The distinct fates of public and private sector labor are most evident in one of the strongest union states in the nation: New York. In the private sector, according to a labor-backed CUNY Murphy Institute report, New York City lost 95,000 union jobs during the recession. In public sector, however, labor's ranks have held steady--albeit with a new pension scheme (Tier VI) for new workers. The reason: firms that struggled the most during the recession had high labor costs and the new jobs created during the recovery have been in services where unions have made few inroads. As I've noted on the blog before, there are very few ideas out there for how to revive private sector unions. Consequently, barring Wisconsin-type outcomes, public sector unions will occupy a larger and larger share of the labor movement.
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phone (212) 599-7000 / fax (212) 599-3494
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