INK: July 9, 2009

Labor Relations INK

Download a PDF of this issue with links here.

In This Issue:

• Insight from Phil Wilson
• A Disturbance In The Force
• UAW vs. UAW
• A Peek Behind ObamaCare
• and more…

Labor Relations Insight from Phil Wilson

NLRB: Employee Free Choice Act Ace in the Hole?

Is the Employee Free Choice Act still alive? Al Franken is now officially seated and the 60-vote caucus needed to overcome a filibuster on the Free Choice Act is in place. But just when unions should be rejoicing in the streets, it’s getting fashionable to write Employee Free Choice Act obituaries, like the one this morning in the New York Times. I think companies should keep a very close eye on the NLRB, because the news of EFCA’s death is greatly exaggerated – but I’m getting ahead of myself. Read the rest of the article here

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EFCA Update

Even with healthcare and cap & trade legislation consuming a great deal of attention, there is plenty of action in the EFCA arena. The democrat/Big Labor camp is happy to have Franken declared the winner in the Minnesota senate race, providing the 60th vote required to break cloture. On the pro-business side, several democratic senators still have not confirmed wholehearted support for the current version of the bill, while the SEIU seems to be fighting against themselves in a recent California episode by ignoring employees wishes on the basis of signatures alone! The pro-business lobby is continuing to keep the battle in the public eye, most recently with a television campaign targeting Senator Nelson in Nebraska.

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Watch the video on YouTube at this link: http://www.youtube.com/v/FlPeYML-nEQ&hl=en&fs=1&

There is new ammunition on the intellectual front against the EFCA. An attorney who has negotiated over 100 first contracts made a great argument that it wasn’t possible to “fix” the mandatory arbitration provision of the bill to make it non-destructive to businesses. Recent data also demonstrate that non-right-to-work states are shedding jobs to right-to-work states. The Mackinac Center For Public Policy in Michigan put together this very graphic interactive dashboard of statistics comparisons of non-right-to-work states vs. right-to-work states and Michigan.

In another very interesting twist, the healthcare debate has suddenly become a possible sop to Big Labor. As Congress grapples with how to pay for a public insurance program, one of the proposals involves taxing the health benefits of companies that provide such benefits via private insurance. A exemption is being considered for unionized companies. Here’s the apparent trade-off: if unions can no longer use health benefits as a bargaining or organizing tool (due to government healthcare making it a non-issue), then the unions could still use the “tax-free benefits” loophole as the replacement bargaining chip.

It could be an interesting summer!

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FREE! EFCA Strategy Review & Vulnernability Audit

This has quickly become one of our most popular programs, in light of upcoming labor law changes. It is more important than ever to assess both the internal and external factors that contribute to your company’s vulnerability to union penetration, and formulate action plans to shore up any uncovered weaknesses.

• What are the most likely labor law changes, and how will they impact my vulnerabilities?

• What are the six strategies I can implement to strengthen my defense against union encroachment?

• When do I talk to my employees about unions? What do I say about unions?

CLICK HERE to schedule your free 30-minutes consultation with Phil Wilson, LRI’s President and General Counsel.

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A Disturbance In The Force

Andy Stern, head of the Service Employees International Union, has now been likened to “the Darth Vader of the labor movement,” as union presidents and representatives from across the country are taking UNITE-HERE’s side in the raging fight between the SEIU and the besieged union. Going against legal counsel, the AFL-CIO officially came out against SEIU’s “raiding of organized workers.” Over 15 international unions, including AFSCME and the Laborers, have committed both moral and monetary support to UNITE-HERE. As one former pro-Stern supporter put it, “the American labor movement declared war on Andy Stern.”

Labor insiders believe that the schism, and the attempts by the SEIU to dominate the American labor movement, have placed the nail in the coffin of the Change To Win labor federation. It is expected that many of the unions that originally broke away from the AFL-CIO to form Change To Win may return to the fold, without the SEIU.

