John Wilhelm, who led his union to split with the AFL-CIO, is trying to save the world -- or at least labor unions.
"Some people say the world will end, now that the labor union has split in half. I say it already was ending, so we might as well try something different," Wilhelm said. "Also, a little competition never hurt anybody."
Wilhelm -- co-president of the UNITE-HERE labor union -- spoke last night in Huntsman Hall about the current state of the labor movement in America.
"This country has one fundamental challenge today," he said. "We need to figure out jobs that, by their nature, can't be exported and that have good wages, retirement benefits and the opportunity for advancement."
With this problem in mind, Wilhelm and other union representatives came together this summer to create a new labor federation, Change to Win, which is a coalition of seven unions representing 5.4 million American workers.
"Fifty-three percent of Americans have no pensions, and average Social Security is $900 per month. If something isn't done, people are going to retire poor," he said.
In September, Change to Win officially split from the AFL-CIO, an umbrella organization of most American unions.
"We need to take service-sector jobs that can't be exported and make them into decent jobs that support the American lifestyle," Wilhelm said.
Change to Win aims to ensure that the federal government sufficiently supports the middle class. However, Wilhelm said, the government "has become extremely complacent."
"Although we are comprised of seven completely different unions, we have one goal," he said. "We must organize on a much larger scale."
Wilhelm also emphasized the importance of immigrant workers in the United States.
"The facts show that the American economy cannot grow without continuous immigration," Wilhelm said. Immigration "is a tremendous opportunity."
Audience members were interested in the state of the labor movement and asked questions regarding the automotive and airline industries and the internationalization of labor unions.
"It seems like [Change to Win] is trying to make it a win-win situation for both corporations and labor by not actively fighting globalization," said Dan Kessler, a first-year Wharton MBA student.
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