Andy Stern

SEIU Union Czar Andy Stern: Most Frequent White House Visitor

Nick Cote — Wed, 04 Nov 2009 10:49:50 -0500

Here on Freedom@Work, we've kept you updated about the Obama Administration's payback after payback to the union bosses who spent over one billion dollars in 2008 getting Barack Obama and other forced unionism proponents elected.

From rolling back union disclosure guidelines to slashing the budget of the Department of Labor's union watchdog agency to blacklistining nonunion construction workers from "stimulus" projects, the Obama Administration hasn't been shy about rewarding union brass.

SEIU Bosses Put Politics Before Workers' Jobs - Literally

Will Collins — Wed, 18 Mar 2009 17:08:57 -0400

Here at Freedom@Work, we spend a lot of time documenting union bosses' shameless hypocrisy, but this latest incident (almost) surprised even us. The powerful Service Employees International Union (SEIU) recently fired 75 staffers. But why is an organization that collects hundreds of millions of dollars in easy money (forced dues) per year cutting jobs now, in the midst of a devastating economic recession? Simple - they want even more cash for political lobbying:

"It's completely hypocritical," said staff union President Malcolm Harris...

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BlagoGate II - Podcast Edition

Will Collins — Thu, 11 Dec 2008 17:49:41 -0500

Foundation VP Stefan Gleason sits down with Hot Air's Ed Morrissey to discuss disgraced Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich's connection to union corruption:

Blagogate: Stern's SEIU Got Tens of Millions in Forced Dues Revenue After Giving Campaign Support

Nick Cote — Wed, 10 Dec 2008 14:05:30 -0500

Today's Washington Post has a good rundown of Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich's alleged pay-for-play deal with a high-ranking Service Employees International Union boss we've been telling you about. This paragraph is particularly revealing:

Foundation Action: Foundation Seeks Federal Investigation into Union Political Fundraising

Patrick Semmens — Mon, 29 Sep 2008 11:04:45 -0400

The cover story of the September/October issue of Foundation Action covers efforts by the Foundation to expose an SEIU union political fundraising scheme that coerces workers to support union politics, and to get the Department of Labor and Department of Justice investigate the scheme.

Read the whole story here (pdf) and sign up today for a free print subscription.

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Even a Big Labor Ally Concedes the SEIU May Be Breaking Federal Election Law

Will Collins — Tue, 29 Jul 2008 11:50:08 -0400

Yesterday, a pro-Big Labor blogger at OpenLeft inadvertently highlighted the absurdity of the SEIU's apparently illegal fundraising scheme (emphasis mine):

If the local doesn't put enough money into the national PAC, they will have to pay a penalty of regular funds out of union dues to the international. PAC contributions are voluntary and only come when members feel empowered, whereas union dues are automatic, so this is a strong incentive for locals to organize and empower their members. It's a good policy move, and it was voted on and ratified at the SEIU Convention.

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Pension Fund Mismanagement Highlights SEIU Corruption

Will Collins — Wed, 16 Jul 2008 14:54:20 -0400

Yesterday, the Wall Street Journal had a great editorial up on the hypocrisy of SEIU leadership. Andy Stern and his cronies are more intent than ever on blackmailing unwilling companies into forcing SEIU "representation" on their employees through a series of vicious corporate campaigns:

SEIU's Irresistible Offer: Help Us or Go Bust

Will Collins — Tue, 27 May 2008 15:24:12 -0400

Regular Freedom@Work readers know that we've been following the SEIU's aggressive "growth at any cost" policies for quite some time.

This entry from the Philadelphia Inquirer alludes to the reality of what Big Labor seems to be offering these days -- help us or go bust. Although most of the article focuses on a failed attempt to unionize security guards, the author also describes the union's hostile relationship with Aramark, a food services vendor:

"In 2005, Aramark entered into a neutrality agreement with SEIU and
UniteHere, another union, Aramark spokeswoman Kristine Grow said.

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"Change to Win" Brings More of the Same

Patrick Semmens — Tue, 22 Apr 2008 15:54:20 -0400

An article in The New Republic points to the tens of millions of dollars being spent by union officials on politics and specifically focuses on the massive involvement by the so-called "Change to Win" union coalition in politics.

The article calls Change to Win's decision to endorse Obama an "about-face," citing Change to Win's early declarations that it would not focus on politics but on organizing. Yet, Change to Win's emphasis on politics (led by SEIU top boss Andy Stern) really wasn't that hard to predict.

In fact, back in 2005 when Change to Win union bosses split from the AFL-CIO union hierarchy National Right to Work Foundation Vice President Stefan Gleason had this to say:

Video: Nevada Nurses Decry Unaccountable SEIU Union Hierarchy

Justin Hakes — Thu, 10 Apr 2008 11:17:42 -0400

Following up on the recent upheaval within the SEIU union, a group of nurses from Nevada have recently put out a video decrying the disconnect between rank-and-file nurses and the union hierarchy.