Airline Division Week In Review - August 25, 2014

August 25, 2014

Piedmont Negotiations Update

Negotiations resumed on Monday, August 18. The negotiating committee used Monday as an internal day to review economic information worked up for the committee by their IBT economist based on input from the committee and to plan further discussions based on that information.

The week’s meetings with the Company were focused on discussions looking for ways to break the current logjam on economic issues. The union offered a number of suggestions to the company in the hopes that they would assist the company in moving forward and finding a settlement that would be fair for everyone. 

Although the company indicated some movement, there was no movement on the largest monetary issues. The company is saying that Piedmont must be competitive with PSA and Envoy. After stating that they wished to reach agreement regardless of the talks with the pilots, the company is still adamant that the union cannot attain fair raises in rates because it would make the company uncompetitive with PSA and Envoy; two carriers that they do not compete with on routes or aircraft type. 

No new dates have been scheduled for the next round of discussions.

TAMC Takes to the Hill Seeking Bi-Partisan Support on Key Issues

Members of the TAMC blitzed Capitol Hill on Monday August 18th. The team of seven, led by Chris Moore and Dave Saucedo with assistance from the Albertine Group, was able to complete seventeen meetings in support of the TAMC agenda. The meetings targeted specific members of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, Subcommittee on Aviation and the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation, Subcommittee on Aviation Operations, Safety and Security.

The meetings were hugely successful in generating bi-partisan support for the two agenda items; support for a single standard for drug testing at foreign repair stations that is equal to the drug abatement programs required of FAA Part 121 carriers in the U.S., and a moratorium on certification of any new repair stations, foreign or domestic, until the FAA can prove adequate oversight.

Union members Tom Reid, (Local 210 IAD), Ervin Cornovaca, (Local 210 EWR), Fred Lewelling, (Local 19 IAH), Brian Everhart, (Local 2727 SDF) and Steve Medved, (Local 769 MCO) were on hand to relate front line instances of poor quality outsourced maintenance.

The TAMC would like to extend their sincere thanks to the members, Locals and Airline Division for their continuing support of TAMC initiatives.

A full report along with the meeting schedule will be published in the October TAMC Newsletter.

Mediation Scheduled for Air India

Federal Mediator Jack Kane will begin mediation conferences in the Air India – IBT case beginning on August 27, 2014.

UAL Negotiations Update

August 19th through the 21st the parties met in Chicago under the direction of Federal Mediator Gerry McGuckin. On the 19th the parties were briefed by Mediator McGuckin on the negotiations process moving forward. 

The parties then began the week by reviewing each party’s respective open items lists. A combined list of these open items and respective party positions was given to the mediator after this review. The parties then reviewed Articles line by line to ensure any new language accurately reflected what had been agreed to in previous sessions.

At the end of the week the parties TA’d final language on two Articles and reached agreement in principle on final language in 201 paragraphs and sub paragraphs covering nine other Articles. The Articles TA’d were: Board of Arbitration – (Article 20) and Apprentice Mechanics (Article 23).

The other Articles containing the finalized language paragraphs were Definitions (Article 2), Filling of Vacancies (Article 5), Reduction in Force (RIF) and Recall (Article 6), Holidays (Article 8), Field Trips (Article 12), Union Security (Article 18), Grievance Procedure (Article 19), General & Miscellaneous (Article 21) and Transportation (Article 22).

Mediator McGuckin was pleased with the work at the end of the week accomplished by the parties and thanked the negotiators for performing this very important step in the process. The progress made this week puts the parties in a much better position to begin passing comprehensive economic proposals in the next few sessions.

Negotiating sessions were scheduled for one week each month through year’s end in various locations, beginning with a short session at The National Mediation Board HQ in Washington, DC on September 11th and 12th.  October’s sessions will be held in Chicago the 20th through the 24th with future locations to be determined. Tentatively the November session will be held during the week of the 17th and the December session will be held the week of the 8th.

Airline Industry News

Governmental and Regulatory

The Federal Aviation Administration approved the use of SafeRoute avionics for the Airbus A320. SafeRoute, which relies on ADS-B, received Supplemental Type Certification from the FAA.

