Economics Education—Good Jobs and an Economy that Works for All
March 06, 2007
Las Vegas
AFL-CIO Executive Council statement
In August 2005, the AFL-CIO Convention passed Resolution 5, “An Economic Agenda for Working Families: Building Union Power, Reclaiming the American Dream.” The resolution stated: “The AFL-CIO will lead a coordinated labor movement effort to directly challenge the Wall Street Agenda for economic policy and advocate an alternative America’s Economic Agenda to strengthen the economy, defend the living standards of all America’s workers, help our movement grow and restore the American Dream for our children and future generations.”
America’s union movement is the most effective organization fighting for economic justice in our country’s workplaces, in the streets and at the polls. We also must be seen as fighting the war of economic ideas on behalf of all of America’s workers by challenging the corporate agenda that has shifted the balance of power to employers. To accomplish this task, we must develop a comprehensive education program that engages workers and their families in a discussion about our economy, including what has gone wrong and how we can change the direction of our country’s economic policies to reconnect with their needs. The program will counter the misinformation given by corporate-backed think tanks and conservative policy makers who have touted anti-worker economic policies that have been enacted by complicit politicians and justified by free-market fundamentalists to the detriment of our nation’s economy. The education program will develop and disseminate an alternative vision—a worker’s perspective—on the political economy that will be communicated broadly, clearly and effectively to union members and the public and will serve as an action agenda for the union movement.
BACKGROUND
The living standards of America’s workers and the growth and power of our unions are under attack. Workers are finding it more and more difficult to make a living for their families and to realize the American Dream. It also is becoming more difficult to form unions and bargain for our share of America’s income and wealth. The economic policies that shape the environment in which unions organize and bargain with their employers are key factors in our ability to grow and better defend the living standards of all America’s workers. These policies, championed by business and financial interests and neo-liberal ideologues, have produced a weak and unbalanced economy and a generation-long stagnation of workers’ wages and living standards.
Our movement and the workers we represent believe the economy should work for the people in America—the people do not work for the economy. Our economy should be strong enough to provide the goods and services necessary for national security and to meet the needs of the people. Our economy should be democratically accountable to the people and not controlled by corporate and financial interests. Workers and their unions must struggle to defend their living standards against the policies of the corporate agenda. We must continue to organize new members, we must fight together to elect politicians who will work to change the law to make it easier for workers to join unions and we must directly challenge the corporate agenda—not just in its parts, but also as a whole. The AFL-CIO and our unions are committed to growing and confronting the challenge to the living standards of our members and all workers.
The period leading up to the 2008 elections is an opportunity for our economics education work to help us elect a president who responds to a widespread demand to rebuild an American economy that works for all.
EDUCATION PROGRAM: Goals, Audiences and Tools
The economics education program must be rooted in, and become part of, every aspect of our work as a labor movement, whether it is organizing, bargaining, legislative or political action. Our goal is to build power for working families with an aware, informed and fully engaged membership that will:
- View economic policy issues with a critical eye—from a worker’s perspective;
- Question political candidates about their positions on issues important to working families;
- Fight employers who seek to weaken unions and our ability to grow as a movement; and
- Engage in ongoing dialogue with co-workers and community allies about how to change the direction of the country to work for working families.
Our message, however, is not limited to the union family. We must also speak to the public at large. The core message of all materials is rooted in the following fundamental points:
- Because our economic system relies on corporations and markets, working families need unions to provide them with a strong voice and role in the economy. We must expand worker power, overcome workplace discrimination, reverse the trend of workers laboring longer and harder for less and make time for family and community—the real family values.
- This reality means recognizing and reversing the growing wage and wealth gap. Working families are finding it harder to get by, while corporate profits, CEO compensation and income inequality are skyrocketing.
- At the root of our problems is a corporate agenda that invokes privatization, deregulation, globalization, labor market flexibility, price stability and new technology as excuses and seeks to expand so-called free trade. Exposing this agenda, and the motivation behind it, can help inoculate workers as well as prepare them for legislative and political fights.
- We must reinforce with workers the importance of a strong government and what we need from it (accountable elected representatives, Social Security, education, universal health care, fair trade and labor laws that work). At the same time, we must stop starving our public services, and we must remind our officials of what we don't need (deregulation, corporate welfare, privatization and regressive taxes).