Meanwhile, the battle between SEIU (including the newly-created Workers United) and UNITE-HERE continues at high tempo, with no sign of resolve.

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UAW vs. UAW

In an ironic twist, the UAW now finds itself in a position to negotiate against itself by virtue of the recent shuffling of ownership of Chrysler and GM. The UAW is both the employer and the employee of Chrysler and GM, and is both the competitor and the employee of Ford.

The recent deal between Chrysler and GM and the UAW include the agreement not to strike until 2015. Ford is now asking the same concession of the UAW. The UAW finds itself in a conflicted situation, and Ford, who effectively evaded government intervention (bailout money) finds itself in a possible competitive disadvantage.

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Only In A Union

The State of Michigan agreed with the United Auto Workers (which represents state employees in MI) for several furlough days in an effort to balance the budget. The Detroit Local of the UAW (Local 6000) filed a complaint to block the move, saying that the international overstepped its jurisdiction. Apparently, when the state attempted to bargain with the Local, the Local was not willing to grant any concessions. The state then sent a letter to the UAW international VP, who agreed to an amount of furloughed days. The local countered, saying the UAW international move was a violation of its constitution.

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AFL-CIO Extreme Make-Over

The International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers (IAM) organized a conference last month that included 23 labor leaders. The objective of the meeting was to consider changes to the AFL-CIO intended to revitalize the labor coalition. “We focused on systemic changes that would strengthen the labor federation’s finances and increase its clout,” said IAM president Tom Buffenbarger.

With the current head of the AFL-CIO, John Sweeney, set to retire in September, a more aggressive leadership coupled with an overhaul of agenda and operational functions could bring the labor organization back to the public square in a powerful way. If the rival Change To Win federation disbands, and an EFCA-type bill passes soon, we could have a legitimate 800-pound gorilla on our hands.

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Valiant Attempt

In a move to eradicate Depression Era-legislation enacted to bolster unions, Representative Connie Mack (R-FL) proposed a repeal of the Davis-Bacon Act, which would eliminate minimum compensation provisions for construction workers on public works projects. Proponents of the repeal believe that such a move would encourage more job growth for federal construction projects. “Instead of pandering to big labor,” Mack said, “Congress should be fostering a competitive environment for businesses to be able to hire more people for more jobs.”

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A Peek Behind ObamaCare

Peeling back the layers of the healthcare reform onion, you will find several key “partners” on the administration’s healthcare reform team: ACORN, the SEIU, AFSCME, and the AFL-CIO. Having given the American auto industry over to unions (the UAW) and the government, are we sure that doing the same with the 14% of the GDP known as the American healthcare system is an intelligent choice?

The healthcare industry had better pay close attention, as the “unintended” consequences of a government plan are being forshadowed in the auto, and to some extent the banking, industries.

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Typical Non-Representation

The AFSCME recently announced its endorsement of Albuquerque Mayor Martin Chavez for reelection. Not so fast, says the Albuquerque local! In typical fashion, the membership of the large union that represents city workers was never polled, or in any other fashion asked who they endorsed. The union made its decision based strictly on its own agenda, rather than the wishes of its constituency.

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Transform Your Workplace!

A step-by-step guide on how to dramatically improve employee engagement at your company. Includes checklists, action-planning guides and more.

• How to determine your company’s internal and external vulnerability – and why you have to deal with both kinds of vulnerability.

• Critical training for your first-line supervisors, and how you can turn them into a key to your employee engagement strategy.

CLICK HERE to find out more about The Next 52 Weeks: One Year To Transform Your Work Environment by Phillip B. Wilson

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Southern California In The Crosshairs

The Inland Empire consists of portions of Riverside and San Bernardino counties in southern California, home to almost 2,900 warehouses of at least 50,000 square feet each, which employ nearly 113,000 people. These warehouses, operated by some of the largest retailers in the world, handle much of the container cargo that moves through the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach, the busiest trade gateway in the United States. And they are under siege.

