I think that we all share the notion that democracy is an important aspect of living in a functioning society. The problem is that the one place where we spend half our waking lives–the workplace–does not have people running the show who adhere to the notion of democracy. To wit (via The Wall Street Journal):

A record number of corporate directors snatched victory from the jaws of their defeat by shareholders this year.

In a sign of investor discontent, 93 board members at 50 companies have received fewer than 50% of votes cast during annual meetings so far in 2009, according to RiskMetrics Group Inc. That’s more than twice as many as any other year since the proxy-advisory firm began tracking the trend in 2003.

But none of those directors lost a board seat. All serve companies with "plurality" voting, meaning they can win uncontested elections with a single vote. Re-elected directors at two companies offered to resign under those companies’s "plurality plus" policies, but were reappointed.

The staying power of these board members raises questions about the limits of shareholder democracy. But snubs of sitting directors can help unhappy shareholders achieve other corporate-governance goals.

   The funniest part of this story:

Some directors stay on boards after failing to win a majority because they believe they’re valuable. "I have the gray matter to serve," says C. Webb Crockett, a longtime board member of Southwest Airlines Co. The Phoenix attorney, whose employer does legal work for the carrier, won 46.3% of votes cast this spring. "How many people who voted against me have any knowledge of my expertise about Southwest and the airline industry?" he asks.

   Louis XIV would have loved Crockett–and Jon Stewart would have a field day with that comment.

   Shareholder activism is a good thing. But, on its own, it won’t turn workplaces into more democratic institutions. Only the labor movement can do that.