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A Labor Day interview

Labor Day parades across the country very often include candidates and elected officials as part of the unofficial start of the campaign season. However, an even bigger contingent at the Labor Day festivities is organized labor itself. Knowing that labor unions will be very involved in the upcoming elections, I decided to talk with a union member who is involved with labor’s efforts leading up to November.

Instead of talking with somebody who worked at a union itself, I wanted to talk to a worker who was actively involved in labor’s efforts. That led me to talk with Clay Smith, an active letter carrier with the National Association of Letter Carriers, who is currently on release to work on labor’s program.

What immediately struck me is that Smith never talked about supporting one party over another. Obviously, organized labor is usually more supportive of Democratic candidates, but Smith focused on the need to organize around issues and elect candidates who supported labor’s positions. I think this is an important point when discussing outside groups.

[For full disclosure, I have worked with unions for many years, most recently with the SEIU. However, I have not worked for the state's umbrella AFL-CIO, nor am I involved in labor's efforts this year.]

Candidates and voters often lament the influence of the so-called “special interests,” but what is a “special interest” to one person is a very real interest to somebody else. Somebody who is a union member cares about where labor stands on issues and candidates. Likewise, somebody who is an NRA member cares about where the NRA stands on issues and candidates. It is in organized labor’s interests to support a candidate who is strong on their issues over someone who is not just as it is in the NRA’s, or any other group’s interest to support candidates specifically on their stances on issues and not just on their party.

I asked Smith why he would volunteer through his union instead of just volunteering with a candidate he supports. After all, if your only concern is electing candidates, you can do that by just focusing on your neighborhood. He told me that it is “easier for a person to strike up a conversation when you have something in common with the person at the door. I honestly believe that the way we run the labor program, we get the most bang for our buck.”

He’s right. Interacting with people who share a common interest boosts the value of your work. Labor benefits by organizing its members and educating them on the votes and positions of various candidates. That is part of the reason why politicians want to have the support of labor unions and other similar groups. They know that the benefit isn’t so much the money they get, but the quality conversations and support they get from that organization. That leads to votes.

Smith told me that the union members he talks to at the doors have the same concerns of almost everybody else in our state, namely jobs and the economy. He stressed that because he is also a union member, they are able to have a real discussion at the door with other members and why they think this upcoming election is important. Were he working just for a candidate’s campaign, he might not get to have that conversation, either because it is difficult to fully know where a candidate stands on every detail and because the person at the door might not be as open to talk more in depth.

I asked Smith what misconceptions he would like to clear up about unions. He told me “people think that union members are fat cats, but 95 percent of union members go to work every day and punch the clock and work hard. They just want their jobs done. They are involved with their communities and churches and go out in the public to try and make things better for people.”

In our politics today, people are too eager to label each other. Too many people on the right think that Democrats are all socialists who want the government to take over every part of the country and abolish any mention of faith. Too many people on the left think that Republicans are nutjobs who are filled with rage and hate and have little tolerance for anybody who seems different. I think that what Smith says about union members is right about most people in our country. They are involved with their communities, their churches, and their schools and just want to make their community a better place. They are also willing to have an honest conversation if you give them a chance.

It is clear that organized labor is pulling out all the stops for this election. They are knocking doors from Pittsburgh to Philadelphia and everywhere in between. The issues of jobs and health care mean a lot to their members, but they mean a lot to everyone in the state.

Will their efforts pay off? Time will tell, but people like Clay Smith aren’t just looking toward November, so whatever happens on Election Day, they will keep working for a better future in the weeks, months, and years to come.

September 7, 2010 at 10:25 am

--Tony Heyl

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