Thursday, March 25, 1999
Union leaders like Taft's remarks on law, labor role
BY MICHAEL HAWTHORNE
Enquirer Columbus Bureau
COLUMBUS — Four months after unions spent thousands of dollars trying to elect a Democrat as Ohio's governor, labor leaders greeted Republican Gov. Bob Taft on Wednesday with a standing ovation.
A beaming Mr. Taft gave them something to cheer about.
In a label-busting speech that sounded more like Democrat Lee Fisher than a Republican largely backed by business interests, Mr. Taft pledged to oppose anti-labor legislation proposed by some GOP lawmakers. He also praised organized labor's efforts to increase wages and improve working conditions.
“I want to assure you that I will not support an effort to dismantle the union tradition that has built the industrial foundation of this state,” Mr. Taft told 500 union members at the Ohio AFL-CIO's annual legislative conference.
"Debt of gratitude'
“The fact is, everyone who works in Ohio today owes the labor movement a great debt of gratitude for improving wages, working conditions, benefits and workplace safety,” Mr. Taft said.
While Mr. Taft refused to be more specific afterward, his aides said the new governor strongly opposes “right-to-work” legislation sponsored by Rep. Ron Hood, R-Canfield. The bill would prohibit labor contracts that establish union membership as a condition of employment.
Further issues
Labor leaders said Mr. Taft has been more vague on other GOP-backed measures they oppose, such as one repealing union-negotiated prevailing wages for construction projects. But they welcomed his visit, noting it was the first time a Republican governor has spoken at the federation's annual meeting.
“We'll have to see if Governor Taft is a man of his word,” said William Burga, federation president. “He has to prove himself to our people, but I think we have a good start.”
Opposing the right-to-work bill is a safe bet for Mr. Taft. House Speaker Jo Ann Davidson, R-Reynoldsburg, told reporters there isn't enough support for Mr. Hood's measure among rank-and-file legislators.
The governor's position also reflects a lesson in practical politics.
In 1958, Republican officials joined with business leaders to support a right-to-work ballot issue. With organized labor supplying the foot soldiers, Democrats fought the initiative and won their biggest gains in 20 years, handing then-Republican Gov. C. William O'Neill the only defeat of his 40-year political career.
“The very first election I worked on as a poll worker was 1958,” Ms. Davidson said. “People remember that pretty well and remember the impact pretty well.”
Placed in the context of more recent history, though, Mr. Taft's appearance before the AFL-CIO was even more striking.
Inroads by opposition
Since 1994, the GOP-controlled General Assembly has delivered legislation eliminating union-negotiated prevailing wages on school construction projects and gave for mer Republican Gov. George Voinovich control of the Ohio Bureau of Workers Compensation, a state agency overseeing benefits to injured workers.
Business groups also won long-sought changes in workers' compensation benefits, but the law was overturned by voters in a union-organized initiative campaign.
For most Republican leaders, organized labor is the enemy, the chief source of campaign cash that fuels Democratic campaigns. Mr. Taft's speech won't change that attitude — on either side.
When angry union members packed the Senate gallery during a debate on the prevailing wage bill two years ago, Senate President Richard Finan pounded his gavel so forcefully that it splintered.
Election foes
“It's something that's hard to forget,” said the Evendale Republican, who was invited to Wednesday's labor conference but declined, citing scheduling conflicts. “They'll probably target my members again in the next election.”
Mr. Taft apparently felt the same way last year. In a July 29 fund-raising letter, he accused his Democratic opponent, Mr. Fisher, of “unethical fund-raising efforts” that permitted “big labor bosses to contribute unlimited funds — millions of dollars — to elect someone to do his bidding as governor.”
“Clearly these people have buried the hatchet,” Scott Milburn, Mr. Taft's spokesman, said when asked to explain what has changed since then. “There's a time to campaign and a time to govern.”
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