Earlier today, Ray wrote about how Gov. Rendell has gotten involved in contract negotiations between SEPTA and TWU Local 234. Not surprisingly, our Democratic governor has taken the side of management and pushed the union to make broad concession on healthcare and a variety of other issues.

While it might be shocking to some that a supposedly liberal politician would stab working people in the back, Philadelphia progressives have seen this before. After all, Rendell screwed over municipal workers when he was mayor and raised millions of dollars from big corporate donors when he was chairman of the DNC.

Union members and their allies have lost considerable influence in recent years. Look at the comments in newspapers and blogs from regular people who blame TWU for the current situation. The general attitude seems to be that everyone pays a lot for healthcare, so why should SEPTA workers be any different?

Clearly, public attitudes towards union members are relatively hostile. Click “Read More” for my take on how to improve the public image of unionized workers.

Given the bitterness of the current strike, some people might wonder how things could get worse. However, compared to previous conflicts, this one seems rather tame. For example, workers struck against the Philadelphia Rapid Transit Company in 1910. Like SEPTA, PRT refused to sign a reasonable contract and workers were forced to shut the system down. The strike turned violent and the sympathetic police officers refused to arrest rioting workers. Eventually, PRT was forced to concede to the unions demands. Now that’s solidarity! Additional reforms were also made due to public pressure.

Compared to how things are going for the current strikers, rioting might seem like the best strategy! Why has support for unionized workers dropped so dramatically, even while tactics have become more moderate? The answer lies in the declining number of workers in labor unions. According to Labor Research Associates, the number of workers in Philadelphia-area unions has fallen nearly 10% in the past ten years alone! Today, barely 100,000 workers in the Philadelphia-area are covered by collective bargaining agreements. That’s the key to current public attitudes towards the TWU strike.

Most people are not members of unions. As a result, they have almost no rights on the job and relatively few ways to challenge their employers. Compounding the problem, many workers who are represented by a union find their leadership to be unresponsive and unhelpful. Therefore, the general public has little incentive to support TWU’s demands for healthcare coverage. It’s hard to criticize people for not supporting a fight they feel they have little or no stake in.

The key to winning strikes is broad community-based support. This support can’t exist unless more people are members of unions and see each labor dispute as a broader social struggle. Thanks to leadership from AFSCME DC 47, the Philadelphia AFL-CIO played a very active role earlier in the year working for increased public transit funding. These types of campaigns, coupled with major organizing drives, is the key to revitalizing the trade union movemet. Organized labor will continue to lose at the bargining table and the picket line unless more workers join unions and strong coalitions are built with religious and community groups.

Now is a time for solidarity and leadership. Who will show the way?