Unions Aren't Dead Yet

This column was written by CBS News Early Show co-anchor Harry Smith.

It's interesting that in a country that acts more and more like it doesn't want unions, that we still celebrate a day off whose origin comes from the labor movement.

In the early '80s, the percentage of Americans who belonged to unions was about 1 in 5 — it's now about 1 in 10.

I wonder if there's a connection between those numbers and the new numbers just out from Pew Research Center.

The nonpartisan Pew folks have found most Americans had less job security and faced more on the job stress than 20 or 30 years ago. The Pew survey also said that 59 percent of Americans feel they have to work harder to make a decent living.

The unions sure look like dinosaurs when you think about the auto makers — the layoffs and the pension burdens. But I have to believe there are plenty of people who could benefit from a little collective bargaining. Stuff like a living wage and affordable health care. Maybe the unions aren't dead yet.

By Harry Smith