商业周刊:工会组织力量虚弱, 雇员自发组织罢工(5)

Unions continue to make the case for their relevance—and have been reinvigorated by all the nontraditional labor¹ activism.

工会继续为自身争取权益，并经由所有非传统劳工活跃主义者的助力而重振活力。

At least 18 states raised the minimum wage, a victory for the union-backed "Fight for $15."

至少有18个州提高了最低工资，这是由工会支持的“为15美元而战”活动取得的胜利。

Similarly, after popular upswells, at least three more states and three more cities added paid sick time laws—reforms usually advocated by unions.

在这些喜得民心的胜利之后，至少还有三个州和三个城市也增加了带薪病假法案，此举通常是由工会倡导的改革措施。

There are still advantages to being in a union. Among recently dismissed journalists, the unionized ones at HuffPost, per their collective bargaining agreement,

参加工会仍然是有优势的。据报道，在最近遭解雇的记者中，《赫芬顿邮报》那些加入工会的记者，根据签订的劳资协定，

were reportedly entitled to at least two months of severance² pay, while those at BuzzFeed—who have no union—had to take to Twitter to persuade the company to pay out accrued³ vacation time.

有权获得至少两个月的遣散费，而在新闻聚合网站BuzzFeed的记者，因为没有工会组织，不得不在Twitter上说服公司按照应计的休假时间赔款。

"Everyone's seen the value, in weeks like these," says Carolina Moreno, a HuffPost health enterprise reporter, whose job was eliminated.

《赫芬顿邮报》健康产业记者卡罗莱纳?莫雷诺在这次事件中遭解雇，她说：“几周内，每个人都看到了工会的价值。

"Sometimes the bottom line wins and people lose—it's a possibility, and you have to prepare for it. Unionizing is one of the solutions to that dynamic."

有时在关键问题上获胜了，但涉及其中的人却输了，有这种可能性，你要有心理准备。加入工会是解决这种问题的一种途径。”

Almost 15 million Americans still pay dues. Increasingly, some of that funds alternative, nonunion groups.

将近1500万美国人仍在缴纳工会会费，其中一些资金越来越多地用来为非工会群体提供资金。

The National Education Association is a broad supporter of Red for Ed, a loose campaign of teachers;

Red for Ed 是一个由教师发起的非组织性的活动联盟，国家教育协会在很多方面对其予以支持；

on a local level, the California Federation⁴ of Teachers funds the Alliance of Californians for Community Empowerment, an advocacy group for low-income communities of color.

在地方层面，加州社区赋权联盟是一个关注低收入有色人种社区的倡议组织，加州教师联合会为该组织提供资金。

Before Los Angeles teachers went on strike in January, ACCE members and other groups helped shape demands that went beyond wages to include smaller class sizes and more social services.

在洛杉矶教师一月份举行罢工之前，加州社区赋权联盟的成员和其他团体帮助界定各方面需求，其中不仅包括对工资的要求，还包括小班授课和更多的社会服务。

"We're not constrained⁵ by some of the legal constraints⁶ that unions are bound by, nor by the politics or protocols," says Amy Schur, the ACCE campaign director.

加州社区赋权联盟项目主任艾米?舒尔说：“工会会受到一些法律约束，我们则没有这些法律方面的约束，同时也不受政治或协议约束。

"We're on the outside—we don't have a contractual relationship or even a formal one with the school board, and that broadens out the range of tactics."

“我们游离于体系之外，与学校董事会不存在合同关系，甚至都没有正式关联，这扩大了我们可以采取的策略范围。”

So, for example, after the teachers walked out, ACCE members not only joined them in demonstrations⁷ but then showed up at the school board president's house in the pouring rain to stage a loud protest.

比如在教师发起示威游行后，我们联盟的成员不仅加入到他们的游行之列，而且还在倾盆大雨中出现在学校董事会主席的家里，举行一场声势浩大的抗议活动。

"I don't know that the union was ready to escalate⁸ like that," Schur says. "But we were."

舒尔表示：“我不知道工会是否准备好采取更激进的手段，但我们会这样做。”

1 labor   

n.劳动，努力，工作，劳工；分娩；vi.劳动，努力，苦干；vt.详细分析；麻烦

参考例句：

• We are never late in satisfying him for his labor.我们从不延误付给他劳动报酬。
• He was completely spent after two weeks of hard labor.艰苦劳动两周后，他已经疲惫不堪了。

2 severance   

n.离职金；切断

参考例句：

• Those laid off received their regular checks,plus vacation and severance pay.那些被裁的人都收到他们应得的薪金，再加上假期和解职的酬金。Kirchofer was terminated,effective immediately--without severance or warning.科奇弗被解雇了，立刻生效--而且没有辞退费或者警告。

3 accrued   

adj.权责已发生的v.增加( accrue的过去式和过去分词 )；（通过自然增长）产生；获得；（使钱款、债务）积累

参考例句：

• The company had accrued debts of over 1000 yuan. 该公司已积欠了1000多万元的债务。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• I have accrued a set of commemoration stamps. 我已收集一套纪念邮票。 来自《简明英汉词典》

4 federation   

n.同盟，联邦，联合，联盟，联合会

参考例句：

• It is a federation of 10 regional unions.它是由十个地方工会结合成的联合会。
• Mr.Putin was inaugurated as the President of the Russian Federation.普京正式就任俄罗斯联邦总统。

5 constrained   

adj.束缚的,节制的

参考例句：

• The evidence was so compelling that he felt constrained to accept it. 证据是那样的令人折服，他觉得不得不接受。
• I feel constrained to write and ask for your forgiveness. 我不得不写信请你原谅。

6 constraints   

强制( constraint的名词复数 )； 限制； 约束

参考例句：

• Data and constraints can easily be changed to test theories. 信息库中的数据和限制条件可以轻易地改变以检验假设。 来自英汉非文学 - 科学史
• What are the constraints that each of these imply for any design? 这每种产品的要求和约束对于设计意味着什么？ 来自About Face 3交互设计精髓

7 demonstrations   

证明( demonstration的名词复数 )； 表明； 表达； 游行示威

参考例句：

• Lectures will be interspersed with practical demonstrations. 讲课中将不时插入实际示范。
• The new military government has banned strikes and demonstrations. 新的军人政府禁止罢工和示威活动。

8 escalate   

v.(使)逐步增长(或发展)，(使)逐步升级

参考例句：

• It would tempt Israel's neighbors to escalate their demands.它将诱使以色列的邻国不断把他们的要求升级。
• Defeat could cause one side or other to escalate the conflict.失败可能会导致其中一方将冲突升级。