Right to Work Blog

The National Right to Work Legal Defense Foundation issued a news release announcing parallel federal lawsuits concerning illegal forced dues:

With free legal aid from the National Right to Work Foundation, three UPS employees in Kentucky and two UPS employees in Ohio filed federal lawsuits Friday and Monday, respectively, against national and local Teamsters officials for illegal extraction of forced union dues.

In the lawsuits, the nonmember employees claim that the national and local unions breached their duty of fair representation and violated the employees’ First and Fifth Amendment rights by charging and collecting fees used for organizing nonunion workers throughout the United States and financing a members-only “Strike and Defense Fund.” . . .

An audit of the Teachers Association of Long Beach (TALB), California, confirms that workers’ dues money that was to go to the general fund was used for election campaigns, according to the Long Beach Press Telegram.

The audit found that:

Political expenses appeared to have been paid with money designated for the union’s general operations, and not from separately maintained accounts reserved for political causes.

The amount of campaign spending appeared to have exceeded the totals approved by the union’s two governing bodies. . . .

. . . [A]uditors found that TALB appeared to have used $39,629 from its nonpolitical accounts for campaign purposes, according to a copy of the audit, which was based on the firm’s review of financial documents and employee interviews.

Of that total, $10,667, which had been designated for bargaining expenses, apparently was spent on political items such as postage, a banner, campaign photography, legal services and other purchases, the auditors concluded.

They concluded that the money should have been allocated to the union’s separately maintained political fund.

Because union members designated specific amounts of their dues for politics, the use of TALB’s financial resources for political activities “would be considered a misappropriation of funds,” auditors concluded in their written findings.

Also part of the $39,629 total was a nearly $29,000 check from TALB general funds made out in August of 2006 to attorney Fredric Woocher for the payment of legal fees. An invoice from Woocher’s law firm did not specify the exact purposes of the legal services that were provided, according to the auditors. . . .

Workers in California do not have the Right to Work and are coerced into joining the union and paying union dues even after mismanagement of their funds.

Gov. David Paterson has given New York’s public workers’ union bosses everything they ever wanted by signing a law that makes union dues mandatory in perpetuity, even if a worker decides not to join a union.

“It’s a very, very significant present to the labor unions,” said Edmund J. McMahon, director of the Empire Center for New York State Policy at the Manhattan Institute, a conservative-leaning research group. “What it does is it removes one of the few remaining leverage points people still have over unions. And management, which is the taxpayer, has very, very little remaining leverage.”

It is interesting to note that New York Republicans in the Senate rolled over like scolded dogs — not one Senator was brave enough to stand up for union workers and taxpayers and the law passed unanimously.

Immediately after electing a new governor, Big Labor set its sight on Colorado to rig the law to favor union organizing, forced dues and agitation over job creation and production. The union bosses were shocked when Gov. Bill Ritter (D), their golden boy, vetoed a major piece of this agenda earlier this year. But now Ritter appears to be making amends — big time.

State rules give state employees the right “to associate, self-organize, and designate representatives of their choice.” And it permits union representatives to “confer, with prior consent from the supervisor, on employment matters during work hours. Such conferences should be scheduled to minimize disruption to productivity and the general work environment.” But that isn’t good enough for the union bosses.

New guidelines, put forth by Colorado Department of Personnel and Administration Director Rich Gonzales, would have required the state to provide “employee organization” (i.e. union activists) with e-mail addresses of all employees, use of state mailrooms and space to hold meetings. The Rocky Mountain News opines that:

. . . Gonzales drafted rules defining “reasonable access” for “talking to and distributing literature to employees” (a euphemism for union organizing) to include a wide array of common areas including main entrances and exits, cafeterias, break rooms, parking lots, and outdoor walkways at virtually all state facilities.

Not only that, unions are given the explicit right to reserve conference or meeting rooms within state facilities, as well as use both the state’s centralized mail distribution system to communicate with state employees and all internal mail systems within departments.

Finally, unions can use the state’s e-mail system to conduct organizing drives and otherwise communicate with state employees, subject to certain limitations such as volume e-mails (no more than three per month during work hours, which officially do not, surprisingly, include noon to 1 p.m.).

. . .

