Merger stays true to our principles

ROBERT E. WAGES, PRESIDENT

A LARGE PORTION of this month's Reporter is devoted to the proposed merger of the Oil, Chemical and Atomic Workers International Union with the United Paperworkers International Union (UPIU). The Executive Boards of both Unions have approved the proposed merger, and we are proceeding with finalization of the merger by calling for a Special Convention in order to secure membership approval.

To put this in historical perspective, it is important to remember that OCAW has, for years, been committed to the idea of merging with other Unions. In fact, the Union has come very close to doing so with the Rubber Workers, the Chemical Workers, and the United Mineworkers. Indeed, we even approved the 1985 merger with the Paperworkers, only to have their Convention reject it.

Over time, we have seen most, if not all, of our colleagues in smaller industrial unions be absorbed by other larger unions on terms that take care of the leadership, but ignore the needs of the membership. The trend for consolidation among unions in the United States is continuing, and perhaps that is not such a bad thing. In OCAW, we have pursued the merger within the context of attempting to make the result a better organization than the sum of its previous parts.We believe we have accomplished this task.

Let's be clear -- size and resources matter -- in organizing, bargaining, taking on recalcitrant employers with corporate campaigns and in broadening our scope of influence in an increasingly globalized world. The key is whether these objectives can be accomplished within the parameters of a merger that maintains faith to the important principles we believe in.

When the merger discussions started with the UPIU,President Boyd Young and I committed to a basic premise: We were not interested in merging for the sake of being larger; we were interested in creating a new, more powerful and progressive Union prepared to do the work our membership expects.

For our part, we articulated four basic principles: First, we would maintain our commitment to rank-and-file participation; second, we would adequately finance the organization on a per capita structure similar to our own; third, we would remain committed to a stand-alone organizing structure; and finally, we would keep faith to our belief in independent political expression. I respectfully suggest we have done all of these things.

The merger documents will speak for themselves on all of these issues. It is our belief, both President Young and myself, that our work has produced a new Union that will have the capacity to be a powerful representative for the membership.

We bring to the table an organization with a history of activism and expertise which will supplement the work of the UPIU. We also provide new resources for the UPIU in the area of legislative and political work, safety and health, coordinated bargaining in the chemical sector and the oil industry, and an organizing structure which is in place and ready to contribute.

The UPIU is excited about the expanded role of the rank and file through Regional Councils and a Rank-and-File Advisory Board to assist in policy development. We are excited about an expanded Organizing Fund that is Constitutionally separated from other funds, as we currently maintain in OCAW. We are both enthusiastic about the future that this new organization promises. But, in the final analysis, this will be what we make of it. We have to be dedicated to not just making it work, but making it succeed.

As we have worked through the tough issues which face two different organizations trying to become one, a deep respect between the leadership of these two unions has emerged. The discussions were never so much about negotiations as much as they were about trying to figure out how to make things work better. The UPIU, though three times our size, never once played the game of size dictating results. This was, without question, a discussion based on principles and trying to make sure that whatever we did was durable and sustaining.

The merging of our union with another is obviously important. We should not, however, lose sight of the many other tasks that face us. We chose quite some time ago to play an important role in the development of independent political expression in this country.

The fruit of that labor is in the emerging growth of the Labor Party as it observes its first Constitutional Convention, November 13-15, 1998 in Pittsburgh, Pa. OCAW will once again have a major presence as members of the Labor Party meet to consider the future and how we choose to confront the issues that are important to working men and women. We urge your participation in this effort.

As the political season unfolds, we should also be mindful of the issues that draw us together. Some of these issues are highlighted elsewhere in the Reporter, but I should mention a few as you go through the process of making choices in November's mid-term elections.

"Zippergate" should not divert your attention to going to the polls and supporting candidates who stand with workers. Please carefully examine where the contestants stand on the future of Social Security; universal health care; exporting your jobs through free trade agreements; exporting your jobs through international agreements protecting investment bankers and corporations; tax cuts for the rich at the expense of education for our children.

Please do not let the stupid indiscretions of one very self-centered national leader dampen our resolve to uphold very important programs and initiatives which protect the most vulnerable among us.

We should be clear that we will oppose efforts to privatize Social Security. I know many of you who are younger have been courted to the belief that when you are ready to retire, you will not have a system that is capable of sustaining benefits. I can only implore you to set aside the hoopla for the facts: If we prevent use of the trust fund surplus for a tax cut for the rich, then more than likely, the trust fund will be in fine shape for several decades down the road.

We should be equally clear in our belief that health care ought not to be just for the most fortunate among us, but for every citizen.

Finally, we have to be steadfast in our opposition to international agreements which place our futures in the hands of unnamed international bureaucrats more interested in multi-national investment than in protecting the jobs and economic future of workers in this country.

Our future is inevitably tied to our willingness to learn from our past, but not be tied to it. Whether it is a merger or new politics, our hallmark has been our ability to make things happen when we believe strongly enough that change must occur. The trick is, as it has always been, to keep faith in your basic principles in the face of change.

September-October 1998 OCAW Reporter