John M. | Red Phoenix correspondent | Colorado–

On May 16, 2025, Colorado Governor Jared Polis dealt a devastating blow to the state’s labor movement, and, in the same stroke, a blow to the illusion of the bourgeois union’s militancy or effectiveness, by vetoing Senate Bill 5 (SB-5), the Worker Protection Act. The bill aimed to eliminate a restrictive provision in the 1943 Colorado Labor Peace Act, which requires workers who vote to unionize by a simple majority to then win a second election with a 75% approval threshold to negotiate union security agreements. This unique requirement, not found in any other state, creates a formidable barrier to effective union organizing, limiting workers’ ability to fund representation that advocates for better wages, safety, and dignity. Polis’s veto, siding with the capitalist class, exposes the harsh reality: at the end of the day, Democrats with their grandstanding, peddling empty pro-worker promises and union leaders’ lack of spine by aligning labor’s demands with corporate interests, keep workers tied to business power, leaving the working class to bear the cost of exploitation.

Polis’s veto reveals a Democratic Party unwilling to stand firm for workers. The Governor defended the Labor Peace Act as a source of “peace and stability” for employers and unions, but that “stability” keeps the capitalist class in control. By upholding the 75% rule, Polis ensures businesses face less pressure from unions, leaving workers stuck with low wages, unsafe conditions, and weak bargaining power. The Denver Metro Chamber of Commerce, a mouthpiece for big business, praised the veto, showing who benefits when workers’ rights are blocked. This choice hits working individuals hardest, as they struggle to pay bills while employers pocket profits.

This is not the first time the Governor has turned his back on Colorado’s workers after making bare-minimum promises to them. In 2024, he vetoed three union-priority bills, including measures to address wage theft and protect workers from coercive employer meetings. These actions sparked a rally outside the Capitol, attended by an array of Democratic leaders blowing hot air. “The Democratic Party is currently in a fight for its soul,” said state House candidate Bryan Lindstrom at the time, “a fight between those champions fighting for the working class and those who sell out to corporate interests.” Once again, their words rang hollow; these same Democrats failed to override Polis’s vetoes or muster any real fight for labor. Their public posturing is all an illusion to win votes while their inaction leaves workers with low pay, unsafe jobs, and no leverage. The Democratic Party’s support for SB-5 was a mirage, a show of solidarity that crumbled when Polis, their leader, prioritized corporate power over workers’ lives.

The opportunist Union leaders, instead of fighting for the working class’s independent power, align labor’s demands with capitalist interests, chasing concessions that keep workers tethered to corporate control. For instance, unions such as UFCW Local 7, SEIU Local 105, and Colorado AFL-CIO, endorsed Polis in 2018, expecting he would deliver pro-labor policies, only to see him repeatedly veto bills that would strengthen workers’ rights. Rather than pushing for bold changes, like comprehensive bargaining rights across industries or ironclad protections against corporate union-busting, these leaders often settle for small reforms, such as tweaking outdated labor laws or securing limited training funds that don’t threaten employers’ dominance. This strategy, rooted in compromise with the capitalist class, weakens labor’s ability to challenge a system that puts profits over people. By binding workers’ hopes to what bosses are willing to concede, these leaders leave the working class stuck in a cycle of fighting for scraps while employers hold the real power. This approach fails to build the kind of united, independent labor movement needed to shift the balance toward workers.

These sycophant union leaders, led by Dennis Dougherty, from Colorado AFL-CIO, are looking towards next year, and are claiming to rally behind Initiative 43. A proposed measure that would make Colorado the second “just-cause employment” state in the U.S., prohibiting companies with more than eight employees from firing workers without valid reasons, such as substandard performance or gross insubordination “Colorado workers should expect common-sense workplace protections that prevent them from being unfairly fired,” Dougherty declared. Even this effort, born of necessity, is a grim reminder of the uphill battle workers face when their leaders fail them. They set their sights on minimum reforms, which, like the previous bills, the democrats will shoot down at the last moment. Instead of directing the militancy of rank-and-file workers to force Polis to reverse his veto, Dougherty has shifted to a so-called “common-sense” reform for 2026. This is all designed to harness workers’ rage, tame their resolve, and lead them into dead-end pursuits. 

The Democrats’ hypocrisy and the fecklessness of opportunist union leaders expose a brutal reality: labor cannot free itself while tied to capital, whether through Democrats or their union lackeys. The Democratic Party’s empty promises, vowing to lift workers while delivering vetoes prove they’re nothing but managers of corporate interests, stringing labor along with lies. Privileged union bosses, profiting from their cushy roles, keep workers chained to employers’ whims, too spineless to challenge the system that exploits them. True freedom for the working class demands that labor seize the reins of its own power. This means forging independent, worker-led organizations that spit in the face of capitalist compromise, fighting for worker-controlled workplaces, industry-wide bargaining, or laws that bury union-busting. Only when workers take charge, free from the clutches of capitalist-aligned parties and the labor aristocracy, can they win the wages, safety, and dignity they have been denied.

Categories: Labor, U.S. News