The Change To Win federation, along with Warehouse Workers United, is squaring off with American businesses in a concerted effort to organize this compact region of workers. “There needs to be a general union movement. We expect to have a long-term campaign there,” said Tom Woodruff, organizing director of Change to Win.

“If we are concerned, we are concerned about efforts in Washington that would change the rules for union organization,” said Rob Green, vice president for government and political affairs at the National Retail Federation, speaking of the EFCA. Green suggests that if the organizing movement gains traction, many of the large retailers may move their warehouses to other parts of the country where costs would be lower.

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Steelworkers Get The Boot

A small sawmill in Larder Lake, Ontario, voted to decertify the United Steelworkers of America. The union had represented them since a 2006 vote, and the employees still had 3 months left on the one contract the union had negotiated, when 75% of them voted to decertify the union.

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SEIU vs. BOA

The campaign against Ken Lewis, CEO of Bank Of America, is one to keep an eye on. Will the embattled CEO cave to SEIU pressure to save his job?

The quandary stems from a) BOA acceptance of TARP funds, b) Big Labor deftly using the “economic crisis” and a friendly administration in Washington as leverage to pressure businesses, and c) Ken Lewis’ refusal to sit down with SEIU to pave the way for easier organizing of BOA employees.

**********

Labor Relations INK is published semi-monthly and
is edited by Labor Relations Institute, Inc. Feel
free to pass this newsletter on to anyone you
think might enjoy it. New subscribers can sign up
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If you use content from this newsletter please
attribute it to Labor Relations Institute and
include our website address: www.LRIonline.com

Contributing editors for this issue: Phillip Wilson, Greg Kittinger

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INK: June 11, 2009

Labor Relations INK

Download a PDF of this issue with links here.

In This Issue:

• Insight from Phil Wilson
• EFCA Update
• Internicine Battle Rages On
• Organizing Campaign Moves To Public Square
• and more…

Labor Relations Insight from Phil Wilson

Baby Boomers the Secret Key to Engagement?

A recent study by Boston College’s Sloan Center on Aging & Work, researchers found that employee engagement among younger workers has dropped significantly during this recent economic downturn. That’s not really surprising – as I discuss in my book The Next 52 Weeks, job security is one of the keys to job satisfaction.

What is surprising is that the engagement of older workers has hardly budged during this economic downturn. Read the rest of the article here…

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EFCA Update

Big Labor ratcheted up their pressure tactics, finding a creative point of leverage to intimidate fund managers on Wall Street from speaking out against the Employee Free Choice Act. In a questionnaire, managers were asked such questions as, “Has your company made any public statements in support or opposition to EFCA?” The implied threat is that unions will move their pension monies out of these fund managers’ hands, which is basically an illegal act of coercion. Read a letter sent by one Teamsters local to their fund managers.

We’ve already written about the stacking of the National Labor Relations Board with pro-labor appointments. Meet Craig Becker in this 6 minute video to get a sense for the radical pro-union flavor these appointments will bring to the board.

Some are wondering if the 3-way conflagration between the SEIU, UNITE-HERE, and the fledgling breakaway union Workers United will hamper the efforts of Big Labor to push the EFCA forward. Not likely, but it does make for high entertainment value (see story below)!

Investors Business Daily, meanwhile, points us to a fascinating National Bureau of Economic Research study that concludes that companies typically lose 10% of their stock value after being unionized. The study found the average loss per company was $40,500 in 1998 dollars for each worker eligible to vote.

Another group of business leaders, this time an Hispanic organization in Colorado, has weighed in to lobby their senator to oppose the bill, and another Wall Street Journal editorial points to additional problems caused by binding arbitration provisions in the EFCA: union leaders will be harder to hold accountable, and it will be even harder than it is now to get rid of a union once it is in place

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FREE! EFCA Strategy Review & Vulnernability Audit

This has quickly become one of our most popular programs, in light of upcoming labor law changes. It is more important than ever to assess both the internal and external factors that contribute to your company’s vulnerability to union penetration, and formulate action plans to shore up any uncovered weaknesses.