The chairman of the Senate committee that oversees transportation issues called Monday for U.S. airlines to disclose how they inform customers about extra fees that are added to the cost of their flight tickets and how they protect information that is collected about passengers.

Airlines, Industry and Labor

United Airlines is whipping up a new menu for first-class passengers on shorter flights. Passengers in premium seating on flights of at least 800 miles will receive fresh meals instead of prepackaged snacks.

According to Airlines for America, U.S. airlines improved their net profit margin in the first half of 2014. During the first six months of the year, airlines reported a 5% net profit margin, compared to 2.1% in the same period of 2013.

Boeing's plan to increase production of its 737 aircraft has drawn praise from some analysts. "In emerging markets, there is huge demand for aircraft of all sizes, and that trend is going to be present for years to come," said Jim Corridore, an analyst at S&P Capital IQ.

US Airways flew a Boeing 737 aircraft for the last time on Tuesday, saying goodbye to the iconic plane that has been part of the carrier's fleet for 30 years. Southwest Airlines and Alaska Airlines are the only U.S. carriers still flying the 737 Classic.

Boeing could further boost production for its best-selling 737 aircraft, experts say. Boeing produces 42 737 aircraft per month, and some analysts predict that could be eventually ramped up to 60 aircraft per month. By 2017, Boeing already announced plans to increase production to 47 aircraft per month.

Mechanics Dispatch - August 25, 2014

August 25, 2014

Negotiations Update

On August 19th through the 21st the parties met in Chicago under the direction of Federal Mediator Gerry McGuckin. On the 19th the parties were briefed by Mediator McGuckin on the negotiations process moving forward. 

The parties then began the week by reviewing each party’s respective open items lists. A combined list of these open items and respective party positions was given to the mediator after this review. The parties then reviewed Articles line by line to ensure any new language accurately reflected what had been agreed to in previous sessions.

At the end of the week the parties TA’d final language on two Articles and reached agreement in principle on final language in 201 paragraphs and sub paragraphs covering nine other Articles. The Articles TA’d were: Board of Arbitration – (Article 20) and Apprentice Mechanics (Article 23).

The other Articles containing the finalized language paragraphs were Definitions (Article 2), Filling of Vacancies (Article 5), Reduction in Force (RIF) and Recall (Article 6), Holidays (Article 8), Field Trips (Article 12), Union Security (Article 18), Grievance Procedure (Article 19), General & Miscellaneous (Article 21) and Transportation (Article 22).

Mediator McGuckin was pleased with the work at the end of the week accomplished by the parties and thanked the negotiators for performing this very important step in the process. The progress made this week puts the parties in a much better position to begin passing comprehensive economic proposals in the next few sessions.

Negotiating sessions were scheduled for one week each month through year’s end in various locations, beginning with a short session at The National Mediation Board HQ in Washington, DC on September 11th and 12th.  October’s sessions will be held in Chicago the 20th through the 24th with future locations to be determined. Tentatively the November session will be held during the week of the 17th and the December session will be held the week of the 8th.

Furloughed Members Urged to Update Their Addresses

Members on furlough are advised to keep their addresses current with the company while on layoff. It is predicted that there will be many movements this year and there have been several members that have been removed from the seniority list because old addresses were on file when notices were sent.

If you are in touch with a furloughed member, please forward this information to them. Updates may be emailed to: ESC@united.com . The ESC will provide a fax number and ask members to send the address change accompanied with a signature.

Useful Links

If you would like to see a link added to this list please contact Bob Fisher at: rcfisher7@yahoo.com

The following Locals represent these respective cities:

