Mix: Indiana Rejects Forced Unionism

On February 5, 2012, By NRTW Committee Staff

Writing for the Investor’s Business Daily, National Right to Work President Mark Mix summarizes what our victory in Indiana really means:

For the past two weeks, Big Labor bosses around the country have had their eyes on the Indiana capitol — watching in horror as the General Assembly passed a right-to-work bill with commanding majorities.

The passage of Indiana’s right-to-work law is an extraordinarily bitter defeat for the union brass. Less than a year ago, despite the fact that Hoosiers had elected substantial pro-right-to-work majorities to both chambers in 2010, union strategists remained confident they could preserve the forced-unionism status quo.

Last year, union bigwigs convinced the entire Democratic caucus of the Indiana House of Representatives to flee the state for five weeks in order to deny the body a quorum it needed to bring up and pass right-to-work legislation. Big Labor clearly believed whatever it lacked in legislative numbers it could make up for in zeal.

But polls showed Hoosiers overwhelmingly disapproved of the “fleabagger” tactic, and right-to-work supporters kept turning up the pressure on Republican Gov. Mitch Daniels and GOP legislative leaders to fight back against Big Labor.

Thanks to legislation passed after last year’s walkout, House members failing to show up to do their jobs when the General Assembly is in session may be hit with $1,000-a-day fines.

In the opening weeks of the 2012 session, House Democrats went public about their reluctance to jump over a cliff again for the union hierarchy. Finally, on Jan. 24, House Minority Leader Pat Bauer announced an end to his caucus’ boycott of the bill. It passed the next day.

Ever since, the caterwauling by Big Labor and its allies has resounded across the state. But what’s so bad about a law that merely says an individual shouldn’t be forced at the workplace to support financially an organization that he or she doesn’t believe acts in his or her interests?

Rather than address this question, union propagandists skirt it. Union officials never act contrary to the interests of any employee, they implicitly argue. Any employee who says otherwise they brand as a hypocritical “freeloader”! (more…)

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Posted in: Economic Development in RTW States, Economic Impact of Unionization, Economics, Forced Dues, Forced-Dues for Politics, Government Grants to Unions, Indiana, Intimidation Tactics, Legislation, Right to Work, Right To Work States, State Right To Work
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Big Labor Hits Road Block in Wisconsin

On February 5, 2012, By NRTW Committee Staff

As Big Labor seeks to recall Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker, they are running into a big road block that is hindering their efforts — Walker’s reforms are working saving taxpayers millions of dollars.

City Journal looks at the success of the Walker reforms that should be a model for other states looking to balance their budgets:  ”The truth, however, is that the reforms not only are saving money already; they’re doing so with little disruption to services. In early August, noticing the trend, the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel reported that Milwaukee would save more in health-care and pension costs than it would lose in state aid, leaving the city $11 million ahead in 2012—despite Mayor Tom Barrett’s prediction in March that Walker’s budget ‘makes our structural deficit explode.’”

That is just one example.  Well worth the read.

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Posted in: Forced-Dues for Politics, Government Grants to Unions, Intimidation Tactics, Political Activity, Public Employees, Teacher Unions, Wisconsin
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WSJ: Obama’s NLRB Appointees Constitutionality Challenged

On February 5, 2012, By NRTW Committee Staff

The National Right to Work has filed suit against the unconstitutional appointment by President Obama of members of National Labor Relations Board but that is not the only suit pending.

The Wall Street Journal reports, “the legality of the appointments is being challenged in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York, where lawyers for the housing complex owner are challenging an injunction sought by the NLRB to end a lockout of members of the Service Employees International Union following a pay dispute. NLRB Acting General Counsel Lafe Solomon filed for the injunction last week, after the current board members authorized him to do so….The first legal challenge to Mr. Obama’s recess appointments came last month, when three groups—the National Federation of Independent Businesses, the National Right to Work Foundation and the Coalition for a Democratic Workplace—asked a judge to rule on whether the appointments to the NLRB violate the U.S. Constitution.”

President Obama violated the constitution precedent when he made “recess” appointments to the NLRB while Congress was in session.  It is imperative that the courts stand up to this power grab and we are working to ensure that happens.

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Posted in: Economics, Forced-Dues for Politics, NLRB, Obama Administration, Personnel Alert, Political Activity
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Wisconsin Big Labor Fraud

On February 3, 2012, By NRTW Committee Staff

Union-label Milwaukee Mayor Tom Barrett (left) is a bitter political foe of Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker’s. Nevertheless, Mr. Barrett admits the governor’s Big Labor-detested Act 10 has helped his city get control over its budget. Credit: AP

Big Labor militants, who submitted 1 million names demanding a recall of Gov. Scott Walker, included the name of a person four times. The man, according to Media Trackers, says he never signed the petition.

