free Choice Act, designed to make it easier for workers to choose a union, would help strengthen the middle class. The measure didn't make it out of the Senate last year, but Obama has vowed to revive it if elected.
workplacehorizons.com
View Printer Friendly Version
Email Article to Friend