• Listen to this segment

GUEST: Ben Zipperer, a research assistant at the Center for Economic and Policy Research, focusing on US and European labor markets, co-author of the report, “Dropping the Ax”

One in five union organizers or activists can expect to be illegally fired as a result of their union election campaign activities according to a new report by the Center for Economic and Policy Research. The report entitled, “Dropping the Ax: Illegal Firings During Union Election Campaigns,” finds a steep rise in illegal firings of pro-union workers in the past few years compared to the late 1990s. Utilizing published data from the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) “Dropping the Ax,” looks at the probability of a pro-union worker being fired in the course of a union election campaign. Lastly, by looking at the systematic attack on unions since the 1980’s, the authors of the report provide evidence and argue that such an attack has led to the decline of union memberships and successful electoral campaigns. In 2005, only one in twelve workers in the private sector were unionized.

For more information visit www.cepr.net.

Download the report here: http://www.cepr.net/documents/publications/unions_2007_01.pdf