Labor celebrates election night victories

Across the country on election night, organized labor celebrated the election of Democrat Barack Obama as the 44th president of the United States. Obama is the first African-American in history to hold the office. In a landslide victory, Obama, a U.S. senator from Illinois, outpolled Republican Sen. John McCain of Arizona 53 percent to 46 percent, and captured 349 electoral votes to McCain’s 173.

Democrats looked to have picked up five seats in the U.S. Senate, with three races still undecided, and 19 seats in the U.S. House, with nine still undetermined. That, and Obama in the White House, increases the likelihood that the union movement will be able to pass its landmark labor law reform, the Employee Free Choice Act.

In Oregon it was by and large a night of labor movement victories. State Sen. Kurt Schrader walloped Republican Mike Erickson to fill an open seat in the 5th District. Labor-backed Democrats also carried the day in statewide races, with Kate Brown elected secretary of state; John Kroger tapped for attorney general; Ben Westlund capturing state treasurer; and Brad Avakian elected labor commissioner, a non-partisan office.

But the state’s biggest campaign was still too close to call as of press time Wednesday morning. The state’s unions were heavily involved in working to elect House Speaker Jeff Merkley and unseat two-term Republican U.S. Sen. Gordon Smith.

Democrats padded their majority in the U.S. House, going from 233 Democrats and 202 Republicans to at least 258 Democrats.

Schrader will join Democatic incumbents David Wu, Earl Blumenauer, and Peter DeFazio of Oregon, and Brian Baird of Southwest Washington, all of whom were easily re-elected. Republican Greg Walden, who had some labor endorsements, was re-elected in Oregon’s 2nd District.

In Washington State, incumbent Democratic Gov. Chris Gregoire defeated Dino Rossi with strong labor support. The count at press time was 54 percent to 46 percent.

All of the ballot measures backed by labor foes Bill Sizemore and Kevin Mannix went down to defeat — except one, Ballot Measure 64, a confusingly worded measure intended to halt public employee unions involvement in politics, which was too close to call at press time. That had union leaders worried. The measure would ban employer collection of union dues if the union spends any money on politics, however defined.

“It could shut my local down,” said Richard Beetle, business manager of Laborers Local 483, which represents parks, road maintenance and water bureau workers at the City of Portland. Beetle thinks Measure 64 is intended to lay the foundation for a “right-to-work” campaign in Oregon in 2010.

“If we get a right-to-work [ballot measure on the ballot in Oregon], Measure 64 means I can’t get up and talk with my members about the fears and anxieties right to work would bring to Oregon because I’ll lose my payroll deduction if I do. If you accept payroll deduction, you can’t take political positions.”

Dick Schwarz, executive director of American Federation of Teachers-Oregon, said that if Measure 64 passes labor could go to the Legislature to seek a fix, but that it would be better to challenge it legally.

“It has serious ramifications with the Constitution,” Schwarz said, including freedom of speech and the rights to collective bargaining.