It is naive to think that volume e-mails dealing with union organizing will not disrupt normal work performance, regardless of when they are sent. Campaign material is inherently a discussion-provoking distraction. Moreover, the possibility of the pervasive presence of union organizers allowed by such broad mandatory access to state workplaces is likely to create at least an irritating and distracting environment for many workers, if not worse.

A small fraction of Colorado’s 74,000 state workers are unionized; the single largest bargaining representation covers about 4,000 members. So it’s easy to see why Colorado labor leaders are so enthusiastic in their defense of the generous assistance being offered by the Ritter administration.

The new policy on “employee organization access” as currently crafted is unnecessary at best. At worst, it is the payback to organized labor that Republicans have characterized it to be.

Some legislators have characterized the move as the creation of a forced-unionism paradise. But we know it’s the beginning of a worker’s nightmare should the policy be implemented.

California state workers, subjected to forced unionism, will have little to say about the new 50% increase in dues money and “fair-share” payments the SEIU has assessed upon them. Why the increase?

Local 1000 donated $6.7 million in member dues to defeat an initiative on the ballot that would have required unions to obtain written consent from members before money could be used for political purposes. That sent the union into economic chaos.

According to the Capitol Weekly (page 7), the new assessment raised dues to $90 a month leaving members upset with the decision. “To them, we are a huge ATM machine. Because of that they spend, spend, spend,” said Ken Hamidi who is organizing other members to fight the dues hike. Hamidi also notes that a large portion of the dues hike goes right to SEIU headquarters in Washington, DC.

Let’s get this right — the union bosses deplete the members’ dues treasury to fight an initiative that would give workers choice and input into their spending decisions. Then they assess a tax on those members who have no choice so they can spend more money without member input. Sounds like a vicious cycle rectified only by passage of a Right to Work law.

It’s a shame when union bosses need the threat of an administrative law judge to do the right thing.

As reported by the Associated Press:

The United Steelworkers union has agreed to drop disciplinary action against four former members who defied a three-month strike last year at Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co., the workers and the union said Monday.

The workers said they crossed the picket line to support their families. They said they were threatened with $620 fines and subjected to continued dues deductions after they quit the union and got harassed by union members using bullhorns outside their homes.

To settle a National Labor Relations Board complaint, Steelworkers Local 2L in Akron [Ohio] agreed to withdraw the disciplinary measures, erase records of the actions and post the local’s commitment against harassing union-covered workers. . . .

The National Right to Work [Legal Defense] Foundation, which opposes compulsory union membership, represented the former union members.

“The outright contempt that these thuggish union officials have for employees who refuse to toe the union line is despicable,” said Stefan Gleason, foundation vice president.

Union bosses will fight to the death to oppose giving workers the right to decide for themselves whether or not to join or pay dues to a union. After watching the Big Labor front group “American Rights at Work” trying to raise voluntary contributions, it’s no wonder.

American Rights at Work is a union funded front group that promotes Big Labor’s agenda. But it appears that their efforts to supplement union largess is falling on deaf ears. In an email to supporters, the group pleads for contributions to hit their $15,000 goal. In fact, response appears to be so slow that the deadline for contributions was “extended.” As of the last call for cash, the group only raised $13,905.

It’s no wonder the union bosses won’t relinquish their right to coerce workers into paying dues. It’s a lot easier than asking for it.

Denver Post columnist David Harsanyi has the equation figured out — Big Labor campaign cash is pulling the strings in Colorado as the newly elected Democrat legislature quickly moves legislation to help pad Big Labor’s bank account:

Is your organization hemorrhaging members and dollars? On the brink of extinction?

Don’t fret. There’s a remedy: Just contribute oodles of money to your local legislator, and they’ll force people to pay your club and keep it afloat.

In essence, that’s what HB 1072 is all about. The bill would allow one group of employees to coerce everyone at a company to pay the union. And it’s on the fast track to the governor’s desk.

HB 1072 is so transparently unfair and potentially damaging to Colorado’s economy that business leaders and editorial boards of every ideological flavor have already lined up to oppose it.

. . .

The National Institute on Money in State Politics is a nonpartisan organization that tracks campaign finances. There you’ll find that many Democrats owe their political existence to unions.

