When Union Bosses Make Stuff Up, We Offer Facts

In a story by PA Independent, AFL-CIO head honcho Rick Bloomingdale attempts to deny the incredible job growth in right-to-work states like Texas.

Bloomingdale comments:

“Most likely, the employment figures from states that restrict workers’ rights are inflated with huge numbers of part-time, seasonal and undocumented workers,” said Richard Bloomingdale, president of the Pennsylvania AFL-CIO, an umbrella group for smaller labor unions.

He said the states that are more frequently right to work are generally less dependent on heavy industries, which makes their employment gains appear to be better than they actually are.

If only there were a way to track job growth by sector…oh yeah, Bureau of Labor Statistics reports on employment by sector.  And over the past 20 years, not only has Texas kicked Pennsylvania’s rear end on overall job growth, that growth transcends sectors.  The gap is most prevalent in construction, where Texas grew by 65 percent while Pennsylvania construction jobs declined by 4 percent.  And while both states saw manufacturing jobs decline, Texas’ manufacturing job losses were 14 percent, compared to a precipitous 41 percent drop in Pennsylvania manufacturing jobs.

And by the way, while PA’s construction workers earned a higher hourly wage in 2010, the average hourly wage is higher in Texas for both manufacturing jobs and for overall private employees.