Sure, workers gripe all the time about how unions have come to resemble the managers they once fought. But Newman and Johnson are actually out to do something about it; they want to change the way unions conduct business in Washington state. With the help of former Yale law professor Clyde Summers--the granddaddy of labor law--they have drafted and filed I-702, an initiative that would require unions to hold direct and open elections, ratify collective agreements by vote, and send financial reports directly to rank-and-file members. The initiative would act as a bill of rights for union members, guaranteeing them free speech and assembly, free access to information, and accountable leadership.
"This is about democracy at work, at the bottom rung," says Johnson. "This initiative is not designed to kill labor, it's designed to help labor. You go to people now and say, 'Look, you wanna join a union?' and they say, 'What for? All you do is take my money and you don't do anything for me. I don't even have a vote.' And you know what? They're right! But it shouldn't be that way."
The initiative is bound to gather support among workers who've been pushed around by their elected "representatives." Newman and Johnson cite cases where union bosses have overruled a majority vote by members. Take the iron workers of Local 86, who voted down two contracts last year, only to have international union leaders come to Seattle, impose a trusteeship, sign a contract for them, ban all unauthorized meetings, and bring up one dissident on charges of "inciting dissension."
I-702 has been endorsed by Herman Benson, the founder of the national Association of Union Democracy, one of the few labor groups to stand up for Seattle's iron workers, and by Victor Reuther, a key player in the sit-down strikes by Flint, Michigan auto workers in the 1930s. Reuther, now 78 and still working on what he calls "a long, unfinished agenda," has contacted his close friend, filmmaker Michael Moore, to try to elicit financial support for the campaign. Reuther says of Newman and Johnson, "They've got a hell of a lot of work ahead of them, but nothing that improves the democratic process for citizens ever comes easy."
To get I-702 onto the ballot this fall, supporters will have to gather 179,248 valid signatures by July 2. That's a tall order for Newman and Johnson, who are running their campaign out of Newman's home near Providence Hospital in the Central District. They don't expect much help from the official labor hierarchy, which organized so effectively around last year's minimum wage initiative.
David Groves of the Washington State Labor Council says the initiative is overkill. "There are already plenty of laws that tell unions how to conduct their business," he says, "and we don't need more." He argues that unions are democratic enough, and if a local has a problem, it's up to the members to address it. "We encourage dissension and we encourage debate," says Groves. "We encourage people to get involved in changing their unions from within."
But Newman thinks the problem is bigger than that; she says there needs to be a structure in place to force democratic principles onto international unions, many of which are old-school organizations not known for embracing change. The initiative is a way to side-step entrenched politics, she says. She compares I-702 to the recently passed medical marijuana initiative. Left to politicians, it wouldn't have gotten anywhere, but put to the voting public, it passed. "We intend to pass [I-702] here, and then we're gonna go on to another six states, and then another six states," she vows. "By that time there will be enough public discussion and there will be enough pressure that Congress will say, 'Hey. It's time.'"
The first step, of course, is to get it onto the ballot in Washington state, which will mean many, many hours of work by volunteers. And even if the long-shot ballot does pass, legally it's unclear whether state regulations can override the less restrictive federal laws which currently govern union policy. Ultimately, that may be a question for the U.S. Supreme Court.
Newman and Johnson don't seem daunted by the giant task in front of them. Their campaign mantra comes from the poet Rumi: "Take on a huge and foolish project, like Noah did."