Boston Local 25

New York & Washington Local 210

Charleston & Atlanta Local 528

Miami, Ft. Lauderdale Tampa & Orlando Local 769

Cleveland Local 964

Chicago Local 781

Houston, Dallas & New Orleans Local 19

Phoenix Local 104

Seattle, Portland, Los Angeles, Hawaii & Guam Local 986

San Francisco Local 856/986

Denver Local 455

Airline Division Week In Review - July 27, 2014

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Court Rules in Favor of Allegiant Air Pilots, Local 1224  This past Tuesday, the U.S. District Court in Nevada granted a preliminary injunction in favor of the Allegiant Air pilots represented by the International Brotherhood of Teamsters Airline Division and its Local 1224.    U.S. District Court Judge Andrew P. Gordon issued the decision granting the injunction, finding that Allegiant Air had violated the Railway Labor Act by unilaterally changing the status quo as it existed when the Teamsters commenced bargaining with Allegiant Air for a first Teamsters collective bargaining agreement.  In August 2012, following an NMB election and certification, the Teamsters replaced an in-house association as the Allegiant pilots' bargaining representative.  The Allegiant Air pilots claimed in their lawsuit that since they began negotiations with the company as members of the Teamsters, the management of Allegiant had unilaterally changed numerous terms and provisions of the “Pilots Work Rules Agreement” (PWR) that had been negotiated and agreed to by management and the pilots’ prior in-house representative. The Teamsters and Allegiant pilots asserted that those changes amounted to violations of the RLA's “status quo” requirements.  Judge Gordon determined that Allegiant Air had voluntarily recognized the prior, in-house association as the pilots' representative and had negotiated and reached agreements with it covering the pilots' compensation and work rules. He also found that the in-house association was a "representative" within the meaning of the RLA, and that the agreements it secured on behalf of the pilots through its negotiations with Allegiants' senior executive and managers under the PWR established a RLA status quo that could not be unilaterally changed while collective bargaining for the new agreement was underway. The Teamsters and Allegiant have been engaged in negotiations since December, 2012.  Finding for the pilots and the union, the court concurred that among the unilateral changes by Allegiant Air to the PWR were alterations to the lost medical program for pilots who became ill or disabled, the elimination of pay protections for members involved in various committees beneficial to the company including those involving airline safety, changes to the leave of absence provisions in cases of birth or adoption and replacing seniority-based monthly line bidding with a preferential bidding system (“PBS”).  In his written decision requiring Allegiant Air to restore the status quo, Gordon found that "the IBT has established a high likelihood of success on its RLA claims and its breach of contract claim" and that, "...the IBT will probably prevail on at least some of its claims that Allegiant has violated the status quo, which would amount to a breach of the PWR." He also noted that, "the public also has an interest in "effective collective bargaining" to "maintain industrial peace." Allegiant was ordered to immediately reinstate the loss of medical program, comply with the parental leave policy in the PWR, and address the scheduling issues created by the unilateral implementation of PBS.  Commenting on the ruling, the Allegiant pilots Executive Council Chairman, First Officer Cameron Graff, said, "the court's decision strongly supports and validates our position and rejects the company's after-the-fact  claims that AAPAG was not a 'representative' and the Pilot Work Rules Agreements were not 'agreements' within the meaning of the RLA.  The court recognized the company's claims for what they were and ruled in our favor.  Tuesday’s court's decision is an important decision and it clearly favors the pilots.” Noting that the company had already filed an appeal, Graff went on to say, “While the company has already filed an appeal to the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals, we are confident that the appeals court will uphold Judge Gordon's decision." Captain Daniel Wells, President of Teamsters Local 1224, agreed with First Officer Graff.  Captain Wells stated, "Judge Gordon's decision very clearly and forcefully compels the company to honor its word and the agreements that it made with the pilots as reflected in the PWR. As President of Local 1224, I take the responsibility to negotiate in good faith with our contracted companies very seriously and I hope that in light of the court’s ruling that Mr. Gallagher will reconsider his approach to negotiations.”    Informed of the decision, Airline Division Director David Bourne said, “I congratulate the leadership and pilots of Allegiant Air and the leadership of Local 1224 on this important legal victory. It needs to be clearly understood that the pilots did nothing wrong and that there was no reason for the actions that Allegiant Air management took. We came to Allegiant at the pilots request and have always maintained that an open and cordial process that respects each party’s positions and needs, believing this is the best way to achieve everyone’s goals in an agreement.  We will always be open to discussions that work for the good of all. We are dedicated to defending rights and working conditions for our members and working with management for a positive relationship that benefit everyone,” he concluded.  NetJets Technicians and Related  Negotiations resumed this week with the Union passing a counter proposal on Article 29 – (Field Service).  The Company also passed counter proposals on Articles 20 – (Training), Article 25 – (Sick Leave) and Article 32 – (Hours of Service). Additionally, the Negotiating Committee worked on Article 31 – (Seniority).   The Union and the Company will be working to set dates for the next round of talks.  Airline Industry News  Governmental and Regulatory  U.S. airlines hired 385,619 workers in May, a 1.1% increase over May 2013 and the highest level since September 2012, according to the Transportation Department.   Airlines, Industry and Labor  United Airlines has repeatedly put workers at Newark Liberty International Airport in danger of being injured by falls or by falling objects and other workplace hazards, the federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration said.  Delta Air Lines will supply a Trainer, Pa., refinery with crude oil for five years in a deal the airline signed with Texas midstream firm, Bridger LLC. Under the deal, Delta will supply a third of the refinery's daily capacity. The airline uses the jet fuel the refinery produces.  With the addition of higher-capacity Boeing 737-800s and lower fuel costs, Southwest Airlinesmay be poised to release robust second-quarter earnings, say some analysts. In addition, the airline saw a 2.4% annual rise in second-quarter traffic and higher unit revenues.   Boeing already is hard at work on its 787-10 Dreamliner, even as it begins delivery of the 787-9, and has scheduled test flights for 2017.

