Tarter: Latinos offer different take on union issue

Michigan's recent move to become a right-to-work state is just the latest blow to union solidarity in this country.

In Peoria, we tend to look at the union issue through the eyes of workers at Caterpillar Inc. and other manufacturers. But there's another view worth thinking about.

Offering that slant is Victoria M. DeFrancesco Soto, a senior analyst on Latino issues at the University of Texas. She can often be seen on MSNBC and is a regular political analyst on Telemundo. She's also a contributor to the Huffington Post and NBC Latino.

In a telephone interview, VMDS (that's how she labels herself in her blogs) talked about a variety of issues from immigration ("The president is ready to move on immigration. The challenge will be the Republican-led House.") to cultural assimilation ("We live in a different world from years ago. There's more acceptance of diversity along with a desire to preserve elements of the home country," she said).

As for the plight of the unions, VMDS said it's an issue that has significance for the nation's fastest-growing minority.

"Latinos are concentrated in non-union-friendly, right-to-work states. This might lead one to see the issue of unions as non-relevant to Latinos given that states such as Texas, Florida and Nevada fall into this category," she said.

"But labor unions are an economic safeguard providing higher wages and benefits to workers. According to the Bureau of Labor, in 2011 full-time unionized workers earned on average $938 a week while their non-unionized counterparts earned $729," she noted.

"Unions have secured middle-class livelihoods for millions of Americans. For workers of color who have been on the short end of the racial wealth gap, union protection is the difference between making ends meet or going without those winter coats for your kids," stated VMDS.

"The economic and education profile of Latinos leads them to be the most in need of wage and benefit protections," she said.

"While Latinos are making strides in education, they still remain the group with the lowest educational attainment and the highest dropout rates. As a result we see Latinos disproportionately concentrated in low-wage jobs," said VMDS.

Think about this the next time you visit Las Vegas: when wages are cut, some of those that work in the town's many glitzy hotels and restaurants might need public assistance just to make ends meet. That's according to Yvanna Cancela, political director of a local union in Las Vegas.

"Wage cuts are disproportionately affecting Latinos, who are more likely than non-Latinos to work in the leisure and hospitality sector," said Cancela.

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Steve Tarter is Journal Star business editor. Tarter's phone number is 686-3260, and his email address is starter@pjstar.com. Follow his blog, Minding Business, on pjstar.com and follow him on Twitter @SteveTarter

Source: http://www.pjstar.com/business/x459331686/Tarter-Latinos-offer-different-take-on-union-issue

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