Employment Opportunities at the National Right to Work Foundation
Are you interested in protecting American citizens from compulsory unionism and other union special privileges’ If so, check out these employment opportunities with the National Right to Work Foundation:
Development Assistant
The National Right to Work Legal Defense Foundation seeks a Development Assistant to help the Foundation raise the funds needed for its battle to protect American citizens from compulsory unionism and other union special privileges. The successful candidate will write, edit, and proofread fundraising letters, grant proposals, and newsletter articles. Some familiarity with Microsoft Access or similar programs is desirable but not required. This position offers an excellent opportunity to learn about nonprofit fundraising and develop valuable skills.
Strong writing ability and a commitment to individual liberty are essential.
To apply send a cover letter, resume, and writing sample to Duncan Clark, Development Director, at rdc@nrtw.org. No phone calls please.
Deputy Communications Director
The National Right to Work Legal Defense Foundation seeks an energetic Deputy Communications Director to join a growing public outreach program within a respected and established organization working to protect American citizens from compulsory unionism and other union special privileges.
The successful candidate will implement public relations strategies, respond to media inquiries, as well as work with cutting edge technology to produce online video content in the Foundation’s in-house TV studio. Writing tasks include drafting newsletter articles, op-eds, press releases, and some direct mail copywriting.
Outstanding writing and communications skills are essential, as is a strong commitment to limited government and individual liberty. This is an entry-level position.
Interested applicants should send a resume and writing sample(s) (amounting to at least 800 words) to Justin Hakes via email at jah@nrtw.org or fax: (703) 321-9613. No phone calls please.
Grants Administrator
The National Right to Work Legal Defense Foundation seeks a highly motivated individual in its grant seeking program which raises funds to combat the abuses of union coercive power. Responsibilities include identifying and researching foundations, tracking and fulfilling deadlines for proposals and reports, and assisting in cultivation of major donors as well as the development of new funding sources. Applicants should have excellent writing skills and should be well organized, detail-oriented, and a team player.
A commitment to limited government and individual liberty is essential.
To apply, send a cover letter, resume, and a writing sample(s) to Ginny Smith, Director of Strategic Programs, at gms@nrtw.org or National Right to Work Legal Defense Foundation, 8001 Braddock Road, Springfield, VA 22160. No phone calls please.
Iowa’s New Year’s Resolution: Protect Right to Work
As many people across the nation make their New Year’s resolutions, one state representative in Iowa has vowed not to give up on employee free choice in the Hawkeye State in 2008. The Ottumwa Courier reports:
State Representative Betty DeBoef said the first major issue that comes to mind for the upcoming year is a bill the Iowa House will vote on.
“The one thing I really hope is that we do not pass the bill that will decimate Iowa’s 60-year-old right-to-work law. Iowa being a right-to-work state has served our state well. It provides a business-friendly environment for companies that want to come to Iowa,” she said. “Passing that bill would be a mistake.”
DeBoef warned of other ramifications if the Right to Work law is lost:
“A number of teachers I know do not support the agenda of the NEA and the ISCA [teacher unions], and they would be forced to pay dues to these unions even though they don’t agree with their agenda.”
For more reasons why Iowa’s highly-popular Right to Work law is so vital, please read this study.
It Is For Unions, Period.
The readers’ forum section in West Virginia’s Charleston Gazette featured a great commentary from one local reader about the so-called “Employee Free Choice Act,” a bill that would lead to even more union intimidation during organizing drives. The following was his response after one AFL-CIO union boss claimed that “employees are not being allowed to join unions.”
“The Employee Free Choice Act is not for employees. It is for unions, period. Under that proposed act, unions can get employees signed up on union cards, even in a pizza parlor after three beers, before three or four other pushy union officials.”
For more information about in-your-face card check schemes, read these studies conducted by the National Institute for Labor Relations Research.
40 Police in Riot Gear Called in as Teamsters Picket Turns Ugly
40 police in riot gear in Somerville, Massachusetts, were called in yesterday to break up a Teamsters picket that threatened to disrupt the city’s trash pick up.
"Officers were pelted with stones," (City Spokesman Tom) Champion said, "and our police officials reported that a small but very vocal group of demonstrators was abusive and confrontational and exhibited violence."
The company’s owner, Charles Carneglia, said the push was part of an effort to force unwanted unionization on employees, and that:
"The union guys were trying to bully them not to go to work," he said.
Carneglia claims one union operative slashed his pants with a knife during the confrontation. Watch video of a news story about the incident here.
This ugly incident shows the lengths to which some union officials will go to impose unionization on employees regardless of their wishes.
Bittersweet End for Boston’s Big Dig
America’s most notorious union-only project labor agreement (PLA), Boston’s "Big Dig," will come to completion with the end of 2007. What a bittersweet day for citizens of Boston. The Associated Press puts it this way:
"Don’t expect any champagne toasts."
As also noted by the AP, the Big Dig’s history was "littered with wrong turns" such as a major tunnel leak in 2004, as well as the tragic death of a motorist in 2006.
Financially, the Big Dig sapped taxpayers for $14.8 billion, over five and a half times the original cost estimate of $2.6 billion.