• What are the most likely labor law changes, and how will they impact my vulnerabilities?

• What are the six strategies I can implement to strengthen my defense against union encroachment?

• When do I talk to my employees about unions? What do I say about unions?

CLICK HERE to schedule your free 30-minute consultation with Phil Wilson, LRI’s President and General Counsel.

**********

Internecine Battle Rages On

You will not find better soap opera on TV. As UNITE HERE begins to crumble with the recent leadership split, one former co-leader (Bruce Raynor) charges the other with tactics “more reminiscent of the Sopranos than anything I’ve ever seen in my trade union career,” then resigns, while the other side charges Raynor with using internal resources to organize a breakaway faction intending to join the Service Employees International Union, and claims to have been planning to boot him anyway. Meanwhile, it appears John Wilhelm (the surviving head of UNITE-HERE) is attempting to use the affair to combat his arch enemy, Andy Stern and the SEIU, by planting stories in the media accusing Stern of directing the entire affair as a way to sabotage Wilhelm’s union.

As the drama unfolds, Raynor and his new Workers United union are pleading to SEIU for financial assistance, claiming they are running a deficit of $300,000 a month. Raynor is also besmirching the reputation of Amalgamated Bank, whose holding company is his former union, claiming that UNITE-HERE is in “total chaos.”

SEIU continues with its own troubles. As its largest local seceded to become a separate union (the NUHW), other SEIU officials have either been indicted for fraudulent activity (we’ve covered in detail over the past year), or have resigned in disgust at SEIU practices.

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Follow The Money, Or Lack Thereof!

We’ve  reported before some of the troubles that union pension plans are having, and why this is one of the driving factors in the desperate push for the EFCA by Big Labor. Some have done the math, and calculated that the enactment of some EFCA-type bill would put upwards of $637,500,000 per year into union coffers, equating to over $35 billion in the next 10 years for Big Labor to meddle in politics and the continued degradation of Americas businesses. Additionally, the poor state of union pension funds could be turned around as fresh dues payers/pensioners pay in for the benefits of already retired workers.

Pension funds are a big issue. A recent report indicated almost half of the nation’s 20 largest unions have pension funds that federal law classifies as “endangered” or in “critical” condition due to being underfunded. In a vile travesty of moral failure, union officer pension funds remain in top shape despite this erosion of employee funds. One researcher, Diana Furchtgott-Roth, lamented, “Unions attract members by telling them they will look after them and that these plans are fully funded but they are not. Yet they are fully funding their own officer pensions. What we have are new members joining up so they can guarantee that the officers will have a secure retirement. In some cases they are giving up existing 401k pensions that do better than these underfund Ponzi schemes. The membership dues are not being used to build up assets they are being used to fund the officer’s retirements and to cover current retirees.”

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Only In A Union

Shortly after members of IBEW Local 459 went on strike near Reading, Pennsylvania, specialized electrical equipment belonging to the Pennsylvania Electric Company was vandalized, creating a minor emergency and initiating the response of crisis repair crews. The company was forced to increase security measures, and contacted the Federal Bureau of Investigation and Homeland Security to apprise them of the situation.

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Pro-Company Workers Take Action

A chain of grocery stores in Arizona has been fighting a long-running battle with the United Food & Commercial Workers, including the filing of a defamation lawsuit, and defending Unfair Labor Practice charges before the National Labor Relations Board. In a recent development, fed-up Bashas employees joined the fray and began a series of protests outside the UFCW Local 99’s Phoenix offices.

The group hopes other employees will join in the grassroots effort to protect their company against deceitful UFCW organizing and corporate campaign tactics.

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Internal Finger Pointing, Ad Naseum

Tom Buffenbarger, president of the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers and a member of the AFL-CIO’s finance committee, stated that the AFL-CIO has used “creative accounting” to mask its dismal financial position.

