Picket lines
January 2, 2008
Obviously, a party that is run on behalf of rich people is going to be less sympathetic to unions and collective bargaining than a party that is on the side of the middle class. And obviously, those little shows of support for American labor — buying signs and buttons from union shops, and so forth — are much less important in GOP circles than they are in Democratic politics.
Still, the GOP needs the votes of a sizable minority of union members to win, so one would think they’d at least avoid active displays of hostility towards striking workers during an election.
And since decent people don’t cross picket lines, it makes me wonder why the one Republican who has spent at least a little bit of time in his campaign talking about the economic concerns of the middle class is spending the final night before the Iowa caucuses crossing a picket line to appear on the Tonight Show.
As Michael points out, it “may be the only thing’s he’s done during the campaign that the Republican establishment approves of”. Indeed.
(*) Clinton is appearing on David Letterman tonight, but not to worry. The writers have reached a deal with Letterman and CBS, and are back at work on the Late Show.
January 3rd, 2008 at 1:03 am
What you really should wonder is if the International Association of Machinists will pull their endorsement of Huckabee because he crossed the picket line.
January 3rd, 2008 at 9:09 am
Darn, I thought this post would be about Obama and his dismal 13% union support.
The fact of the matter is Letterman broke the writer’s strike. What the Letterman agreement did was allow the strike to be settled piece meal. In the next few months you will see a side agreement here, a side agreement there, and the unity of guild will be broken.
I must admit I am befuddled how Huckabee is crossing the picket line. Jay is not using any writers from the guild nor has he made any attempt to replace them. Both Huckabee and Leno proclaimed their solidarity to the striking workers.
Again I am far more concerned with the impact the Letterman agreement will have on the strike.Watch the reality shows will be next to look for an exception, then the animated shows, then the Fox shows, and by that time the writers guild will be too weak to do anything.
January 3rd, 2008 at 2:10 pm
Letterman didn’t “break” the strike. The WGA agreed to a contract that was acceptable to all parties.
Just because something is done piecemeal, it’s not necessarily to the detriment of the union (it can be, because a union’s strength is in numbers). The UAW would do this all the time. They’d negotiate a contract with one of the Big Three — it didn’t matter which one compromised first — and then take that contract to the others.
One could just as easily argue that the studios will lose by negotiating piecemeal. If Studio A makes a deal, and hires writers, and starts producing shows, Studio B is going to be at a huge disadvantage unless they do likewise. Surely you can see the advantage the WGA gets here.
If Letterman is getting all the good guests, because actors and musicians don’t want to cross a picket line, that’s going to put a good deal of pressure on NBC to compromise. They don’t want everyone to get in the habit of watching CBS instead.
January 3rd, 2008 at 3:30 pm
Ben,
You were being dishonest. No picket line was crossed. All talk shows went on this week irregardless of agreements. Letterman had one, Leno, Conan, Stewart, Colbert went on without writers. There was no picket line to cross since no writers were involved.
I said the “Letterman agreement” most likely broke the strike. While, in theory, it may be true it splits and therefore puts pressure on media companies, it also divides the union. I think the latter will have a more demoralizing effect.
What you will most likely see is more side agreements that further divides the union. The union is small and weak to begin with, so it will get worse. I would even predict a general agreement on a cut on the TV market with the on line component being left without agreement. The irony being the major purpose of the strike was getting a fair cut from on line productions.
January 3rd, 2008 at 3:59 pm
You were being dishonest. No picket line was crossed.
This might be a compelling argument if it were true. Alternately, you could follow the link to Pundit Nation, where Michael’s post includes a picture of the actual picket line, or the link to the article in the Detroit Free Press, which reads in part: