Labor leaders say recall will harm workers

0 Comments | Oakland Tribune, Sep 2, 2003 | by Megan Garvey, Los Angeles Times

Many union members agree that those issues are real, but they see them very recently. What Duncan and others see as needed forms of flexibility, they see as rollbacks of hard-won protections.

Recently, at the headquarters of IBEW Local 11 in Pasadena, Calif., electrical workers gathered to train for the anti-recall said they have no doubt their lot has improved under a Democratic administration.

Robert Darcy, of nearby Arcadia, a 10-year IBEW member said his main concern is safety.

"I'm not looking for a big paycheck. I'm just looking to go home safely every night," he said. "A lot of people will take shortcuts to save money. I've seen it for years."

"It isn't always necessary to get laws off the books. All they have to do is stop enforcing those laws," added Kevin Norton, who worked his way up the ranks to become the local union's political director three years ago.

What really gets Norton exercised, however, is the suggestion by Republicans that labor-backed rules eliminate jobs.

"If you want to talk about job killers then talk about NAFTA, GATT all those trade agreements that sent jobs overseas," he said. Republicans "don't want to enforce any labor laws. They don't want overtime," he said.

"If the working stiff gets the bad rap because we want to live in our own house, own a car, have our kids go to decent schools, there's something wrong with the picture," he added. "That's not asking too much, that's the American dream."