The largest U.S. labor organization in the country has seen its assets decline to a negative $2.3 million as of June 30, 2008, from a $66 million surplus on July 1, 2000. “If we are not careful, insolvency may be right around the corner,” Buffenbarger’s report said.

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Organizing Campaign Moves to the Public Square

Typical scenario:

• Union wants national company to allow the organization of its employees via card check rather than secret ballot.
• Company says no.
• Labor federation begins corporate campaign against company to bring public pressure to bear.

Recently, Change To Win played this well-worn card in a 9-city “protest” against CVS Pharmacy, claiming that the company was selling products past their expiration dates. CVS is a constant target of both the SEIU and UFCW, both members of Change To Win. Change To Win denies the allegation, but an employment lawyer familiar with corporate campaigns said, “I’d be amazed if this is purely a coincidence.”

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SEIU vs. NUHW

As SEIU continues to battle the newly formed National Union of Healthcare Workers, companies currently represented by SEIU are being dragged into the fray. In the latest episode, employees of a Kaiser Permanente facility in Stockton, CA, picketed on behalf of the NUHW. Kaiser claimed neutrality, but protesters disputed the claim. “We strongly disagree that Kaiser is neutral in this. We are forced to pay dues – $72.90 a month – to SEIU, a union that is not working in the best interest of the worker. We’re here to make sure everybody knows about it,” said one protester, Robert Nevarez. Protesters want the opportunity to oust SEIU in favor of NUHW, but is claiming Kaiser is working to prevent the action because SEIU won’t push for raising wages.

Across the state in Fresno, the SEIU is working to quash a move by Fresno home health care workers to elect out of SEIU and into NUHW. At a rally held on Sunday May 31, SEIU-UHW Trustee Dave Regan told SEIU staff to “administer an old-school ass-whipping” to NUHW supporters. “In other words, what we gotta do here, my old-school friends, is we have to administer an old-school ass-whipping over the next two weeks,” he said. “I know everybody knows what that means. We gotta give a butt-whipping they will never forget,” he added. “We gotta put them in the ground and bury them.” Watch the video here.

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Transform Your Workplace!

A step-by-step guide on how to dramatically improve employee engagement at your company. Includes checklists, action-planning guides and more.

• How to determine your company’s internal and external vulnerability – and why you have to deal with both kinds of vulnerability.

• Critical training for your first-line supervisors, and how you can turn them into a key to your employee engagement strategy.

CLICK HERE to find out more about The Next 52 Weeks: One Year To Transform Your Work Environment by Phillip B. Wilson

**********

UAW Tanks General Motors

If you’re still wondering exactly how much GM’s high labor costs played into its demise as a viable auto manufacturer, read this quick report. Robert Dewar, author of a recent book about the auto industry debacle, in a recent visit to China shared compelling data to back his claim.

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Danger In The Shadows

In another example of the many back-channel means that Big Labor supporters are looking to reward their union funding sources, New York state legislators recently tried to slide two new labor-friendly bills quietly past the public. One bill would force employers to pay up to 50% of a union’s lost dues if “extreme provocation” led to a strike, and the second makes it easier for unions to block public employers from imposing new rules. The legislation would lead to illegal strikes by public employees.

The Mayor of New York City got wind of the ruse. “Rather than rewarding illegal behavior, our Legislature should make sure that these potentially life-threatening events never happen again,” a spokesman for the mayor’s legislative office said.

On the opposite side of the country, Oregon is attempting to become the first state to pass an employer gag law that would severely restrict what employers could say to their employees during union organizing campaigns. Washington state just defeated such an attempt, and despite the bills dubious legality, Oregon legislators seem bent on pressing the matter home.

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Win for Right-To-Work

A field-tech with Verizon, located in Tampa, FL, was part of a team assembled to work in California, but was sent home by the CWA because she was not a member of the IBEW in her home state, a right-to-work state. When she applied for a similar second work team headed to that state, she was again denied. The National Right to Work Foundation assisted the employee in a filing a suit against the company and both unions for discrimination based on union membership, in which she won compensation for lost time, and an agreement that the unions will post notices that such discrimination is illegal.

