1 Feb 2008

New Video: The Victims of Forced Unionism Abuse

Posted in Blog

The National Right to Work Foundation gives free legal help to thousands of American workers each year that are victims of forced unionism abuse. Here are just a few in their own words:

1 Feb 2008

Jimmy Hoffa Ruffles CEO’s Feathers Over Employees’ Decision to Resist Teamsters

Posted in Blog

Jimmy HoffaWhat do union bosses do when independent-minded employees refuse to succumb to union organizing pressure?

Well, it turns out Jimmy Hoffa’s solution is to write a letter to the president of the companies he is trying to organize in order to smear those companies.

Teamsters boss Hoffa did just that in writing to CEO Moir Lockhead once FirstGroup employees began showing admirable resistance to the union’s thuggish organizing tactics.

Workers at a Hodgkins, Illinois busing facility – owned by the UK-based FirstGroup – are saying “no” to the Teamsters’ unionization hopes, but union bosses don’t like hearing “no” from independent-minded employees.

Hoffa’s letter underscores the problems with so-called “neutrality agreements,” since FirstGroup entered into such an agreement with the Teamsters union in order to get the union off its back. Neutrality agreements give unions sweeping access to employees’ personal information and ban secret-ballot elections, since the employer agrees to support a union’s attempt to organize its workforce.

Hoffa’s letter shows that anything short of unyielding assistance to lock employees up in forced unionism by employers is unacceptable to union officials.

In a similar Right to Work Foundation-aided case in Batavia, Illinois, another union with a neutrality pledge refused to go away from a FirstGroup facility – just like what is happening here.

31 Jan 2008

Engineer Union Officials Seek IN Worker’s Firing Three Times for Refusal to Join

Posted in Blog

Currently, National Right to Work Legal Defense Foundation attorneys are helping Minteq International employee Joel Tibbetts fight union intimidation at his workplace.

Tibbetts, a steel mill worker, turned to the Right to Work Foundation for free legal help after International Union of Operating Engineers Local 150 union officials threatened to have Tibbetts fired three separate times in three months over the summer after he refused to join the union.

After the third termination threat, Tibbetts tried to join the union out of fear of losing his job. But IUOE union officials rejected his application since Tibbetts wrote that he was joining “under protest” on his union membership forms.

In retaliation, IUOE union officials told Tibbetts instead that his forced dues would amount to a sum greater than the amount Tibbetts would owe as a regular union member.

In response, Right to Work attorneys filed federal charges against the IUOE Local 150 union on behalf of Tibbetts. The charges highlight that the IUOE union’s failure to provide Tibbetts of adequate notice his rights under the 1988 Foundation-won U.S. Supreme Court precedent, Communications Workers v. Beck case.

Tibbetts’ struggle underscores why employees in the Hoosier state need a Right to Work law, which would make union membership and dues payment strictly voluntary.

30 Jan 2008

More Foxwoods Dealers Allege UAW Harassment, Intimidation as Hearing Closes

Posted in Blog

As we continue to follow the Foxwoods Casino and Resort story in Connecticut, the National Labor Relations Board has ended its trial over the validity of the unionization drive as of yesterday.

Center to Foxwood’s argument in the case is the harassment and intimidation tactics it says independent-minded employees endured by United Auto Workers (UAW) union organizers.

TheDay.com covers the story:

Diane Weaver said she was surrounded in an employee cafeteria by a group of 10 to 15 union supporters, who shouted at her. Weaver, a table game dealer for five years, testified that one person called her “stupid” and another threatened to beat her.

One dealer even testified against Bob Madore, the director of UAW Region 9A, after receiving these intimidating threats:

Debra Beebe, a dual-rate dealer for almost 15 years, said she attended a union meeting held the week before the election at the union hall in Norwich. At it, she said, “Bob” spoke and told those in the crowd the union would know who voted “no” in the election and that if those individuals filed grievances, there would be a way for the union to “retaliate.” Beebe testified that she heard Bob say that if someone who was anti-union filed a grievance, the person’s paperwork would be shoved to the bottom of the stack.

Administrative Law Judge Raymond Green will issue a written decision on unionization at the casino in early March.

29 Jan 2008

Trump Employees May Soon Hear “You’re Fired” for Refusal to Pay Dues

Posted in Blog

If "UNITE-HERE" union officials have their way, employees of Donald Trump’s new Windy City hotel may soon be hearing "you’re fired" if they refuse to pay union dues. According to Crain’s Chicago Business:

The Trump International Hotel & Tower offers both a high-profile target and an opportunity to bring 300 or more employees into the union fold. UNITE HERE wants Trump to approve a so-called neutrality agreement, which would permit organizers to try to persuade workers to sign cards supporting union representation.

