United Auto Workers (UAW)

We’ve reported here on the Bureau of Labor Statistics numbers that showed that the numbers of unionized Americans continued its historic and sharp decline throughout 2012. But now that the dust has settled a little, can you guess which union remains the largest in terms of membership in the U.S.? The Teamsters? How about the UAW? Or perhaps the SEIU?

If you guessed any of those, you’d be wrong. The union with the largest membership in 2012 according to recently filed LM-2 reports remains the National Education Association which counts 3.1 million educators as members. But even the NEA shrunk in 2012, losing more than 99,000 members.

Other big losers in terms of membership numbers (from 2011 to 2012) include:

1. Teamsters – down 51,924 to 1.3 million (a 4 percent decrease)
2. Service Employees International Union – down 44,960 to 1.9 million
3. Laborers – 8,422 fewer members
4. United Food and Commercial Workers – 13,102-member drop
5. Machinists – lost 4,033 members

There were some increases though. The IBEW added 4,978 additional members in 2012. The UAW increased their membership in 2012 by 1,794 members to 382,513. The United Steelworkers also increased their membership in 2012 growing by 7,100 to 614,054 members.

The UAW and other unions spent more than $23 million in their campaign to amend the Michigan Constitution to make unionization a right protected under the state's constitution. After fighting a tough fight through the Michigan courts to even get Proposal 2 on the ballot, Michigan voters on Tuesday soundly defeated the measure 58 percent to 42 percent.

The unions pushed Proposal 2 because of what they viewed as anti-labor initiatives from Governor Snyder as well as the threat posed when neighboring Indiana pushed through a right to work act.  Snyder has stated before that he has no interest in pushing a right to work bill in Michigan which has the third highest percentage of unionized workers in the country.

For coverage on the defeat of Proposal 2, you can look here:

Detroit Free Press – “Michigan voters reject all proposals; emergency manager law repealed.”

Purt Huron Times-Herald – “All Michigan proposals defeated, emergency manager law repealed.”

The union-backed “Protect Our Jobs” initiative took two steps closer Monday to being on the November ballot in Michigan.  The initiative would make collective bargaining a constitutional right under the Michigan Constitution for both public and private employees.

After the Michigan Board of Can­vassers originally stalemated on whether the initiative could go on the ballot, the Protect Our Jobs Committee filed suit and Monday afternoon, the Michigan Court of Appeals by a 2-1 vote ordered the Board of Canvassers to proceed with putting the initiative on the ballot.

Though an appeal to the Michigan Supreme Court seems likely, on Monday evening, the state Board of Canvassers certified the proposition for placement on the November ballot.  A coalition of union groups lead by the AFL-CIO, the United Auto Workers and the Michigan Education Association had previously submitted petitions with nearly 700,000 signatures -- twice the number needed.

A Reuters News Service report quotes critics who have attacked the proposition as a “death warrant” for Michigan's economy. Sara Wurfel, a spokeswoman for Michigan Gov. Rick Snyder, told Reuters that the governor remained opposed to the measure because “it has potentially far-reaching implications and ramifications to numerous existing statutes that would turn back progress and appear to go well beyond what paid petition gatherers portrayed.”

We have reported here in the past about the UAW's efforts to organize an automaker in the South. See:

“Mississippi Governor ‘Concerned’ About UAW Organizing in the Southeast”
“UAW Targets Nissan for Organizing Effort”

Now, in the latest move in their ongoing corporate campaign against Nissan, the UAW has turned to actor Danny Glover to help publicize their organizing efforts. The actor, known for his roles in the “Lethal Weapon” series and his community activism, appeared with UAW organizers in Canton, Mississippi. The full story can be found here.

Mississippi Governor Phil Bryant told a business group Monday he is “concerned” over the UAW's efforts to organize Toyota and Nissan auto manufacturing plants in his State.  The Memphis Commercial Appeal quoted the Governor saying, “The automobile industry is very fragile, and there's such great competition out there. That's what worries me. If the union involvement becomes active in the southeastern automobile corridor, what does it do to industry? And I just don't see a positive outcome to that.”

The full article can be found here.

The Detroit News is reporting that the United Auto Workers has added 4,000 new members in 2011.  Membership rose from 376,612 at the end of 2010 to 380,719 in 2011.  However, the UAW's assets dropped from $1.08 billion to $1.04 billion. Its receipts also declined from $274 million to $258 million.  Despite a slight increase in membership, UAW President Bob King paints a grim future for the union if it is unable to organize foreign automakers.  "If we don't organize these transnationals, I don't think there's a long-term future for the UAW — I really don't."  The full article from the Detroit News can be found here. 

Our previous post regarding the UAW's efforts to organize Volkswagen AG's U.S. factory can be found here.

Reuters is reporting that the United Auto Workers is soliciting signatures of support from workers at Volkswagen AG's U.S. factory in an effort to extend its reach beyond the Detroit automakers. The full article can be accessed here.  

Reuters is reporting today that the UAW has settled on U.S. plants owned by Volkswagen and Daimler AG as organizing targets, in part because they are “seen as easier nuts to crack than the Japanese and South Koreans.”

The entire article can be seen here. 

The Detroit News is reporting that the UAW has settled on Nissan as its target in the union's announced goal of organizing at least one foreign-owned auto manufacturer. The complete story can be read here.

The UAW has attempted at least twice before but failed to unionize workers at Nissan's Smyrna, Tenn. plant. The Associated Press is also reporting that Nissan is a lead candidate for the pick.