U.S. Rep. John Lewis and AFSCME President Gerald McEntee explained why we're taking action today in a Memphis Commercial Appeal op-ed:
Working people today are defending more than their rights today. They are defending their human dignity. In Wisconsin, Indiana, Florida, Ohio and here in Tennessee, they are saying we are more than numbers on a worksheet, the blight of government programs or impediments to a profit margin. We are this nation's greatest resource.Allies around the world are supporting us in our struggle. Democrats Abroad are organizing a "Breakfast in America" in Paris. The same group is sponsoring an event (secret for security purposes) in Kabul, Afghanistan. There's even a solidarity dinner in Ulaanbaator, Mongolia.
And today, the UK Trades Union Congress sent a letter to the British ambassador to the US. It said, in part,
...The TUC and British trade unions would strongly urge you to convey our concerns about what is happening in the USA to the President, and to the Governor of Wisconsin and any other Governor who is attempting to take away workers' rights to bargain collectively.
We understand that public budgets are under pressure in the USA - as they are in the UK - as a result of the global economic crisis. But attacking collective bargaining is exactly the wrong thing to do in response.
The workers who depend most on collective bargaining for decent living standards did not cause the crisis, and should not have to pay for it.
But the declining wages and the increasing inequality which has resulted from the steady erosion of collective bargaining especially in the USA but across the developed world certainly did play a part in causing the global economic crisis.
Stay tuned to TeamsterNation throughout the day for updates on actions here and elsewhere.