So called "neutrality agreements"are anything but- they often require employers to assist union officials in organizing employees. Under such pacts, employers must often grant union organizers sweeping access to employees, hold "captive audience" meetings, and even hand out employees’ personal information.

Notice too as you read the article, as is common in many similar situations, that union officials are targeting the hotel’s employees rather than vice versa. Makes sense, since without a Right to Work law, union officials can force employees in Illinois to pay dues. Looks like it’s all about the forced-dues cash.

25 Jan 2008

BLS Report: In-Your-Face “Card Check” Organizing Pays Off for Union Officials

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Today’s report from the Bureau of Labor Statistics confirms that efforts to sweep more workers into unionization through coercive "card check" organizing are paying off for union officials.

However, if Congress resurrects and passes mandatory "card check" legislation, workers will have even less say over whether they are unionized. Union officials will unleash a tidal wave of in-your-face organizing drives on America’s workers, and potentially millions more will be corralled into dues-paying union ranks.

24 Jan 2008

January/February 2008 Foundation Action

Posted in News Releases

The January/February 2008 Foundation Action newsletter is now available!

In this issue:

  • Right to Work Foundation Helps Secure High Court Review
  • Right to Work Foundation Launches New Cutting-Edge Website
  • Congress Complains About Foundation Legal Victories
  • Discriminatory Union Objection Procedure Smacked Down Again
  • Foundation Helps Nurses Fight Illegal Retaliation
  • Laidlaw Transit Drivers Kick Unwanted Union Off the Bus

 

Download the January/February 2008 Foundation Action PDF here.

24 Jan 2008

Update: Union Organizers Deal Casino Employees A Bad Hand

Posted in Blog

Last week, we covered the United Auto Workers (UAW) union’s battle to become Foxwood Casino dealers’ monopoly bargaining agent. As the National Labor Relations Board continues its hearing on the validity of the unionization election, employees’ testimony of UAW union intimidation continues to roll in.

TheDay.com updates us on the story:

Others said they were either told directly or overheard union supporters telling dealers prior to the election that their jobs were in jeopardy if they voted against unionization.

True to form, many union organizers have no shame in dealing these casino workers a bad hand: the UAW’s back hand.

Remember, if you feel that union organizers have violated your rights, contact the National Right to Work Foundation toll-free at 800-336-3600 or visit this page to learn about your legal rights.

23 Jan 2008

KV Pharmaceutical Employees Vote To Oust Unwanted Teamsters Union from Workplace

Posted in News Releases

St. Louis, MO (January 23, 2008) – Overcoming months of union stonewalling, federal officials today announced KV Pharmaceutical Company (NYSE:KV-A) employees have voted 89-46 to remove an unpopular Teamsters union local from their workplace.

Teamsters Local 688 has been booted as the employees’ “exclusive bargaining representative” and may no longer act as a middleman between the employees and management. The employees received free legal aid from the National Right to Work Foundation in overcoming months of delays at the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) and legal challenges by Teamsters union lawyers who tried to stonewall the results of the vote.

Calbert Edwards and his KV Pharma coworkers obtained the secret ballot “decertification” vote after gaining signatures from an overwhelming majority of employees at the pharmaceutical giant. However, after the election was held in November, the NLRB Regional Director indefinitely impounded the ballots, leaving the employees without their election results.

Teamsters Local 688 lawyers had delayed the counting of ballots by filing “blocking charges” at the NLRB. They alleged that the company tried to entice the employees to vote against the Teamsters union by promising better benefits if the Teamsters union was voted out.

But, with help from attorneys at the National Right to Work Foundation, Edwards and his coworkers petitioned the NLRB to proceed. Consequently, in early January the NLRB Regional Director granted the request – dismissing the Teamsters union’s charges – and ordered the ballots counted. As a result of the employees’ decertification victory, KV Pharma workers will now be free to negotiate their own terms and conditions of employment, and be rewarded on their individual merit.

“Teamsters lawyers threw up every stumbling block possible over the past several months to block KV Pharma employees from exercising their free choice,” said Stefan Gleason, vice president of the National Right to Work Foundation. “The hostility of the union hierarchy to workers’ interests shows why Missouri needs a Right to Work law that would make union affiliation and dues payment strictly voluntary.”

A decertification election, an NLRB-supervised secret ballot election to oust a union, is 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 also only obtain such elections during narrowly prescribed periods every few years, and incumbent union hierarchies often retaliate against dissenting employees.

23 Jan 2008

New Video: Right to Work Report Spotlights Hollywood Forced Unionism Abuse

Posted in Blog

National Right to Work Foundation President Mark Mix details the Foundation’s efforts to help Sai Ly Acosta and other musicians in Hollywood after union officials indicated they would be arrested for showing up for rehearsal.