Airline Division Week In Review - July 21, 2014

July 21, 2014

Teamsters Aviation Mechanics Coalition Recommends Single Standard for Drug Testing Programs for Foreign and Domestic Repair Stations

The Teamsters Aviation Mechanics Coalition (TAMC) called for the implementation of a single standard of drug testing for airline mechanics in its comments submitted Wednesday to the FAA on its proposed rulemaking, (Docket No. FAA-2012-1058), for required drug testing at foreign repair stations.

In its comments, TAMC recommended that all authorized individuals that perform safety-sensitive maintenance on commercial carriers at both foreign and domestic repair stations be subject to a single standard of drug and alcohol testing.

“The TAMC has taken the position that in order to maintain consistent safety standards in a global economy and regardless of where safety-sensitive maintenance functions are performed, a single standard of aviation maintenance safety must be achieved,” said Chris Moore, chairman of TAMC, in the comments. “If we in the United States believe that certain drugs and the use of alcohol are a threat to aviation safety, we must ensure that anyone performing safety-sensitive maintenance is held to the same standards.”

“When it comes to aviation safety we cannot afford to leave anything to chance,” said Teamsters Airline Division Director Capt. David Bourne. “Standardizing drug and alcohol testing across the industry both at domestic and foreign repair stations just makes sense. The flying public and every man and woman that works in the airline industry deserves nothing less to ensure every aircraft is safe – on the ground and in the air.”

SWA Material Specialist Update

SWA Material Specialist Contract Negotiations continued in Dallas this past week. The Negotiating Committee, Local Union Business Agents and Airline Division Representatives met outside of negotiations on July 14th and 15th to work on Article 5 (Hours of Service) and Article 8 (Field Service).

Direct negotiations with the Company continued on July 16th. The company made a counter proposal on Article 4. The company and the union also made multiple passes on Articles 5 and 8 with no TAs being reached.

Dates are under discussion for the next round of talks.

Airline Industry News

Governmental and Regulatory

In the wake of the apparent downing of Malaysia Airlines MH17 over Ukraine, the Federal Aviation Administration has issued a Notice to Airmen prohibiting U.S. carriers from flying over the eastern part of that country. The new direction expands the area prohibited to U.S. airlines in April, when the FAA ordered them to avoid the Crimean region of Ukraine and adjacent areas of the Black Sea and the Sea of Azov.

The Federal Aviation Administration last week proposed new standards for flight simulators used to train pilots. Those standards will include replicating the kind of stall that occurred in February 2009 as air speed slowed dangerously and Capt. Marvin D. Renslow took the exact opposite action the situation required. As a consequence, Flight 3407 plummeted to the ground, crashing into a house and killing all 49 people on board, including Renslow, and one person in the house.

Airlines, Industry and Labor

Southwest Airlines reported 28.8% more passenger activity at Reagan National Airport in Washington, D.C., in May on a year-over-year basis. The carrier recently picked up slots at DCA, and plans to eventually expand to 44 daily flights from the airport.

