When Unions are Strong, Americans Enjoy the Fruits of Their Labor

This is a must-read piece for anyone concerned about the decline of the middle class, on the role that unions have played in America, pointing out that all workers enjoy the benefits that were wrought over decades of struggles on behalf of labor. These include weekends and the five-day workweek, the eight-hour day, rest breaks, decent wages and other civilized standards that affect us all. The story also brigs us to the current fight against public sector unions being waged by Tea Party enthusiasts in the GOP and offers a demographic showing which states currently outlaw collective bargaining in the country.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/david-morris/when-unions-are-strong-am_b_846802.html

"In the last generation, US unions have shrunk in size and influence, largely as a result of a withering attack by corporations and Republicans. And with that shrinking influence has come a corresponding decrease in the standard of living of most Americans. Indeed, as we shall see, the correlation between the strength of unions and the strength of the middle class is so empirically strong it might well be considered causal."