Waking Up Is Hard To Do Part II

WASHINGTON (AP) - Divided and desperate, union leaders are looking everywhere - from Ivy League classrooms to the "megachurch" pulpits of far-flung suburbia - for ways to reverse a 50-year decline in membership that is tilting the balance of power in politics.

Labor's woes are a threat to the Democratic Party, because unions may be the single-greatest organizing tool on the left side of the political spectrum. "If we can't reverse course, the future is very, very bleak," said Harold Ickes, an influential Democrat and labor ally.

Organized labor is at a tipping point, buffeted by economic, political and social shifts that make it harder to recruit new members. Under the leadership of John Sweeney, the AFL-CIO has maintained its political might despite the nosedive in membership, but few union or party leaders believe that organized labor can cling to relevancy unless it changes with the times.

The question is how to adapt. The AFL-CIO, a federation of 57 unions formed at the peak of labor's powers 50 years ago, is in danger of breaking apart in a dispute over strategies.
The federation's largest partner, 1.8 million-member Service Employees International Union, is threatening to bolt unless the AFL-CIO commits to a dramatic reorganization. The SEIU wants the AFL-CIO to cut its budget by more than 50 percent and use the savings to increasing organizing by its member unions.