Business

‘Right-to-Work’ Laws Depress Union and Non-Union Wages

Published

10 years ago

April 28, 2015

Oakland Post

African Americans are also more likely to live in “right-to-work” (RTW) states than non-RTW states. (Stock Image)

By Freddie Allen
NNPA Senior Washington Correspondent

WASHINGTON (NNPA) – Despite what the defenders of “right-to-work” laws claim, those policies offer less protection for employees and depress the wages of non-union and union workers, according to a new report by the Economic Policy Institute.

The report by the Economic Policy Institute (EPI), a progressive research and advocacy group focused on low- and middle-income workers, said that, “right-to-work (RTW) laws seek to hamstring unions’ ability to help employees bargain with their employers for better wages, benefits, and working conditions.”

In 11 out of the 25 right-to-work states, Blacks account for a higher share of the state population than the national average (13.2 percent). Those states are Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, Michigan, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee and Virginia. African Americans are also more likely to live in RTW states than non-RTW states.

The EPI report said that Blacks account for 7.1 percent of workers in non-right-to-work states and 14 percent of workers in right to work states, compared to Whites who make up for 70.3 percent of workers in non-RTW states and 62.6 percent of workers in RTW states.

Opponents of right-to-work laws also argue that workers don’t need such laws to protect them from being forced to join unions because that’s already illegal.

In a blog post originally published in the New York Times, EPI senior economist Elise Gould wrote: “Right-to-work goes one step further and entitles employees to the benefits of a union contract – including the right to have the union take up their grievance if their employer abuses them – without paying any of the cost.”

That means that non-union members are entitled to help from unions when they run afoul of employers, even though they don’t support them by paying dues.

As union membership dips to historic lows, economists say that those RTW work laws have contributed to the decline of unions nationwide.

But when employees don’t have to contend with RTW laws, employers find ways to pay more.

“Average hourly wages, the primary variable of interest, are 15.8 percent higher in non-RTW states ($23.93 in non-RTW states versus $20.66 in RTW states),” stated the report.

Workers earn about $1,500 less per year in RTW states compared to non-RTW states and employees.

“It’s abundantly clear that right-to-work laws are negatively correlated with workers’ wages,” said Gould.

And because Blacks lean on unions more to promote wage equality, their paychecks are also more dependent on strong unions.

According to a report on Black union membership by the Center for Labor Research and Education at the University of California at Berkeley, in the top 10 metropolitan areas, a higher concentration of Black workers participate in unions than Whites (16 percent for Black workers vs. 12.4 percent for White workers).

The report said that workers in non-RTW states are more than twice as likely to be in a union or protected by a union contract.

In an online blog post on collective bargaining Lawrence Mishel, the president of EPI and Lee Saunders, the president of American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME), the largest public service employee union in the U.S., said that, collective bargaining helps to reduce wage inequality and benefits the most for the lowest-wage workers.

“And it works to reduce other forms of inequality as well. African-American, Asian, Hispanic and immigrant workers who are union members are more likely to receive equitable pay,” the post read. “It also helps to close the wage gap between men and women.”

Mishel and Saunders wrote that even as Republican presidential primary candidates are positioning themselves as union busters, “growing support for collective bargaining combined with the pressing concerns middle-class voters feel every day when it comes to their wages that haven’t kept up with the cost of living,” should make them reconsider that stance.

EPI research assistant Will Kimball said that policymakers who are concerned by the three-and-a-half decades of wage stagnation that have plagued American workers should be trying to strengthen unions.

Kimball added: “Collective bargaining is a clear way to raise wages, and right to work laws undercut it.”

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Black History

Emeline King: A Trailblazer in the Automotive Industry

Emeline King is recognized as the first African American female transportation designer at the Ford Motor Company. Let’s take a look at her life and career at the Ford Motor Company.

Published

1 day ago

November 26, 2024

Oakland Post

Transportation designer Emeline King. Photo courtesy of Emeline King.

By Tamara Shiloh

Emeline King is recognized as the first African American female transportation designer at the Ford Motor Company.

Let’s take a look at her life and career at the Ford Motor Company.

King’s fascination with cars began during her childhood. Growing up, she was captivated by the sleek designs and mechanical complexities of automobiles. She loved playing with toy cars and considered it an insult if anyone gave her a doll.

King pursued her interest in cars by studying at the ArtCenter College of Design in Pasadena. There, she improved her skills in transportation design, gaining the technical expertise and artistic vision she needed to break into the male-dominated industry.

However, her true inspiration came from her father, Earnest O. King, Sr., who worked for Ford as a Fabrication Specialist. She remembered the father-daughter trips to the auto shows, and the Saturday mornings with the famous Black sculptor, Oscar Graves, who her father assisted in some of his commissioned art works.

She said Graves would mentor her in clay relief sculptures. She was always fascinated by the smell of clay that was a constant in his studio.

However, it was her ﬁrst visit to her father’s job that became the catalyst for King to want a career in transportation design. At the company’s annual employee Christmas parties, she got the chance to meet his co-workers and learned about the roles they played in the auto industry. It was a chance to see some great cars, too.

Her career at Ford began in the 1980s, when women — particularly women of color –were scarcely represented in the automotive industry. King’s role at Ford was groundbreaking, as she became the first African American woman to work as a transportation designer at the company.

At Ford Design, she worked on the Ford Mustang SN-95’s interior. She also made several design contributions on other vehicles, too, including the interior components of the 1989 Thunderbird, the 1989 Corporate Steering Wheel, the 1989 Thunderbird Wheel/Wheel cover design program, the 1990 Thunderbird Super Coupe, the 1993 Mach III, the 1994 Mustang, to name a few.