Here’s a small sampling from 2006:

Colorado Senate President Joan Fitz-Gerald’s top 12 contributions were all from labor unions - around 32 percent of all her special-interest money.

Rep. Jim Riesberg’s top 11 contributions all came from labor unions - over 37 percent of his total.

Ten of Rep. Bernie Buescher’s top 13 contributions were from unions.

Eleven of Rep. Randy Fischer’s top 13 donors were unions. (The other two were Randy Fischer).

How generous.

Rep. Mike Merrifield’s top 11 contributors were labor unions; all told, almost 30 percent of his “economic interest” contributions. (This guy might as well take a paycheck from the teachers unions and get it over with.)

Fifteen of Rep. Judy Solano’s top 20 contributions were from labor unions.

Of Sen. Betty Boyd’s 20 top donors, 15 were unions. And so on…

As for Gov. Bill Ritter, 18 of his top 20 donors were labor unions (though it should be noted that the largest special-interest donor category to Ritter was listed by the institute as “Lawyers & Lobbyists.” Clearly, that group is deeply concerned about all that scandalous money in politics at the statehouse.)

If you substituted the words “union” and “labor” with “oil” and “gas,” rest assured that such contribution tallies would raise some angry eyebrows.

After all, unions supplied over a million dollars to local candidates in 2006. The oil and gas industry: $195,681.

The Colorado AFL-CIO, led by Steve Adams, gave more than $130,000 to local Democrats alone. This included $10,000 to Ritter’s campaign.

In local politics, that’s no small stake.

In fact, the importance of raising money can’t be belittled. Twenty-four of the top 25 fundraisers in Colorado House races won their elections. The same goes for the governor, attorney general, secretary of state and treasurer races.

Adams helped fund the Dems’ victory, and now he expects results. Actually, he’s so confident that HB 1072 will pass, he refuses to negotiate.

Now, some union advocates will try to create the impression that this is a struggle between “labor” and business - as if they’re of equal importance.

Over 90 percent of Colorado’s “labor” force has nothing to do with unions. This is about a shrinking special-interest group trying to buy legislation to survive.

Ritter’s decision on this pernicious bill will tell us a lot about the new governor - and about his promise to remain independent and moderate.

Rep. Jack Wells (R-Bozeman) and Sen. Greg Barkus (R-Kalispell) have introduced legislation in the Montana legislature to give workers in the state Right to Work protection. The bill would make it illegal to force someone to join a union as part of working at a union workplace. The bill has Big Labor activists up in arms, but it’s sad to see some Republicans join the opposition.

According to an Associated Press story in the Billings Gazette, Republican Public Service Commissioner Brad Molnar opposes worker protection, saying “workers covered by unions are not required to join the union,” — right so far — but he goes on to say, in effect, that if workers don’t pay dues or fees then they should be fired. In other words, Molnar supports taxing workers who choose not to join a union. ‘“Why wouldn’t you pay for that?’ he told the House Business and Labor Committee.” Because it punishes workers who exercise basic constitutional rights, Mr. Molnar.

Montana workers need protection from this type of abuse, but with Big Labor backed Democrat Gov. Brian Schweitzer opposing the legislation, enactment of the law this year is an uphill battle. The silver lining is that a roll-call vote on the bills will give Montana citizens a right to exercise their rights in 2008. Stay tuned for the list of those who will stand for freedom and those who will protect coercion.

According to the Associated Press, two “national maritime union bosses accused of spending organizational funds on personal luxuries, including a bachelor party, have been convicted of corruption charges.”

Michael and Robert McKay were found guilty Friday of racketeering conspiracy and several lesser charges stemming from their time as president and secretary-treasurer, respectively, of American Maritime Officers.

“In addition to the racketeering charge, which carries a possible 20-year sentence, Michael McKay, 59, and Robert McKay, 56, were convicted of mail fraud and record-keeping offenses. Robert McKay . . . was also convicted of embezzlement.”

Reportedly, the brothers “used the union to pay for personal luxuries such as a bachelor party and repairs for a dive boat.”

Labor laws prohibit convicted felons from holding union office. Yet, during a trial so clear cut that the jury reached a verdict after only one day of deliberation, Michael McKay was narrowly re-elected president.