When Labor Day was officially declared a holiday in 1894, the labor movement in the United States was in transition. Workers had no right to unionise, let alone negotiate with employers or strike. The holiday – President Grover Cleveland’s olive branch for disgruntled workers – was used as a day of political action in support of workers’ rights.
Labor Day has long since moved from its roots as a day of political organizing into a vaguely patriotic holiday marking the end of summer. But with a renewed focus on labor and workers’ rights, Labor Day is beginning to gain color again.
The labor movement that is sweeping the country has taken root in Georgia. This year it was the scene of union organizations in various sectors, despite the state’s reputation for rejecting unions.
Lithographic artwork depicting a Labor Day parade in New York in 1882, before Labor Day was an official holiday. (Wikimedia Commons)
What is the right to work?
In 2022, employee numbers grew faster than union membership, leading to a decline in union membership to 4.4% of Georgia workers, according to the data.
However, the total number of union members in the country has increased by 11,000 compared to 2021.
Nationally, 10.1% of workers were union members in 2022, the lowest ever. However, the National Labor Relations Board reported a 53% increase in the number of election applications submitted in 2022 compared to 2021. And unions have reportedly won 76% of elections in 2022, the highest number ever.
“Workers are becoming smarter and want to be treated with respect and dignity.”
Yvonne Brooks, Georgia AFL-CIO President
State lawmakers are beginning to take notice of the labor movement, says Lawrenceville Rep. Dewey McClain. That year he was a co-sponsor of legislation that increased workers’ compensation.
“Last year was probably one of the first times I can say I’ve seen them soften a little,” McClain said of lawmakers during the 2023 session.
Historically, Georgia has not been an ideal backdrop for unionization. This is mainly due to its status as a state with the right to work – like all other states in the south.
The Right to Work Act protects workers from being fired or denied employment if they choose not to join a union. Therefore, workers can take advantage of a union contract without joining a union and paying membership dues.
The right to work deters workers from union membership. There are 26 states in the USA that have the right to work. All rank in the bottom half of union membership in the 50 states.
The right to work, a relic of Jim Crow, was created by a man who wanted to suppress organized labor nationwide, motivated by racism and anti-Semitism. In 1947, Georgia was one of ten states to pass the law.
“They felt everyone was making the same amount of money,” says McClain. “And a lot of people always thought that black people shouldn’t make as much money as white people. Although … he or she did the same job.”
Yvonne Brooks, Georgia AFL-CIO president, says the right to work has historically prevented black and disadvantaged workers from joining unions. Even in this age, they say, unions in the South are unsuccessful because workers fear being sacked in retaliation.
The Georgia AFL-CIO campaigns for the repeal of Georgia’s right to work. They are also working to pass legislation that would give all workers the right to join a union, since state law prohibits collective bargaining between teachers, police officers and public employees (with the exception of firefighters).
“Companies are moving here because these are states that have the right to work,” says Brooks. “But workers are becoming smarter and want to be treated with respect and dignity.”
A UPS truck drives by as Sean M. O’Brien (left), General President of Teamsters UPS Teamsters and workers hold a rally Friday, July 21, 2023 in Atlanta amid the deadline for a nationwide strike approaches. UPS reached a collective bargaining agreement with its 340,000-member union on Tuesday, preventing a strike. (AP Photo/Brynn Anderson)
In theory, the right to work rests on non-union workers wanting to take advantage of the efforts of union workers. However, some workers would like to have the opportunity to lobby for non-union workers. This form of collective self-advocacy is taught by Ph.D. tracked. Emory University students who recently ran for a union election.
David Meer, organizer of EmoryUnite!, recognizes that not all student workers have the opportunity or breadth to join a union as many are international students or are disempowered due to other concerns that study entails.
“Those who have time help organize and help people stand up for themselves, because we all have many of the same grievances, or many of our problems can be solved by the things that the union is pushing for.”
EmoryUnite! Organizers are calling for a living wage and affordable and comprehensive health insurance; They also hope that a union could settle disputes between graduate students and supervisors, teachers or undergraduate students.
Her identity as a worker is central to her cause. They claim that as a Ph.D. Students provide services for the university by organizing research and teaching events.
“We like to think of ourselves in science as something separate from the usual problems of being workers and employees, but really we are workers, we are employees,” says Rebecca Parker, an organizer.
“Hot working summer”
For years, Georgian politicians have hailed the state as the best place to do business. The focus is on Georgia’s ability to attract automotive companies looking to build electric vehicle manufacturing facilities.
A big selling point – to the public – is the number of jobs these new plants will create. However, organizers are focused on the treatment and rights of workers.
“I can hear our governor’s words: ‘Georgia is the best place to do business.’ But eventually workers wake up and realize it’s not the best place to work,” said Hannah Perkins, Georgia ALF-CIO policy director and campaign manager.
Most recently, Hyundai, a non-union company, announced plans to build an electric vehicle manufacturing facility in Georgia. However, a coalition of union members in Georgia and Alabama recently raised concerns about Hyundai’s track record of violating workers’ rights.
The coalition wants to negotiate an agreement to ensure secure jobs and good wages and to respond to the needs of local communities.
“Ultimately, we’re fighting to make sure that when manufacturing comes to Georgia, these different industries come to Georgia, that they come with strict standards that protect workers, communities and the right to freedom of association,” says Perkins.
Union member Evette Avery, one of over a thousand union members and supporters, waves signs in support of the strike during a rally in support of SAG-AFTRA Tuesday August 22nd. (Matthew Pearson/WABE)
Despite stagnant union membership in 2022, Georgia experienced what Perkins calls “a hot summer of work” this summer.
Workers from MARTA, Bluebird, Starbucks, Delta Air Lines and others have organized. The writers and actors represented by the WGA and SAG-AFTRA have also caused a stir in “Southern Hollywood”.
The biggest victory came when members of the Teamsters union voted to ratify a collective bargaining agreement with UPS. The Atlanta-based company has the nation’s largest private-sector collective bargaining unit, employing 340,000 people.
It’s the kind of success that Perkins says is celebrated on this Labor Day.
“We’ve been in this movement for a long time,” she says. “But it’s a story about the workers of America and the workers of Georgia, and it’s not being written by billionaires.”
