Today's News & Commentary — November 6
The Wall Street Journal calls Tuesday’s election results a “blow to organized labor.” Republican governors held on to their seats in Wisconsin, Michigan, Ohio, Florida, and Maine despite targeting by the AFL-CIO for pushing anti-union measures. Politico analyzed Scott Walker’s reelection in Wisconsin, pointing to the governor’s financial resources and labor’s continued decline. Richard Trumka, president of the AFL-CIO remained optimistic due to voter support for an economic agenda friendly to workers, like minimum wage increases and paid sick time. The AFL-CIO also released polling data that demonstrated voter support for left-leaning economic policies.
Despite spending unprecedented sums in the midterm elections, candidates supported by teachers’ unions lost in eight states on Tuesday. Union backed candidates won in Pennsylvania and California. Time reports that education reformers are claiming victory, attributing Republican gains to voter repudiation of the education establishment. Randi Weingarten, president of the American Federation of Teachers, said that the election results only reflect voters’ feelings about President Obama.
The service industry in the U.S. continues to grow, but the pace of that growth slowed in September and October, the New York Times reports. Private payrolls continued to increase last month.
In an effort to assimilate the Uighurs, an ethnic minority in China, the Chinese government has implemented a labor export program. The New York Times reports that the government is hoping to quell ethnic unrest and resistance to Beijing in the Xinjiang the region where the Uighurs live. More than 1,000 workers have moved from Xinjiang to Guangdong, a province dominated by the Han, the ethnic majority. Guangdong companies that hire Uighurs will receive a subsidy from the provincial government.