This train wreck of a public construction project should serve as "exhibit A" of the gluttonous waste inherent in PLAs. Such projects are also a "lose-lose" for employees that wish to remain nonunion because they are blackballed from working, as well as for the taxpayers forced to foot the bill.
Teamsters Union Vows Not to Leave Housekeepers Alone
Speaking of not taking no for an answer, local story from The Morning Sun in Michigan highlights that the housekeeping staff at the Soaring Eagle Casino & Resort rejected the Teamsters union in a vote against unionization by more than 2-to-1.
On the surface, one would think that it was a victory for the employees at the hotel and casino. But having received news of the election defeat, Teamsters bosses promised to stick around for another year to make sure they successfully influence the next vote in their favor.
The Morning Sun reports:
“They waxed us pretty good,” said Ed Morin, business agent for Teamsters Local 486. “We’re not walking away from it.”…He said the Teamsters will not go away, and will continue to try to organize other employee groups. “We’ll be around to talk to the other people,” Morin said.
The employees have spoken, but Teamsters officials just refuse to listen.
Employees Describe Their Fight Against Abusive Union Power
Employees Michael Ashby and John Hurley describe their fight against abusive union power in this short video clip from the National Right To Work Foundation’s video, The Perilous Fight.
View more video clips on the Foundation’s growing YouTube channel here.
No Means No
A group of Laidlaw bus employees outside the Windy City voted to kick out the unwanted Amalgamated Transit Union (ATU) Local 1028 this week, with help from the National Right to Work Foundation.
Though the employees had already rid their workplace of the unwanted union earlier in the year, once their employer was bought out by another company, union officials began bargaining over workers’ wages and working conditions with no legal authority whatsoever! The Foundation helped Russell Haasch and his coworkers immediately take action at the National Labor Relations Board.
Employees need to be vigilant, particulary when union officials don’t take "no" for an answer. However, only a Right to Work law will provide widespread for Prairie State employees. Decertification elections are extraordinarily hard to come by and union lawyers often delay them for years by filing baseless charges.
Laidlaw Transit Busing Employees Vote to Kick Out A Union that Won’t Go Away
**Batavia, IL (December 20, 2007)** – Laidlaw Transit, Inc. busing employees have voted to remove Amalgamated Transit Union (ATU) Local 1028 as the “exclusive bargaining representative” of approximately 160 transit workers. In an election held earlier this week, Laidlaw Transit employees voted 83-64 to oust the unwanted union from their workplace.
The election result comes just months after a majority of employees had already petitioned their employer to withdraw recognition of the ATU union. However, after a British company, FirstGroup PLC, completed the purchase of Laidlaw Transit in October, the bus company and ATU Local 1028 officials illegally began bargaining over the wages and working conditions of employees that the union did not even “represent.”
With free legal assistance from National Right to Work Legal Defense Foundation attorneys, Laidlaw Transit employee Russell Haasch filed federal charges at the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB). Haasch highlighted that ATU union officials had been negotiating a contract with FirstGroup, despite the fact that he and his coworkers had successfully ousted the union earlier this year.
In spring 2007, Haasch collected signatures from an overwhelming majority of his coworkers and in June presented the petition to their employer, Laidlaw Transit, which legally and properly ended its recognition of the ATU union as the monopoly bargaining agent. Haasch and his coworkers soon realized that the successor employer, FirstGroup, was negotiating a contract with ATU officials, despite the fact that the employees had shown that the union did not have their support.
According to the National Labor Relations Act, by bargaining over the contracts of employees that the union does not legally represent, the union and FirstGroup engaged in illegal “pre-recognition” bargaining. As part of their negotiations, the union sought a forced-dues clause in the contract that would make payment of union dues a job requirement. Facing an embarrassing federal prosecution, officials of ATU Local 1028 and FirstGroup had no choice but to agree to the secret ballot decertification election.
“Despite ATU union officials’ attempt to force this unpopular union on employees’ like-it-or-not, Haasch and his coworkers have once again shown them the door,” said Stefan Gleason, vice president of the National Right to Work Foundation. “With the lack of respect these union officials have for the employees, it is no surprise that workers have repeatedly rejected this union hierarchy.”
As a result of the decertification victory, Laidlaw Transit employees will now be free to negotiate their own terms and conditions of employment, and be rewarded on their individual merit. Decertification elections are an uphill battle for workers to obtain or win. In particular, union lawyers are adept at gumming up the works by filing baseless charges that often block an election for years. Employees can only obtain such elections during narrow periods every few years, and incumbent union hierarchies often retaliate against dissenting employees.
Merry Christmas- You’re Indicted
A high-level Teamsters official from New York yesterday was indicted on federal embezzlement and extortion charges for demanding among other things:
"…that his employees mow his lawn, clean his gutters and chauffeur his family."
Sounds like quite the life. According to the article:
"The indictment said the employees complied with Rumore’s demands because they feared they would suffer economic harm or even lose their jobs if they did not."
Rumore was released on $250,000 bond, I wonder where he got all that cash. He also faces up to 25 years in prison.
As noted by the late Senator John McClellan, "Compulsory unionism and corruption go hand-in-hand." These are the sorts of misdeeds union officials perpetrate at the expense of rank-and-file workers when the do not face the accountability instilled by a Right to Work law.
