Union Leaders Should Put Jobs and the Economy First

by Tom Donohue

Labor Day is generally a time of celebration for the nation's unions, but this past one wasn't. Gallup delivered a big dose of bad news—its latest poll shows that public support for labor unions is at an all-time low. In fact, 51% of Americans say that unions hurt the U.S. economy, up from just 36% last year. Meanwhile, union membership rolls are near historic lows, dropping from 35% in 1954 to just 7.6% of private sector workers today.

What's going on with today's labor movement? To some degree, unions are victims of their own success. Much of what they've sought to achieve in terms of working conditions, workplace safety, and benefits has become law. By and large, this has been a good thing for American workers and the economy.

In addition, unions can no longer capitalize on widespread discontent among workers for a simple reason—employers have stepped up to the plate. In 2007, 177.4 million Americans received health care from their employers, and retirement benefits totaled nearly $200 billion. Tuition assistance and paid leave have become commonplace. The list goes on and on.

What unions used to do—and what Americans expect them to do—is to help advance and grow our economy, especially during times of recession. But many of today's union leaders are focused only on helping themselves. They are consumed with politics and controlling the levers of government so that they can increase their power and influence. They want to overregulate the American workplace. They want to force the unionization of companies through unfair means. And they want to hijack our politics in order to advance an agenda that includes trade isolationism, tax increases, and a government takeover of American health care.

This agenda is bad for business, bad for the American worker, and bad for the country. And Americans are catching on.

The union agenda will not create jobs, and neither will big government. The only way that we can succeed is by restoring a vibrant private sector economy based on the free enterprise values of hard work, individual initiative, and creativity. The U.S. Chamber has worked productively with a number of unions on important issues such as transportation, infrastructure, and energy.

If unions want to restore their tarnished image and get America moving again, they should get behind an agenda that will improve education, expand trade, and strengthen capital markets, instead of trying to drag the economy into the past.

The American people are waiting, and the business community stands ready to work with organized labor on a positive agenda for our country.