- Above all, the economics education program will heighten awareness among working families that our struggles are not the result of our individual failures to work hard, play by the rules or make good decisions. Our problems are not personal ones; they are part of a national pattern that can be addressed only through organizing and collective action.
While economics education is a long-term project, it will be motivated in the short term by focusing on important economic policy debates, such as slow growth, free trade, privatization and deregulation, tax cuts for the wealthy, retirement security and pensions, wages and jobs, growing inequality and attacks on workers’ rights. We also will advocate for such working family priorities as the Employee Free Choice Act, a minimum wage increase, health care reform and fair trade policies.
Our audiences will range from union leaders, activists, retirees, members and their families to students and the public at large. Our core message on the economy and our agenda will be reflected and repeated in all materials but can be tailored to speak to and better engage different audiences—for example, young workers, retirees, women, people of color, new citizens, students, the community at large and workers in such sectors as the building trades, public, industrial/manufacturing, transportation, service, high-tech, professional and others.
The economics education program will create and use a variety of action-oriented educational approaches, including interactive discussions stimulated through tools such as CD-ROMs, DVDs and computer-based and Web-based curricula. These materials will be widely accessible. We will conduct train-the-trainer sessions to expand our reach to union membership about the issues, utilizing workshop sessions and presentations, and we will develop written brochures and fact sheets on targeted issues. Finally, we will conduct economics education courses at the National Labor College to provide opportunities for more in-depth discussion for union leaders and activists.
We will mobilize a national network of experienced trainers through the AFL-CIO and the National Labor College, national and international unions, state federations, area labor federations and central labor bodies, constituency groups, the United Association for Labor Education (UALE) and other allied organizations to ensure a diverse cross section of presenters. These presenters will be able to conduct sessions around the country.
In today’s economy we are faced with an imbalance of power, but a strong union movement can work to reverse the trend of workers laboring longer and harder for less and restore the promise of America for our children and future generations. Our economics education work is part of the union movement’s mission to improve the lives of working families—to bring economic justice to the workplace and social justice to our nation. By providing an alternative, we will equip union members to analyze economic issues and provide them with the self-confidence to do so. We can, and will, use our voices to change the policies for our country, build the strength of our unions and restore the American Dream for our children and future generations.
Economics Education Tools
Brochure
A short brochure that describes the purpose and goals of the economics education program, the various educational tools available and how to access training.
Basic Presentation About Our Alternative Agenda on the Economy
Brief PowerPoint presentation (15–30 minutes) using a basic series of charts/graphs that presents the situation for workers in today’s economy and then connects to specific union action campaigns, such as the Employee Free Choice Act and minimum wage campaigns. NOTE: Because technology is often limited or unavailable in the field, the presentation also will allow for low-tech or “no-tech” options.
Workshop and Supplemental Topics
Workshop curriculum, using popular educational techniques to provide basic information on today’s economy, present labor’s alternative agenda and engage participants in union actions around bargaining, organizing, legislation and politics. NOTE: Supplemental modules may be developed also to address specific topic areas (such as globalization, race, gender and orientation bias, the role of government, trade and immigration) and tailored for audiences (such as younger workers, retirees, women and people of color and sectors such as building trades, public, industrial/manufacturing, transportation, service, high-tech, professional and others).
Fact Sheets and Articles
Brief fact sheets and articles on specific economic issues for use in union publications and on the AFL-CIO website and blog.
Computer- and Web-Based Interactive Media
An interactive CD-ROM and Internet website to widely disseminate our message and materials on the economy. All sites will include opportunities for taking action on issues or signing up as online activists.
Train-the-Trainer Sessions
Two-day program to be conducted regionally in coordination with labor educators, staff and representatives from affiliates, state federations, area labor federations, central labor bodies and constituency groups to expand the pool of trainers available to conduct sessions.
Economics Education Courses—The National Labor College
Courses to provide more in-depth knowledge about the economy for union leaders and those who are teaching the economics education program. Courses will be designed to help union leaders contrast our goals for the economy with the results of theoretically free-market economics; describe the economic impact of unions and advocate collective solutions through unions and government; and plan to meet, the challenges that globalization and new technologies pose for unions.