Bishops and unions

Catholic News Service reports:

Amid ongoing battles between Republican governors and organized labor in Midwestern states, U.S. Catholic bishops have echoed the long-standing church tradition of workers' rights. But they have also noted that there are no easy-fix solutions in today's battered economy. They have urged workers and government officials to work for the common good and called on the members of public employee unions to make sacrifices. The bishops' words haven't gone unnoticed. Just as this debate has stirred passions across the country, people have criticized the U.S. bishops for either being too supportive of unions or not supportive enough. Catholics on both sides of the issue also have weighed in on what's best for workers and the country as a whole. "Hard times do not nullify the moral obligation each of us has to respect the legitimate rights of workers," Milwaukee Archbishop Jerome E. Listecki said in mid-February, during angry protests in Wisconsin over the Gov. Scott Walker's proposal to curb public employees' collective bargaining power for benefits and increase the premiums they pay for health care and their pension contributions.

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