Playing "Hardball" with the Workers

Repost of an article by Tim Munier

As quoted in a recent Buffalo News article, Erie County Executive Chris Collins is a master of the political chokehold:

"I do play hardball. I will never apologize for that. I go into negotiations with the endgame in mind. I know my strength. I know my opponent's strengths. I know where I want to get to." –Erie County Executive Chris Collins

Some of the people that the County Executive has in a chokehold are the 1,600 county workers represented by AFSCME Local 1095. In "AFSCME Local 1095 President John Orlando Says Erie County's Stance At the Negotiating Table Is 'Short-Sighted'", WNY Labor Today reports that Collins is taking a "hard-line stance" with the union whose members earn $28,000 to $32,000 on average. Collins had offered a $2,600 onetime bonus and 3 percent pay raises in each of the last six years of their new contract with the county. The union rejected the deal because it would have cut retiree health benefits.

WNY Labor Today points out that the workers have not received a raise since 2003, despite continually rising costs of living, and had agreed to a variety of concessions over the years to keep health benefits. In a country that has the highest health costs in the Western world, employer sponsored health benefits are obviously a huge concern for people that live right above the poverty level.

What is Chris Collins' endgame? To cut wages to workers who have wages that can barely afford their homes? Elected officials should work to ensure that people working in their jurisdictions are not kept in poverty. Playing "hardball" with people who earn barely enough to afford their homes* is the strategy of someone who places more importance on cutting-costs than keeping people out of poverty.

Evidently Chris Collins' endgame does not have the interests or livelihoods of thousands of low-wage workers or their dependents at heart.

The head of the union makes a very convincing case for how thick-headed this approach to labor-relations is:

"This is short-sighted, because people have to live and they're living paycheck to paycheck, paying their rents and mortgages, making their car and utility payments, buying food and gas. In the end, they have nothing left. And if people have nothing left, they don't go out and support those businesses in the community by purchasing their goods and services," said Orlando, who underscored that the average annual income of Local 1095 members is $28,000 to $32,000. "Look at the demographics of Buffalo. We're one of the poorest cities in the United States. Take our member's annual salary and take a third of that out for taxes. Then divide the rest by twelve (for each month of the year). There's not much left for anything," Orlando said.

Demanding further concessions from people who make barely enough to get by is policy that does not have ending poverty and homelessness as a priority, or even as any sort of objective.

Paying county workers fair and decent wages with fair and decent benefits is an easy way for an elected official to ensure that as many as 1,600 local people stay out of poverty.

But in his unapologetic desire to "play hardball" with workers who earn barely enough to afford their homes, Collins demonstrates that he does not realize or chooses to ignore that continual wage/benefit erosion has indeed impoverished tens of thousands of workers in his county.

Politicians like Collins ensure that tens of thousands of Buffalonians will remain impoverished so that the county and city can cut costs.

*See here: http://homelessalliance.wordpress.com/2009/06/15/buffalo-a-cheap-place-t...