Working people have faced unprecedented attacks in the last decade. In many places throughout the country, we are fighting for the survival of our ability to bargain and vote. But these struggles are not isolated—they are part of an overall movement in our country to concentrate money and political power in the hands of big corporations.
Common Sense Economics can help our members, their families and our allies put these struggles in context—by understanding the economy is not set in stone, but is a dynamic process where winners and losers are determined by who commands and uses power most effectively. It can also be a great issue to engage members with and get them working together on since it impacts all of us.
What is Common Sense Economics?
Common Sense Economics (CSE) is a flexible organizing tool put together by the AFL-CIO and built in the shape of a curriculum for mass education. CSE is intended to be shared, modified and flexible. It’s designed for all workers (union or nonunion) to understand why this economy is not working for working people and that the economy is not inevitable, but is shaped by policy. The tool’s main goal is to immediately connect people to action and put workers in the driver’s seat to start changing the direction of this economy.
For More Information
For more information about the AFL-CIO’s Common Sense Economics program, contact:
Northeast Region: Jan Schaffer
Midwest Region: Jim Lowe
Southern Region: Lorenzo Scott
Western Region: Randy Parraz
General inquiries: CSE@aflcio.org
Minimum Wage
Check out this short video produced by the UC Berkeley Center for Labor Research and Education. It provides a good overview of some of the main arguments for raising the minimum wage.