Picket Line

Poll: Most Americans Side With Unions

In battles over removing collective-bargaining rights.

By almost a two to one margin, a majority of Americans said they support unions’ right to collective bargaining, according to a New York Times/CBS News poll released Monday. A majority of respondents also said they were against cutting the pay or benefits of public workers to reduce state budget deficits. The poll results come amid high-profile battles with unions in several states, with the biggest focus being on Wisconsin, where Gov. Scott Walker has proposed cutting state workers’ pensions and removing collective-bargaining rights. While a slim majority of Republicans favored taking away some bargaining rights, they were largely outnumbered by Democrats and independents. But respondents also remained skeptical of unions, with a third of those surveyed viewing unions favorably, a quarter viewing them unfavorably, and the rest saying they were undecided.