Sweeney says he expects labor rift to heal

Wednesday, Aug. 31, 2005 | 9:38 a.m.

WASHINGTON -- AFL-CIO President John Sweeney said Tuesday that the defection of three major unions has weakened organized labor but that he believes eventually they will return to the fold.

"I think that we will see a united labor movement again," Sweeney told reporters at a news conference where he provided an update on the state of unions heading into Labor Day. "How long it takes remains to be seen. Individual unions may come back sooner rather than later."

The federation president said the split that saw three of the federation's biggest unions -- the Teamsters, Service Employees International Union and the United Food and Commercial Workers -- break away from the AFL-CIO about a month ago was "a real tragedy for working people."

"For decades, one of the tactics management has used against workers is divide and conquer," Sweeney said. "When workers unite they're stronger. The same goes for unions."

The unions broke away from the AFL-CIO because of complaints that the labor federation was spending too much money on political campaigns, and that it did not have an effective strategy for reversing years of declines in union membership.