**********

Labor Relations INK is published semi-weekly and
is edited by Labor Relations Institute, Inc. Feel
free to pass this newsletter on to anyone you
think might enjoy it. New subscribers can sign up
by visiting:

http://lrionline.com/free-stuff/newsletter-signup

If you use content from this newsletter please
attribute it to Labor Relations Institute and
include our website address: www.LRIonline.com

Contributing editors for this issue: Phillip Wilson, Greg Kittinger

You are receiving this email because you
subscribed to receive our labor relations
newsletters and updates. You can manage your email
preferences by clicking the link at the bottom of
any of our email communications.

NOTE: if you are using Internet Explorer v. 6, read the text version,
as the html will not load properly in IE6. We recommend upgrading to IE7.

Labor Relations Institute
7850 South Elm Place – Suite E
Broken Arrow, OK
74011
US

INK: January 22, 2009

Labor Relations INK

Download a PDF of this issue with links here.

 

Labor Relations Insight from Phil Wilson

Online Organizing

A really interesting article in The Nation about the promise – and perils – of online organizing. Among the most interesting things it discusses is how the web 2.0 world is actually a threat to unions in the traditional sense of the word.

The “distributed” nature of the web can destroy hierarchical structures (just as it has in the business world). Where a group of workers can self-organize around a problem, why do they need to fund and deal with the politics of a super-structure with its own agenda? They don’t.

read the rest of the article here…

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SEIU Meltdown

The SEIU International Executive Board approved plans to split apart one of it’s largest locals, United Healthcare Workers-West. The rift between UHW and SEIU international goes back to April of 2007, when the local’s leader, Sal Rosselli, questioned SEIU practices that were aligning the union against groups advocating for better patient care. In response to the IEB vote, UHW’s executive board notified SEIU President Andy Stern that rank-and-file members are calling for a disaffiliation referendum for the entire local.

SEIU has repeatedly used strong-arm tactics to replace leaders of dissident locals with those loyal to Stern. Three such Stern allies, Annele Grajeda, Tyrone Freeman, and Rickman Jackson, have all been implicated in corruption scandals involving millions of dollars of union funds.

Since the vote, tensions have increasing. In Oakland, and off-duty policeman apparently hired by SEIU as a private investigator aggressively photographed members of the local union and assaulted a UHW staff member.

 

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UFCW Pension Woes Stacking Up

Ron MacDougall, a former employee of a pork plant on Prince Edward Island in Canada, received a letter informing him that the pension benefits were being cut in half. The UFCW-run plan had been seriously underfunded, and serious problems came to light several years ago about the way union heads mishandled investments.

Another pension run by the UFCW for the Dunsmore, PA, Department of Public Works, was announced to be insolvent. The pensions of other public service workers of the borough remain intact, as they were not handled by UFCW. The DPW’s involvement in the UFCW pension “was a decision by whomever was running DPW at that time, and I mean on the union side. It’s their call,” said Jerry Hart, borough council vice president.

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Big Labor Consolidating Power

David Bonior, a former Michigan congressman and a member of President Barack Obama’s economic-transition team, facilitated a meeting of members of the AFL-CIO and breakaway rival Change To Win. The presidents of twelve unions representing most of the unionized workers in the country met to discuss how to reunite the labor movement.

According to a released statement, “The goal of this meeting is to create a unified labor movement that can speak and act nationally on the critical issues facing working Americans.” The real target is to capitalize on the opportunity presented by the new alignment of the Congress and White House with pro-union issues. “Political action on the national level may be enhanced,” said Gary Chaison, a labor expert at Clark University in Worcester, Mass.

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Only In A Union

A teamster organizer broke into a youth camp run by the rival Fraternal Order of Police and installed surveillance equipment, purchased with Teamsters funds. He was attempting to catch Metro police officers working at the camp who he believed were drinking after hours.