Wisconsin watchdog Citizens for Responsible Government in Racine  reported that Racine native Jeff Demet’s name was found four times on the petition to recall Republican State Senator Van Wanggaard. Finding the same signature four times is bad enough, but when Demet was contacted about the four signatures, he claims he never signed the Wanggaard recall petition at all!

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Posted in: Economic Impact of Unionization, Economics, Government Grants to Unions, Intimidation Tactics, Legislation, Public Employees, Teacher Unions, Wisconsin
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Indiana Gov. Daniels: Right to Work Working Already

On February 3, 2012, By NRTW Committee Staff

In an interview with Politico, Indiana Gov. Mitch Daniels touted the benefits of the newly enacted Right to Work law saying his phones were “ringing off the hook with companies wanting to come to the state since he signed the measure.”

“Indiana has by every reckoning the 5th or 6th best business climate in the country, and now it gets a little better,” said Daniels on Fox News. “The phone began literally ringing yesterday afternoon with companies wanting to come to our state.”

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Posted in: Economic Development in RTW States, Economic Impact of Unionization, Economics, Indiana, Legislation, Right to Work, Right To Work States, State Right To Work
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TEACHERS UNION MANUAL INSTRUCTS HOW TO USE CHILDREN AS ‘PROPAGANDA’

On February 2, 2012, By NRTW Committee Staff

From The Blaze:

“For more than two years, the Michigan Education Association [MEA] has had a manual that urges its members to use students as propaganda in contract negotiations and also lays out how to organize strikes,” writes Tome Gantert of Michigan Capitol Confidential.

Considering the fact that teacher strikes are illegal in Michigan, some may find it odd that the MEA has been encouraging this sort of behavior. In fact, the MEA has done a lot more than just “encourage” potentially illegal activity. As Gantert reports, the organization produced an anonymously written 28-page manual titled, “Building Full Capacity Locals — Crisis Planning, It’s Never Too Early To Start!”

And of course, what union protest would be complete without the exploitation of children in the bargaining process?

“In terms of a bargaining message, the public responds most positively when we talk about children, quality in the classroom and the future,” the MEA manual states.

The manual even suggests one slogan that it claims has worked for other locals: “It’s not about dollars and cents; it’s about our children.”

Perhaps the most disturbing moment occurs when one section appears to quote almost verbatim Saul Alinsky’s “Rules For Radicals.”

Alinsky instructs his followers to “Pick the target, freeze it, personalize it, and polarize it.” Likewise, the MEA manual instructs teachers to “Pick a target—personalize—and polarize the opposition [pg. 17].” And those are just the verbatim quotes; the entire manual is a handbook for creating, managing, and profiting from crises.

 

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Posted in: Education, Forced-Dues for Politics, Government Grants to Unions, Intimidation Tactics, Michigan, Public Employee Monopoly Bargaining, Strike, Teacher Unions
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NLRB’s Speed-Dial Forced-Unionism

On February 2, 2012, By NRTW Committee Staff

The unconstitutionally appointed National Labor Relations Board announced its upcoming agenda that includes forcing companies to release private information about their employees — including their phone numbers and email addresses — to union activists to assist their efforts to coerce workers into a union.

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Posted in: Government Grants to Unions, Intimidation Tactics, NLRB, Obama Administration, Organizing, Personnel Alert, Union Violence
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U.S. Sen. Paul Stands Up for Constitution

On February 2, 2012, By NRTW Committee Staff

Right to Work stalwart Sen. Rand Paul is joining National Right To Work legal challenge of President Obama’s illegal recess appointments to the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB).

Politico reports:

The Kentucky Republican appears to be the first sitting senator to legally object to the Jan. 4 appointments that drew fire from congressional Republicans, who say the president overstepped constitutional boundaries by installing three members to the labor board and Richard Cordray to lead the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau.

“With the recent recess appointments, President Obama has circumvented our Constitution and showed complete disregard for the separation of powers,” Paul said in a statement Tuesday. “He has demonstrated once again that he is willing to treat the office of the presidency like a dictatorship.”

Paul said he plans to file a friend-of-the-court brief backing legal action by the National Federation for Independent Business and the National Right to Work Legal Defense Foundation. The groups filed court claims on Jan. 13 arguing that the NLRB appointments are unconstitutional.

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Posted in: NLRB, Obama Administration, Personnel Alert
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