American Airlines has eliminated its fuel hedges, adopting a policy from US Airways. "Just like any insurance, you figure out what the cost of that insurance is," said CFO Derek Kerr. "And our belief has been that because of the volatility of fuel, the cost of the insurance far outweighs the benefit of that insurance."

Alaska Air Group put out a brief 8-K filing Monday saying that Glenn S. Johnson, president of its regional unit, Horizon Air Industries, plans to retire Sept. 1. That includes his job as executive vice president of Alaska Air Group.

Mechanics Dispatch - July 21, 2014

July 21, 2014

UAL GE/Facilities Maintenance Committee Meets

On Tuesday, July 15th the national GSE and Facilities committee representing sub United mechanics met in Houston. The meeting started at 8am and continued through the day with a working lunch as there were many topics discussed.

The committee sat down with Rob Walker of Corporate Real Estate to discuss what has transpired with the awarding of contracts around the system. The committee pressed Walker with the need to be involved early in the process of facility overhauls to ensure the scope of the projects does not violate the scope of the collective bargaining agreement. The company agreed that using LOA 25 of the sUAL agreement would be an effective tool in overseeing this work. As a result the local committees will be working with the local CRE contacts to ensure the CBA is adhered to properly.

The committee also discussed the current state of facilities maintenance and the challenges that lie ahead. Due to reporting to airport operations for a very long time, many things were neglected including training and staffing. The company shared its plan with the committee to move the facilities maintenance group forward. The company plans to increase training and implement tools similar to fleet focus that is currently used in the GSE shops. Fleet focus led to an increase in manpower at many stations and has also shown areas that the company needed to improve. It is believed that using this approach will be a benefit to the membership.

Other items discussed were the Chelsea facilities, Field Trips, LAX and EWR facilities reviews as well as the BAQ list.

At the end of the meeting it was determined that the sCO GSE/Facilities group should join in the next session. The next meeting should occur in the fall of this year. The committee members in attendance for this session were Ken Meidinger- Local 455, Allen Cosides - Local 210, Scott Baroni - Local 781, Greg Sullivan - Local 986 (SFO) and Dion Cornelious - Local 986 (LAX).

Joining the committee were Jay Koreny - Local 210 and Bob Fisher from the IBT.

TAMC Submits Comments on FAA Drug Testing Requirements at Foreign MRO’s

In comments submitted to the FAA today, the TAMC called for a single standard for drug testing programs for both foreign and domestic repair stations. The TAMC is recommending that all authorized individuals that perform safety-sensitive maintenance on commercial carriers at both foreign and domestic repair stations be subject to a single standard of drug and alcohol testing.  

“The TAMC has taken the position that in order to maintain consistent safety standards in a global economy and regardless of where safety-sensitive maintenance functions are performed, a single standard of aviation maintenance safety must be achieved,” said Chris Moore, chairman of TAMC, in the comments.  

“If we in the United States believe that certain drugs and the use of alcohol are a threat to aviation safety, we must ensure that anyone performing safety-sensitive maintenance is held to the same standards,” said Moore. 

Click here to read the full story. 

Click here to read the full comments submitted to the FAA.

Chris Moore Interviewed on “The Union Edge”

Following the release of the comments to the FAA, International Rep Chris Moore was interviewed by Charles Showalter on The Union Edge on July 17th. The complete interview can be found hereunder the title Teamsters Push FAA To Drug Test. The interview starts at the 5:10 minute mark and ends at the 14:45 minute mark. Please take the time to listen to this interview and share it with your friends and family.

More information about The Union Edge can be found here. 

Furloughed Members Urged to Update Their Addresses

Members on furlough are advised to keep their addresses current with the company while on layoff. It is predicted that there will be many movements this year and there have been several members that have been removed from the seniority list because old addresses were on file when notices were sent.

If you are in touch with a furloughed member, please forward this information to them. Updates may be emailed to: ESC@united.com . The ESC will provide a fax number and ask members to send the address change accompanied with a signature.