At the time, the Teamsters Union was locked in a struggle with the FOP for the right to represent Metro police officers in negotiations with the city.

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UAW “Roach Motel”

A machine operator at an automotive parts plant gathered signatures of more than half of the 150 workers seeking to drop their representation by UAW Local 19. However, the UAW fought back, stating that the multi-plant local would have to be decertified not just at this plant, but at all 12 plants now operated by the owner of this particular plant.

“The issue is that they make it very easy to get into the union but they make it very difficult to get out. It’s sort of like the roach motel,” said Glenn Taubman, the attorney representing the employee’s petition.

Unions want to have their cake and eat it too. Although it is possible to organize distinct units within one facility, as long as it can be shown that they have some commonality that qualifies them as a “bargaining unit,” the unions will throw up any smokescreen to impede such a unit being decertified.

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Teamsters: Strike vs. Talk

Rather than do their research prior to entering negotiations, the Teamsters allowed 2 votes & 10 weeks of a strike before submitting an information request to the employer. In a statement released to a local paper, Metalworks President and CEO Tom Paine asserted, “the union is just now asking the company for negotiating information, a process that should have been done months ago…The union leadership has caused a severe economic hardship to all members because of a strike that they initiated and continue to promote. Instead of working through the economic and competitive challenges, the Teamsters union instructed their membership to walk off their secure jobs.

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JANUARY SCOREBOARD

Who are the winners (and losers) of the labor movement? Don’t guess, just
check the LRI Scoreboard

View this month’s scoreboard (archives also located here).

Download a PDF of this month’s scoreboard.

 

 

 

 

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Employee Relations tip-of-the-month

Know your HR law! The more competent HR personnel are at their job, and the more the better job they do at answering employee questions in understandable language (sans jargon), the more confidence your employees will have in their opportunity to flourish.

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Top Ten for 2008

National Legal Policy center’s top union corruption stories of last year.

10) Senate appointment scandal has union connections.

9) ACORN is knee-deep in voter-registration and internal fraud.
Los Angeles SEIU chieftain is exposed, dismissed.

7) Law enforcement agents arrest Operating Engineers local thugs.

6) Union investments fuel progressive activism.

5) Mexican unions are bastions of government favoritism and corruption.

4) Labor Department puts more teeth into financial reporting rules.

3) Federal prosecutors expose New Jersey construction locals.

2) Five dozen Gambino family mobsters plead guilty.

1) Barack Obama is elected president.

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Labor Relations INK is published semi-weekly and
is edited by Labor Relations Institute, Inc. Feel
free to pass this newsletter on to anyone you
think might enjoy it. New subscribers can sign up
by visiting:

http://lrionline.com/free-stuff/newsletter-signup

If you use content from this newsletter please
attribute it to Labor Relations Institute and
include our website address: www.LRIonline.com

Contributing editors for this issue: Phillip Wilson, Greg Kittinger

Labor Relations Institute
7850 South Elm Place – Suite E
Broken Arrow, OK
74011
US

INK: November 5, 2008

Labor Relations INK

Download a PDF of this issue with links here.

 

Special Election Edition

Obama Wins – What about the EFCA?

It is Wednesday morning and I am beat. After staying up late to see whether there would be a call in Minnesota, Georgia, Alaska and Oregon (there wasn’t) I finally hit the sack around 1AM. Things aren’t any clearer this morning.

As I write this today it looks like there will be a runoff in Georgia. In Oregon the Republican has a slim lead with 75% of the ballots counted – still way too close to call. Minnesota is headed for a recount. It looks like Alaska will remain a Republican seat.

Based on this, it looks like Democrats will have between 56 and 58 seats when all is said and done (including two independents who caucus with the Democrats, although Joe Lieberman may be kicked out of the Democratic caucus tomorrow).

What does that mean for the EFCA?

