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Why does union membership keep declining?

It hardly qualifies as news anymore, but according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, union membership declined from 2023 to 2024, going from 10% to 9.9% of wage and salary workers. Some 32% of public employees are union members compared to only 5.9% of private-sector workers, down from 6% in 2023. This means 49% of all union members work for the government and, even more striking, 32% belong to the two national teachers unions. As National Review’s Dominic Pino pointed out, national media is chock full of hopeful stories about union organizing drives and strikes — he cited 214 in ...

Who is safe now?

In a couple of months, I am planning a business trip to Europe. I don’t scare easy, but despite the fact that I’m an American citizen and have committed no crime, I am worried about what might happen when I attempt to come home. Will Customs and Border Patrol agents pull me from the customs line as they did to Amir Makled? He’s an American citizen, too, a lawyer born and raised in Detroit who was returning from a vacation in the Dominican Republic. But he happens to represent a pro-Palestinian student protester. CBP detained Makled and demanded access to his phone. CBP can demand ...

Spring in the air in Barbour

Hello from Barbour County! Spring is in the air, and hopefully that means that the snow is behind us. It’s hard to believe that the next time I write to you, it will be May! Easter weekend is here, and that means egg hunts and sunrise services. To start the weekend off, there will be an Easter Egg Hunt at Belington Elementary School beginning at 10 a.m. This is sponsored by the Junior Lions Club. After that, there will be an Egg Hunt beginning at noon at Camp Popeye, off Route 250, just outside of Belington on Saturday, April 19. Stop by for some fun, and while you are there, ...

Shuttle diplomacy

Not seen since the days of Richard Nixon and Henry Kissinger, the age of phrenetic shuttle diplomacy has returned with Donald Trump and Steve Witkoff. Witkoff, the President’s Chief negotiator, is shuttling to the Middle East, where he handles Iranian and Hamas discussions, and to Moscow for talks on Ukraine. Like Kissinger in 1970-72, he is considered the administration’s top point man for foreign policy. Indeed, he has outstripped Marco Rubio in having Trump’s confidence. And Witkoff has gone Kissinger one better. While Kissinger still held the National Security Council Advisor ...

Don’t underestimate value of recognition

“I receive recognition for performance” is a common question on employee engagement surveys. In building a culture of trust, it is a top-five item. This is an area I have spent a large amount of time thinking about, writing about, and presenting on. In college, I was introduced to the work of Marc Gold. During the late 1960s, he formulated a way to help people with significant disabilities learn complex tasks. He called it “Try Another Way.” It takes complex tasks and breaks them into sequential steps with positive recognition.  Throughout my career, Marc Gold’s method ...

Secret ingredient

At Davis & Elkins College, student success is not just a goal—it is the heart of everything we do. Often, the secret ingredient to that success is not found in a textbook or even a classroom, but in the unexpected magic of community. Whether it is leading a student club, singing harmonies in the choir, or competing on the ballfield, connection fuels growth. Greek life is another significant means to relationships and connections. Fraternities and sororities can be icing on the collegiate cake—brotherhood, sisterhood, and memories to last a lifetime. As the saying goes, ...