Useful Links

If you would like to see a link added to this list please contact Bob Fisher at: rcfisher7@yahoo.com

The following Locals represent these respective cities:

Boston Local 25

New York & Washington Local 210

Charleston & Atlanta Local 528

Miami, Ft. Lauderdale Tampa & Orlando Local 769

Cleveland Local 964

Chicago Local 781

Houston, Dallas & New Orleans Local 19

Phoenix Local 104

Seattle, Portland, Los Angeles, Hawaii & Guam Local 986

San Francisco Local 856/986

Denver Local 455

The Cranky Flier - Blaming United's Problems On Continental Is Exactly The Problem

An interesting article from a blogger. You can read the article here.

Why Collective Bargaining Is a Fundamental Human Right

The ability for ordinary working people to organize and collectively bargain over their wages and working conditions is a fundamental human right. It is a right just as critical to a democratic society as the right to free speech and the right to vote. 

Over the last 30 years many in corporate America and the big Wall Street banks have conducted a sustained attack on that human right. Unionization dropped from 20.1 percent of the workforce in 1983 to 11. 3 percent in 2013 -- and the results are there for everyone to see.

During that period productivity and Gross Domestic Product per capita both increased by roughly 80 percent in America. But the wages of ordinary Americans have remained stagnant. Virtually all of the fruits of that increased productivity have gone to the wealthiest 1 percent of Americans.

No wonder the gang on Wall Street opposes unions.

That fact that all of the productivity gains went to the top 1 percent is not the result of an immutable law of nature. When unions represented a quarter of the private sector workforce, a larger and larger percentage of the total economic pie flowed into the pockets of ordinary Americans -- and the result was the world's most vibrant middle class.

The simple fact is that absent government regulation and collective bargaining agreements, the market by itself does not assure that everyone shares in the fruits of society's increased economic productivity. In fact, we know that just the opposite is true.

This is not surprising. The power relationship between the owners of capital and millions of individual employees is completely imbalanced in favor of big corporations and banks.

Everyone with a modicum of employment experience knows that most ordinary employees cannot individually "bargain" over their wages. In order to have a negotiation between two equal partners, employees must organize unions and bargain collectively. Otherwise the wages of everyday Americans will continue to stagnate, and the wealth of the 1 percent will continue to explode.

The share of income of the top one-thousandth of the population increased from 2 percent to nearly 10 percent in the last several decades. The portion of income received by the top 10 percent went from 33 percent in 1970 to 47 percent in 2010. These are the highest levels of income inequality since the '20s.

And the concentration of wealth in the hands of the very rich is higher today than at any time since before the Great Depression. The top 10 percent now owns over 70 percent of all wealth. The top 1 percent owns almost 35 percent of all wealth -- while the bottom 50 percent owns 2 percent.

Left to itself, the laissez faire market place would naturally lead to even more concentration of income and wealth in the hands of the very rich. And that would mean that the economy as a whole would almost certainly stagnate and crash once again.

That's because it is economic common sense that if ordinary workers produce more and more products and services per hour, but their wages don't go up in proportion to their increased productivity -- there will be more and more products and services, but no customers with the money in their pockets to buy all of those new products and services.

That's a simple truism that Henry Ford understood when he vowed to pay his workers enough so they could afford to buy the cars they produced.

Democratic societies cannot long endure this increasing inequality. And there are only two effective treatments for the cancer of increasing inequality:

• Government action -- increases in the minimum wage and a return to fair tax rates on the wealthy -- and especially on the accumulation of capital;
• A massive increase in the percentage of the labor force that exercises its right to collectively bargain its wages.

Last week, the United States Supreme Court made a decision actually aimed at weakening the human right to collectively bargain wages and working conditions. Their decision held that home care workers -- who were miserably exploited before they joined a union just 10 years ago -- could not be "forced" to pay a "fair share" contribution to support the collective bargaining that had resulted in doubling of their pay.

In fact, of course, this decision had nothing whatsoever to do with the freedom of the home care workers to opt out of paying union dues. It had everything to do with trying to weaken public sector unions that are the only portion of the labor movement that has materially grown (to represent 35 percent of the public sector work force) over the last 30 years.