King also served three foreign assignments: Turin Italy; Koln, Germany; and Brentwood, Essex, England — designing Ford cars for Europe.

Leaving Ford after about 25 years of service and along with her many speaking engagements, she wrote an autobiography about being Ford’s first female African American transportation designer titled, “What Do You Mean A Black Girl Can’t Design Cars? She Did It!”

She’s quoted as saying, “I’m now so proud to have written a book that I hope will inspire young girls and boys to never give up. To influence them so that they can stay focused and alert, and so they never look back. There are mentors who are placed in our lives to serve as our ‘Bridges to Destinations’ and allow us to cross over them to reach our dreams. Hoping they gain inspiration from my book, my motto for them is simple: ‘OPPORTUNITY IS NOW, SO GRAB IT! IF I DID IT, SO CAN YOU!”

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Activism

OCCUR Hosts “Faith Forward” Conference in Oakland

The conference featured Congresswoman-elect Lateefah Simon, who will begin her term representing California’s 12th Congressional District in the U.S. House of Representatives in January.
Simon was honored with a special recognition from OCCUR for her civic and nonprofit leadership.

Published

3 days ago

November 24, 2024

Oakland Post

President and CEO of OCCUR addresses the audience at OCCUR Faith Forward 2024 Conference at Resurrection Church. Photo by Carla Thomas.

By Carla Thomas

The Oakland Citizens Committee for Urban Renewal (OCCUR) hosted its Faith Forward 2024 Conference on Nov. 8 at Resurrection Church in Oakland.

The conference featured Congresswoman-elect Lateefah Simon, who will begin her term representing California’s 12^th Congressional District in the U.S. House of Representatives in January.

Simon was honored with a special recognition from OCCUR for her civic and nonprofit leadership. During her remarks, She commended nonprofits making a difference, and shared how she looked forward to representing Oakland and surrounding areas.

Simon also encouraged attendees to continue fighting despite their concerns about the presidential election results. She also cautioned that there may be resources that are discontinued as a result.

“We know the assignment. We have many of the resources right within our own community, and we will be ok,” Simon assured the audience.

The conference led by OCCUR president, Dr. David B. Franklin, also featured panels on funding opportunities, case studies, economic development, sustainable housing solutions, and organizing for action.

“In order for organizations serving the community to thrive, everyone must collaborate, share resources, and not operate in silos,” said Franklin.

Speakers included San Francisco Foundation CEO, Fred Blackwell, San Francisco Foundation FAITHS Program Director Dr. Michelle Chambers, and Kingmakers of Oakland Founder, Chris Chatmon. Guests were briefed on how Kingmakers of Oakland has gone from a budget of zero to several million and is set to acquire 200 acres of property to expand their programs serving young boys. The leadership at the San Francisco Foundation encouraged nonprofits, churches, and community leaders to work together, especially when donations and funding numbers are lower.

Ben Bartlett of Berkeley City Council; Trevor Parham, CEO of Oakstop; and CEO of the Lao Family Community Development, Inc., Kathy Chao Rothberg, inspired attendees with stories about their journeys in the nonprofit sector.

Additional speakers included Deka Dike, CEO of Omatachi; Landis Green, CEO of DGS Strategies; Sasha Werblin, Director of Economic Development, LISC Bay Area; Oakland City Councilmember Treva Reid; Faith and Justice Organizer of East Bay Housing Organizations, Ronnie Boyd; and Todd Bendon, Executive Director of Faith in Action East Bay; among others.

The event allowed community leaders, faith-based leaders, and nonprofits to gain Insight on how to strengthen their profits financially, and communally.

OCCUR has served the community for over 70 years supporting the wellbeing of historically marginalized communities with collaborative strategies. For more information visit occurnow.org

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Activism

Bank of America Grants $200,000 to Richmond Housing Nonprofit

RNHS has provided housing services to Richmond residents since 1981. The organization develops, acquires, and/or rehabilitates single-family homes and housing developments in blighted or vacant lots in order to make them available as affordable homes for rent or purchase to low-income families.

Published

3 days ago

November 24, 2024

Oakland Post

Photo by RDNE Stock via Pexels. Courtesy The Richmond Standard.

The Richmond Standard

Richmond Neighborhood Housing Services, Inc. (RNHS) was one of two Bay Area nonprofits awarded a $200,000 grant over two years from Bank of America’s Neighborhood Builders program.

The nonprofit also serves residents through education programs involving financial literacy programs, home loans, foreclosure prevention, and affordable rental counseling.

RNHS plans to use the $200,000 Bank of America grant to hire leadership staff, and to expand its Emerging Developers Program and Restoring Neighborhoods Program.

Through this grant program, RNHS will also benefit from comprehensive leadership training for its executive director and an emerging leader.

Since the Neighborhood Builders program’s inception in 2004, 59 nonprofits have been selected in San Francisco and the East Bay, with the bank investing nearly $12 million in philanthropic capital into these local organizations.

Along with RNHS, San Francisco-based mental health nonprofit RAMS also won a $200,000 grant this year.

“We’re proud to include RAMS and RNHS as the 2024 Neighborhood Builders,” said Gioia McCarthy, president of Bank of America San Francisco-East Bay. “Countless individuals, families and neighborhoods have felt the profound impact that these 59 Neighborhood Builder nonprofits have had in our area over the past two decades.”