…read the rest of this article on our blog.

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Great Depression Redo?

It took until the last weeks of the campaign, but finally several good articles have emerged showing the connection between President Franklin Roosevelt’s anti-competitive, pro-union labor policies and the unnecessary extension of the Great Depression. These two articles (here & here) include additional insight into trade policies and taxes, while this article describes the impact of the Wagner Act and the role of state right-to-work laws in finally turning the situation in a positive direction in the 1950’s.
Both warn that the passage of the EFCA is likely to cause similar damage to an already fragile economy.

 

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The Real EFCA Losers

This article in Forbes does a nice job of highlighting another impact of increased unionization, highly likely under the Employee Free Choice Act:

“A 2002 study by the Bureau of National Affairs found that…private sector workers in the 10 least unionized states earned $1,600 more annually than workers in the 10 most heavily unionized states. What’s more, between 1992 and 2002, the less unionized states generated twice as many nonfarm jobs–with better benefits–than more unionized states. “

Swelling the union roles will also exacerbate the growing tendency of unions to act contrary to the wishes of their members. “Big Labor will get more money and added flexibility to further ignore the wishes of its rank-and-file and pursue its political agenda.”

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Union Impacts Merger

The Communications Workers of America has sued AT&T over a proprosed restructuring plan, and accused the company of using “corporate shell games to avoid contractural obligations.”

AT&T has been working to meld the various business units it acquired after the breakup of the old Bell System into a single enterprise. The CWA lawsuit seeks to force AT&T to honor its obligations under collective bargaining agreements and to recognize all subsidiaries’ existing union contracts.

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The Future of Political Campaigns?

Even before Americans began entering the polling booth, the AFL-CIO was congratulating its membership for the huge expenditure of time and money during the campaign. As we mentioned in the adjacent article on union political activism (The Real EFCA losers), this litany of tactics will only compound under an EFCA climate.

 

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A Global Labor Reaction

It may be prudent to look at how the global labor movement is reacting to the economic climate, particularly with a new regime in control in the U.S.

All labor movements are driven by particular ideological viewpoints, and yet they borrow strategy, rhetoric, and tactics from each other any time it serves their purposes, especially when they can lean on “global justifications” for their prefered agenda.

It is no surprise that Big Labor in the U.S. is crying out for re-regulation of financial markets, universal health care, and huge government spending programs. Interestingly, as a part of their 8-point program, Change To Win labels the passage of the EFCA as occuring “at no cost to taxpayers.” Although the cost won’t come in taxes, as described elsewhere in this issue of INK, there will be a huge price to pay if unionization runs rampant.

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Required Reading!

An Interview with Don Wilson: The EFCA. This is a free transcript of an interview with the CEO of Labor Relations Institute on the EFCA and its impact on American businesses.

Click here to download a PDF of the transcript.

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Prepare, Don’t React

We have been sounding the alarm since the EFCA first surfaced on the legislative radar about the need for U.S. businesses to adopt new sets of practices. The worst response is a knee-jerk reaction. What is required is a purposeful strategy that will retain the trust of employees, along with a preparedness plan in the event union organizing activity surfaces. These management attorneys reinforce our position, and provide some great groundwork for building employee trust.

Our EFCA Tool Kit provides a strategic preparedness kit-in-a-box that nicely complements such proactive actions.

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Coming Soon to the U.S.?

France announced that it would impose surveillance on companies to prevent them from taking certain business actions, such as off-shoring jobs. If Big Labor continues to buy up our government, would we soon follow France’s lead?

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Sticky Fingers!

Current charges or sentences of embezzling union officials:

Karimah Bailey – AFGE: $98,802

Teresa Cora Luna- IATSE: $67,416

Louella M. Zieman – IAIW: $51,684

Michael St. John – GMP: $24,000

Christopher Ethington – UAW: $15,100

Luther L. Corey – ATU: $16,288

David Thompson – BLE: $8,767

Chad Mowery – BLE: $2,537

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