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SEIU dues members were miffed when they found out that their dues were going to pay for the $4000/per month DC office space rent for the protest group Occupy.
“We’re not happy,” SEIU member Kandy Gonzalez told Fox News. “When you pay dues, you think you’re paying for a better work environment.”
SEIU reportedly agreed to pay for at least 6 months of rent for the DC Occupy group, when they were told in February that they had to vacate their rat-invested illegal camp on McPherson Square.
Occupy still refuses to acknowledge their relationship as a puppet for SEIU. According to occupy protestor John Zangas, “We’ve got full control of how we allocate space, time, resources, access. Nobody’s telling us what to do. We still have our own brand name. We continue with unbridled decision making.” As long as SEIU holds the purse strings, this appears a bit idealistic.
Continue reading SEIU Dues Money Pays Protesters DC Office Rent
In this issue:
Union Bailout Update Bill Would Permit Merit Pay in Union Shops Machinists Striking Once a Member Always a Member Labor Relations Insight, Sticky Fingers and more…
NOTICE: You can make a PDF of this issue of INK directly from the post. Click here for instructions on how to do so.
http://lrionline.com/easy-way-to-make-our-posts-and-ink-issues-into-pdfs
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Labor Relations Insight by Phillip Wilson
What have we learned in the first week of the “ambush election” rules?
There are two questions I’ve been asked a lot over the last couple of months, and especially in the last week:
Will petitions increase after the new “ambush election” rules go into effect? How far will election times decrease under the new “ambush election” rules?
Here’s what we’ve seen
Continue reading INK May 10, 2012
 Unions have been yowling about the Citizens United decision since the election of Scott Walker was attributed by Democrats to pro-business Super Pacs and big donor bundlers like the Koch brothers. What rarely gets mentioned is the power the controversial decision gave to labor unions that they will only first fully exploit this election year.
Citizens United gave unions the power to spend union resources attempting to politically influence the general public. Before Citizens United, unions could only campaign for or against a political candidate to their own members. The decision removes that restriction granting unions the same freedom of political speech the new law grants to corporations.
And it appears labor intends to take full advantage of the gift; the AFL-CIO has announced it
Continue reading Unions Made More Powerful by Citizens United
SEIU is collecting signatures in California to put two measures on the ballot this fall. Both measures are written in a manner that rewards the two major hospital chains with SEIU contracts and punishes hospitals the union has been unsuccessful in organizing.
 Dignity Health, the state’s largest hospital chain, and Kaiser Permanente, the largest HMO, will not be subject to the proposals. SEIU represents nearly 60,000 workers in those two systems. The measures would prohibit their private competitors from charging more than 25% above the actual cost of providing care and require nonprofits to devote at least 5% of their patient revenue to free care for the poor.
At least a quarter of California’s private hospitals would be exempted from the measures, according to the state’s
Continue reading SEIU Watch
 This week in the National Review, Jonathan Collegio offers some strong insights into the big muscles labor unions flex in every election cycle. Unions and their allies in the media would like nothing more than to keep the negative focus on the evil 1% donors like the Koch brothers, Sheldon Adelson and the “Super PACs” and continue to promulgate the myth of elections controlled by corporate billions. As Collegio writes, “Many roll their eyes and ask: How can Big Labor ever spend more than Big Business?”
It’s simple, actually. Businesses are in business to make and then take a profit and a business doesn’t stay in business for too long if its decision makers are in the habit of throwing good money after bad. Unions,
Continue reading How Unions Buy Our Elections
When Indiana became the first state to pass a Right to Work law since Oklahoma did so in 2001, Big Labor seemingly broke out in a rash and hot sweats, seething with rage and foaming at the mouth. Rather than allow legislative process to continue to be driven by the will of the people as represented by their duly elected officials, they have brought a Federal lawsuit against the state, claiming the law violates both the state and federal constitutions.
Unions are so afraid that other states may follow suit, that they are considering such drastic action as pushing for amendments to state constitutions to prevent Right to Work laws. Michigan state representative Michael Shirkey is leading a RtW charge in that state. Al Garrett, head of statewide AFSCME Council 25, confirmed that Big Labor is considering promoting an amendment that would prohibit the legislature from
Continue reading Unions Feeling the Right-to-Work Heat!
 The American Spectator ran an article co-authored by LRI VP and senior consultant, Russ Brown.
The House compromise with Harry Reid on the FFA funding bill missed the opportunity to roll back recently enacted changes to election rules under the Railway Labor Act, affecting especially the transportation industry. The House caved and accepted cosmetic giveaways by Reid, essentially leaving the rule as recently changed by the National Media Board intact.
  
 A motion to dismiss an NLRB injunction was filed in federal court two weeks ago that could prove to be the first real test of the constitutionality of President Obama’s “recess without a recess” appointments to the NLRB.
The new five-member Board requested its first 10(j) injunction on Jan. 25 against Renaissance Equity, the owner of a Brooklyn apartment complex. Renaissance locked out its unionized employees 15 months ago after SEIU 32BJ rejected the company’s request for drastic wage and benefit cuts. The Board’s injunction would force Renaissance to bring back locked out employees at 2010 pay and benefit levels.
The company’s motion to dismiss that injunction argues that the Board “lacks the statutorily required quorum of three members necessary to authorize the filing of the petition” as
Continue reading Union Bailout Update
 The Indiana Senate passed Right to Work legislation on Monday, by a vote of 28-22 with nine Republicans joining all 13 Democrats in voting against it. The bill must also pass the Indiana House as Democrats continue to play games to avoid the quorum needed to hold a vote. The House will try to convene again at 1:30PM tomorrow for what will surely be a vote to pass the measure.
The House has so far imposed $4,000 in fines against missing Democrats, including $1,000 added to that total today. Democrats participated in the House Monday, without generating a quorum, offering multiple amendments to the bill that were all voted down by the GOP majority.
The deadline for bills to be passed out
Continue reading Indiana Right to Work Inches Forward
In this issue:
• Union Bailout Update • Yes, America, the Unions Are Killing Your Twinkies • Will the Unions Screw Up the Superbowl? • Laborers Vow Never to Forget Keystone • Picket Line Do’s and Don’ts • Teamsters Watch, Sticky Fingers and more…
NOTICE: You can make a PDF of this issue of INK directly from the post. Click here for instructions on how to do so.
Union Bailout Update
The NLRB held a “meet and greet” on Jan. 12 between lawmakers and the three newly sworn in Board members at the center of the latest NLRB firestorm. Members of Congress were denied the chance to question or even scan the resumes of Richard Griffin and Sharon Block as the two Democrats’ names were only first
Continue reading INK January 19, 2012
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