Public Sector Workers

Let Them Eat Cake: Maryland Government Union Boss Wants More Workers' Forced Dues

Nick Cote — Thu, 19 Feb 2009 15:40:38 -0500

Perhaps due to their plethora of special privileges under the law, union bosses frequently act and speak as if they were the actual government. Take AFSCME Maryland union boss Patrick Moran, who insultingly blustered to the Baltimore Sun,

This is about democracy, bottom line. If you don't like democracy, then I guess you don't like the country we live in.

You see, Moran's government union -- with the support of union-label politicians like Governor Martin O'Malley -- wants the power to force nonmembers to pay for "services" they didn't ask for and don't want.

"At some point we can't be a charity," said Sue Esty, assistant director for AFSCME Maryland.

read more

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:

Bush Executive Order Exempts Some Federal Employees from Monopoly Bargaining: Too Little Too Late?

Patrick Semmens — Tue, 02 Dec 2008 12:50:46 -0500

Yesterday President Bush issued an Exectuive Order exempting several agencies and subdivisions of the Energy, Homeland Security, Justice, Transportation, and Treasury departments from draconian and stifling federal labor-management relations strictures.

This is good policy. However, while freeing any worker from forced union monopoly bargaining is a welcome step, the last-minute move begs the question: What took so long?

Unfortunately, making this common-sense change on the way out the door cheapens it, making it appear to be little more than political retaliation. The administration should have made this and many more pro-individual-rights moves long ago. Instead, the incompetent political managers in the White House thought that making policy concessions to the union bosses would have bought their support. How wrong they were.

No More Trees, AFSCME Union Tells Detroit

Nick Cote — Wed, 23 Jul 2008 17:15:20 -0400

The American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees union is objecting to a plan by Detroit city officials to turn over an abandoned nursery to Greening of Detroit, a nonprofit group. What's the problem, exactly?

Using privately raised funds and volunteers, the group would restore the nursery and use it to provide mature trees to neighborhoods. Greening already plants 2,000 trees a year throughout the city.

But the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees obtained an injunction from Wayne County Circuit Court against the deal, saying it violates the collective bargaining agreement. The union says the bargaining agreement applies to any deals to turn over control of city operations to a third party -- meaning city workers must staff the nursery.

...

read more

Union Accountant's Financial Analyses for New York Legislature Were " A Step Above Voodoo . . ."

Will Collins — Wed, 04 Jun 2008 17:31:00 -0400

The New York Times has a devastating article up on the incestuous relationship between public sector union officials and the New York state legislature. The actual controversy is downright farcical: legislators relied on a public sector union accountant to determine the cost of proposed increases to the state's employee pension plan.

A reasonable observer might suggest that this arrangement represented a clear conflict of interest, but to New York state legislators it was just good book-keeping. According to the Times, the union actuary "reviewed" hundreds of bills for the state before being exposed by the paper's investigation. What's more, the Times reports that the actuary neglected to mention additional legislative costs of up $500 million in his original reports.

No Tea Party

Justin Hakes — Fri, 28 Sep 2007 09:32:16 -0400

The coercive "card check" union organizing scheme became the law of the land for public sector workers in Massachusetts yesterday.

Bay State employees will undoubtedly find out soon that this abuse ridden scheme is no tea party. See all the latest about the National Right to Work Foundation's efforts to lessen the abuses suffered by workers under such drives here.