I am wondering if you could tell me how much is the AFL-CIO spending on the presidential election this year. I think its the most in the
history of the federation. Also, if you can find how much AFL-CIO unions (or the SEIU) spent on organizing new workers in the past couple years and how many workers were organized in 2003.
Question: I am wondering if you could tell me how much is the AFL-CIO spending on the presidential election this year. I think its the most in the history of the federation. Also, if you can find how much AFL-CIO unions (or the SEIU) spent on organizing new workers in the past couple years and how many workers were organized in 2003.
Below, you'll find citations and quotes from several recent articles that talk about both the AFL-CIO's and SEIU's expenditures on the 2004 presidential election. Also, a couple of the articles cite numbers for SEIU's membership, and money spent on new recruitment.
1. "SEIU's Stern Calls for Major Undertaking to Build Strength in Global Economy; Real Multi-Union Partnerships to Revitalize Labor Movement"
SOURCE: SEIU Website (Press Release)
DATE: June 21, 2004
SEIU currently has about 1.6 million workes. Stern, SEIU's president made the following announcement:
"Stern also announced SEIU would grow to 1.8 million members by the end of 2004."
"On Wednesday, SEIU nurses, janitors, public employees and others will discuss SEIU's commitment of 2,004 members working full-time in the battleground states in the presidential election, backed by more than 50,000 volunteers working in their own home states. At 11 am, Democratic candidate Sen. John Kerry will address SEIU delegates on issues important to working families."
2. "Really Laboring To Beat Bush "
AUTHOR: Bernstein, Aaron, Sager, Ira
SOURCE: Business Week
DATE: 7/12/2004
"The nation's largest union will shell out $65 million to campaign against the reelection of President George Bush. On June 23, the 1.6 million-member Service Employees International Union (SEIU) announced at its annual convention that $40 million will go to pay for 2,000 union members to work full-time as political organizers until November. Thousands of union members volunteer in every national political election -- the SEIU expects 50,000 members will do so by the fall"
"The union's anti-Bush war chest is a huge sum, given that the AFL-CIO will spend only $44 million."
3. "Union Members Get Out the Vote for Kerry Camp : Many take risks for Senator"
AUTHOR: Jessica E. Vascellaro
SOURCE: Boston Globe
DATE: 09/05/2004
"SEIU's "Heroes" campaign is by far the largest and most ambitious, involving more than 2,000 workers who promise to devote 1 million hours to helping Kerry, the Democratic presidential nominee, win the election."
"Compensating workers' salaries and setting up new offices cost SEIU $40 million and is being covered mostly by the union's political fund-raising. According to T. J. Michels, a spokeswoman for SEIU, a substantial portion of the $60 million the union has raised for political work is flowing into Pennsylvania, a state whose 21 electoral votes are among the most coveted."
4. "Can This Man Save Labor?; Andy Stern wants to radically retool the U.S. labor movement. But first he must win over some powerful union leaders"
AUTHOR: Aaron Burnstein
SOURCE: Business Week
DATE: September 13, 2004
"He's [Stern — SEIU's president} building separate political muscle, shelling out an astonishing $65 million to elect John Kerry and make the political atmosphere more receptive to a labor comeback."
"At the SEIU's 2000 convention, he persuaded delegates to set a specific recruitment spending target for all locals: 20% of their budgets, totaling $80 million. And he got them to come up with $50 million more for an organizing fund."
"Meanwhile, Stern funneled half of the international union's $100 million annual spending into membership growth. Overall, the SEIU and its locals devote some $180 million a year to expansion, says SEIU Executive Vice-President Tom Woodruff. That's nearly twice the AFL-CIO's entire annual budget. It has worked -- which is one reason even labor leaders Stern rubs the wrong way still pay him heed."
"While most unions are shedding members, the SEIU will hit 1.8 million by the end of the year, with only about 100,000 of the growth coming from mergers with smaller unions, says Woodruff."
"There's no official count, but unions enlist about 150,000 to 200,000 new members a year through card checks today, vs. just 70,000 through federal elections, according to the AFL-CIO."
5. "Business and politics do mix for workers who drive for votes"
AUTHOR: Alison Grant
SOURCE: (Cleveland) Plain Dealer Reporter
DATE: 09/28/2004
(Since the Plain Dealer is a small paper, here's some information on it's scope): The Plain Dealer is a daily newspaper that focuses on regional andstate issues. It also provides coverage of area industries, businesses,hospitals, education, culture, and politics. Extensive coverage is alsoavailable on the 27 Fortune 500 companies headquartered in Cleveland, such as:TRW Inc., BF Goodrich, American Greetings, Eaton Corp., GenCorp. and FiggieInternational.
"Labor is pouring hundreds of millions of dollars into capturing every possible vote that could turn the election in favor of Kerry. The AFL-CIO alone is spending $44 million to mobilize union households. Two big unions representing government workers and service employees are pitching in $113 million."