It is completely fair that workers who choose a union to represent them with a democratic vote should also be obligated to pay for the cost of negotiating and administering a labor contract. The same, after all, is true of ordinary citizens who democratically elect a city government. Even if you voted against the Mayor and city council, you still have to pay taxes to the city. Otherwise lots of people would simply enjoy the benefits of receiving the public goods produced by city government -- or a union contract -- without paying their share of the costs.

This Supreme Court case was brought by the National "Right to Work" Committee -- whose goal is a "union-free environment." Their contributors include some of the wealthiest people in America who want to continue to be able to siphon off all of the increases in productivity in our economy without being required to share anything with ordinary Americans or pay a living wage. They understand that their best bet to achieve that goal is to limit the right to collective bargaining. Luckily ordinary Americans are waking up to their game.

Last year the number of private sector workers in unions rose by 281,000 over the year previous. Unfortunately, this increase was partially offset by a reduction of 118,000 public sector workers in unions. The public sector decline resulted from political actions by Republican State Legislators and Governors like Scott Walker in Wisconsin -- which helps explain why the National Right to Work Committee is so keen on weakening public sector unions.

But public sector unions are organizing to push back with aggressive new organizing drives to enlist more rank and file workers. And in the private sector we've seen massive new organizing campaigns -- especially in the service sector that is the fastest growing component of the economy. For example, fast food workers have organized the "fight for $15" per hour and a union.

And there is now a robust national campaign to raise the minimum wage that is supported by almost 70 percent of Americans.

Increasingly, ordinary Americans understand who is on their side -- and who is not.

Luckily for American working people, the Supreme Court's decision will likely only strengthen the resolve of an increasingly creative labor movement to assert the right to collective bargaining -- and to demand that ordinary people once again begin receiving a fair share of the fruits of America's growing productivity.

According to Bloomberg News, the nation's 100 top paid CEO's make from 299 to 1,795 times as much as their average employees. One of them actually makes $65,000 per hour. These numbers have skyrocketed over the last 30 years.

Bruce Rauner, who is running for Governor in Illinois, proudly describes himself as being part of the .01 percent. He made $25,000 per hour in 2012 -- and then had the audacity to propose that the Illinois minimum wage of $8.25 be reduced to the current national minimum wage of $7.25. So much for a sense of perspective from the CEO class.

Some pundits and columnists have bought the notion that is propagated by these CEO's that labor unions are "so 20th century." Oh, they say, we might have needed unions at one time to address problems like child labor and 80-hour work weeks -- but not in the modern "information" age.

It is of course true that organized labor not only massively increased salaries for ordinary employees through collective bargaining. Unions also organized for -- and won -- the minimum wage, the 40-hour work week, the weekend, paid sick days, vacation pay, and an end to child labor. In other words, labor unions brought America the middle class.

Now the middle class is in jeopardy, precisely because of the Wall Street's war on collective bargaining.

In fact, given the skyrocketing inequality in the distribution of the fruits of an increasingly productive economy, it should to be clear to anyone who is mildly conscious that we need labor unions and collective bargaining now more than ever.

America is richer now than at any time in its history. It is the wealthiest society in the history of humanity. But the wages of most ordinary people have not increased for 30 years. Time to wake up and smell the coffee -- and do something about it.

America needs a massive new social movement to demand that every worker in every job have the right to organize collectively. Every worker should have the right to be in a union in exactly the same way that every American has the right to vote. That is the only way to empower ordinary people to effectively demand their fair share of the fruits of our economy.

The right to freedom of association - and to collectively bargain wages and working conditions -- is a foundational principle of every democratic society on earth. That right is rooted in the United States' Bill of Rights, the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms, the Universal Declaration of Human Rights of the United Nations, Conventions 87 and 98 of the International Labour Organization, and Article 11 of the European Convention on Human Rights.

It's time for us to make the right to join a union and bargain collectively the keystone of the progressive agenda.

After all, collective bargaining is the fundamental cure to the growing inequality that threatens to destroy the middle class and eats away at the very foundation of our democratic society.

________________

Robert Creamer is a long-time political organizer and strategist, and author of the book: Stand Up Straight: How Progressives Can Win, available on Amazon.com. He is a partner in Democracy Partners and a Senior Strategist for Americans United for Change. Follow him on Twitter @rbcreamer.