A breakfast conversation with the ubiquitous “senior labor official.”: We have pursued a political electoral strategy to address our organizing deficiencies. We were digging a hole with a shovel and now we’re pursuing a course of let’s get a bigger shovel. In 1995, we had a window, people weren’t against union so we spent a lot of money to try to find out how to redefine unions for this generation. There was $40 million allocated for that and Gerry McEntee (president of AFSCME) sabotaged it and took the money for politics.”

I can’t verify for anyone what this person says about the McEntee role nor am I sure that we should spend $40 million on advertising because I’m not sure it would lead to that many more workers organized in the war-like atmosphere they face when employers take it to them. But, I do share the concern about the shovel approach: are we just digging a deeper hole into which we pour more money? Well, Howard Dean is pitching to the Executive Council as we speak.

Jan Cornell, President/Organizer, Staff Union at the University of Virginia Communications Workers of America wrote me something I thought would be interesting for others:

A word about organizing–it is key as is getting the NLRB either gone or fixed. But what the big union offiicials either don’t get or are in denial about is organizing is the hardest, most underpaid, frustrating job there is. Organizers are hard to come by. Usually no benefits (if you’re hired from the outside), fairly low pay, tough work. And we don’t win much which makes alot of people walk away from the labor movement. It has to be in your heart, this work. So if the AFL-CIO does give 50% back to the unions for organizing I hope it can be policed–as you said–AND that they hire and train top notch organizers. This is the only way I believe plus workers need to stop being so afraid and stand up for themselves. Imagine how the organizer in Colorado at the WalMart feels. 17-1. WOW. All those lube guys turned their back on him.