Is Pittsburgh a Blueprint for Other Union-Dominated Blue Cities?
Commentary
In 2021, Edward Gainey was elected mayor of Pittsburgh. His campaign was funded in part by SEIU Healthcare Pennsylvania, which made a generous $350,000 donation—more than all other contributors combined.
SEIU Healthcare PA knew what it was paying for when it made this investment—a strong bargaining chip to force the city’s largest employer, University of Pittsburgh Medical Center (UPMC), to unionize its employees. SEIU Healthcare has had its sights set on UPMC employees for more than a decade but has so far been unable to close the deal with its prospective members.
Thanks to the union’s generous investment in Mayor Gainey’s campaign, however, its luck at UPMC may change, bringing in thousands of new dues-payers to line the union leaders’ coffers….