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Key Wins in 2005 Elections
(This article was first published in the January/February 2006 issue of The American Postal Worker magazine.)
Our union recently helped defeat a pair of antiunion ballot initiatives in California and played an important role in the victory of labor-endorsed candidates in New Jersey and Virginia .
Working with the AFL-CIO, APWU members helped motivate working families in an effective display of the union vote, setting the stage for additional labor gains in the 2006 local, state and congressional elections.
In California , union members helped defeat a proposal — muscled onto the ballot by Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger and his allies — that would have excluded unions from having a voice in state and local elections without applying the same rules to corporations. In addition, the union vote was largely responsible for voters’ rejection of an effort to undercut longstanding tenure and collective bargaining rights for teachers.
A third California referendum that we helped defeat would have allowed politically-appointed judges to re-draw voting districts without voter input. In a final blow to the GOP governor, union members helped defeat an initiative that would have resulted in deep cuts in education and government services throughout the state by allowing him to gut vital programs without receiving approval from the state’s legislature.
APWU President William Burrus sent a letter urging postal workers in the state to oppose each of these proposals. Word from the field indicates that California APWU members hit the streets and manned the phones in force. The all-out labor effort was widely credited with defeating each of these objectionable measures.
Governor Races in the East
The APWU team locked arms with other union members to elect Tim Kaine as governor in Virginia and John Corzine as governor in New Jersey. Because of their pro-labor records, both candidates were endorsed by the AFL-CIO.
As in California, APWU members worked hard to get out the message about why the labor movement supported these two candidates. In outcomes that stunned the media and independent analysts, Kaine came from behind to win by seven percent, and Corzine’s margin of victory was more than 10 percent. Labor also backed an impressive array of successful candidates running for positions in the two states’ legislatures.
Davis-Bacon Victory
In the last issue of The American Postal Worker, we reported that President Bush had used his emergency powers to suspend a law that prevents businesses that are awarded federal hurricane contracts from paying substandard wages. Not long after the magazine went to press, however, a powerful protest led by the AFL-CIO forced Bush to rescind the executive order that lifted the decades-old “prevailing wage” requirement of the Davis-Bacon Act.
Responding to more than 350,000 calls, letters, and emails from union members, Congress was about to pass a measure to overturn the order when Bush reversed course and announced he was rescinding it. The fair wage requirement was reinstated on Nov. 8.
Looking Ahead
Our recent victories show that the union vote can have a dramatic influence on elections when the interests and values of working families are at stake. We hope to sustain the momentum we created and have a profound effect on the debate in the 2006 local, state and congressional elections.
Because they indicate that voters believe the government has a responsibility to address real needs, the 2005 elections should have a lasting impact. The federal government’s response to Hurricane Katrina exposed serious shortcomings in disaster relief services. Moreover, skyrocketing fuel costs and the huge profits raked in by oil companies while workers struggle has further exposed the economic imbalance that has developed in this country.
These issues have helped to unite labor and, we hope, will ultimately help change the political landscape.
ABOUT THE LEGISLATIVE
DEPARTMENT
Myke Reid, Director
Steve Albanese, Asst. Director
(202) 842-4210
The Legislative Department helps advance the union's cause on Capitol Hill and keeps the APWU members informed about important issues and legislative developments. Working with the union's president, we are the APWU's eyes, ears, and voice in Washington, DC.
