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Economic downturn quiets labor unions
Labor peace has broken out across the country, and all it took was the nastiest recession since the end of World War II to spawn it.
Bureau of Labor Statistics numbers show major work stoppages–defined as those when 1,000 workers or more go on strike or are locked out–dropped 95 percent this year compared with last year and are at their lowest level since the government began keeping a tally in the 1940s.
"It is the economy. Right now, people are just desperately holding onto their jobs," said Charles B. Craver, a labor law professor at George Washington University.
Labor unions have been in decline for decades as a percentage of the work force and have been losing power over that time, but they had hoped an Obama presidency could help them recover lost ground. For now, though, it appears that test will have to wait until after the economy rebounds and employers and employees are ready to start sparring again.
"I think you can say that everybody's anxious to keep labor peace right now with the economy being where it is and employment where it is," said Gordon Pavy, the AFL-CIO's director of collective bargaining.