SULLIVAN'S SALVOS
August 23, 2018
Sullivan’s Salvos 8/28/18
In this edition:
*Labor Day
*Labor Day Picnic
*ICCSD Facilities Master Plan
*Gazette Columns and Johnson County
*Did You Know?
*Labor Day
Happy Labor Day next Monday! I love Labor Day. Every Memorial Day and Veteran’s Day we set aside time to recall the folks whose service has given us our freedom. I have long felt we need to treat Labor Day in a similar fashion.
Please take a moment this Labor Day to remember the people who fought (and often died) to give us child labor laws, 40 hour weeks, weekends, overtime, vacations, the minimum wage, sick leave, parental leave, OSHA, employment nondiscrimination, pensions, Social Security, health insurance, and so much more.
Do not be fooled! Benevolent corporations did not GIVE these benefits to workers! They were earned by workers who sacrificed! It is a shame that so many average Janes and Joes have chosen to support our corporate masters versus supporting those whose efforts really benefit the masses.
Unions continue to provide the best protections working people can have. I feel as though I have accomplished some good things as a member of the Board of Supervisors. One of the accomplishments of which I am most proud is starting an employee appreciation lunch every year the week of Labor Day. Johnson County employees deserve much more, but this is one extra opportunity to say thank you.
Trust me – the average person has nothing to fear from unions. We all benefit when folks have safe and healthy workplaces. We all benefit when workers get adequate rest. We all benefit when workers receive good training. We all benefit when folks earn a living wage and have health insurance. Unions help improve the quality of life for all of us.
One example of a way in which unions benefit everyone: much is made of the automobile industry expanding into the southern US. While these are not union plants, workers still have good wages and benefits. Some see this as an indictment of unions. It is precisely the opposite.
Do not think for a minute that these companies pay $22 per hour because they WANT to. They would be much happier to pay $4 per hour. And, when China’s workforce improves in quality to the point that they can do automotive work, the companies will move there.
Understand – large corporations exist for one reason, and that is to earn a profit. If the laws allowed slavery, some companies would use it. Because it is cheaper.
So why do they pay $22 in the southern US? Because of the threat of the United Auto Workers (UAW). If the wages or benefits ever sink too low, UAW could unionize those workers. The car companies don’t want that, so they pay the lowest possible acceptable wage.
See? The UAW does not represent the workers at those plants. But they have driven up the wages and benefits for the workers there all the same.
Labor has been hit hard, but not everything is doom and gloom. Look at the recent public employee recertification elections. 436 out of 468 public-sector bargaining units voted to recertify their organizations. Voter participation was 88 percent.
I am proud to be a member of Local 716 of the American Federation of Teachers, an affiliate of the Iowa City Federation of Labor. Happy Labor Day!
*Labor Day Picnic
The Iowa City Federation of Labor, AFL-CIO, will host its annual Labor Day picnic on Monday, September 3, starting at 12 PM at Lower City Park, shelter 6. Burgers, brats, veggie options and beverages provided. Please bring a dish to share. Political speeches and a good time guaranteed. Free and open to all Friends of Labor.
*ICCSD Facilities Master Plan
Regular Salvos readers may recall that I served on the ICCSD Facilities Master Plan (FMP) Committee, and later the One Community. One Bond committee that helped to pass the FMP. So I have been quite invested in this.
That is why it was great to hear the report from the ICCSD that the FMP is largely on time and on budget up to this point. There were a lot of naysayers who swore neither of those things would happen. It was actually a major talking point for the opposition. So it feels really good to see that result! Keep up the great work, ICCSD!
*Gazette Columns and Johnson County
I have written about this topic before, but I think it deserves more discussion. The Cedar Rapids Gazette does some coverage of Johnson County and its cities. In addition, a couple times per week, they run an opinion column from Adam Sullivan.
Sullivan (no relation, as far as I know) is a talented writer who was born and raised in Iowa City. He is a staunch Libertarian, and almost always writes from this perspective.
Let me be clear: I think the Libertarian viewpoint is important. I also think Adam is a really good writer and a fair and honest man. But by having ONLY Adam comment on Johnson County issues, the Gazette is doing a great disservice to its readers.
Libertarians are perhaps 2% of the people in Johnson County. Yet they get 100% of the commentary on Johnson County. This is completely unrepresentative of the people of Johnson County.
Imagine for a minute that the Gazette changed their sports coverage so that all sports commentary focused only on Cornell College. No Hawkeyes, Cyclones, or Panthers; not even rival Coe. The only commentary is on Cornell athletics. How well do you think that would go over? How well would that be received? That is exactly the equivalent of what Johnson County folks get when it comes to news commentary.
There might be 1% of Linn County residents that could be considered blatant racists. Would the Gazette allow an avowed racist to be the only voice in Linn County news commentary? Probably not.
The Gazette could probably find a Wiccan to do all their coverage of religion. They could probably hire a vegan to do every restaurant review. And I am sure they would be fine writers. But is that viewpoint representative? So why continue to subject Johnson County readers to one similarly unrepresentative viewpoint?
I am not suggesting that the Gazette take Adam away. I like his columns. His views deserve to be heard. He has an important perspective. But so do the other 98% of Johnson County residents. Right now, the Gazette is doing them a disservice.
Please, Gazette – give the people of Johnson County the news commentary they deserve!
*DID YOU KNOW? One of the first labor injunctions used in the United States was issued in Boone County, Iowa, in 1885, to prevent picketing by striking coal miners. Iowa Governors called out the state militia whenever large numbers of working people went out on strike.
Anyone interested in learning more about County government should take a look at the County website-
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---Rod
posted by Rod Sullivan @ 8:15 AM
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