AFL-CIO Boss Richard Trumka could not be happier at President Obama’s “recess” appointment of three big labor lackeys to the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB). The problem is that the Senate was never in recess. The appointments raise grave constitutional concerns for the nation. For the union bosses, nothing, including the Constitution, should stand in the way of their ability to extract due’s money from worker’s checkbooks.
On October 6, 2011, By NRTW Committee Staff
In Virginia, voters get a choice between Obama’s Former-Democrat National Committee Chairman and chief Obamanomics cheerleader Tim Kaine or freedom champion Former-Governor George Allen. George Allen has championed freedom for for employees from forced-dues as Governor and U.S. Senator. His campaign has announced that he intends to continue to fight compulsion for both workers and businesses if he is elected to the U.S. Senate in 2012.
From Wesley Hester at the Richmond Times-Dispatch:
Republican U.S. Senate candidate George Allen will today roll out his “Freedom to Work Act,” a three-pronged blueprint to free U.S. businesses of what he sees as onerous burdens imposed by the federal government.
Allen will unveil his plan at Botetourt County-based Dynax America Corp., a Japanese subsidiary that manufactures parts for automotive transmissions. Allen recruited the business to the state as governor in 1996.
The goals of the plan, Allen said Tuesday in an interview with The Times-Dispatch, are to “help businesses create jobs, save the taxpayers money and protect the liberty of working men and working women.”
[T]he plan would amend the National Labor Relations Act to prevent workers from being compelled to pay union dues or fees to obtain or keep a job and guarantee workers the opportunity to cast a secret ballot before a union can be organized.
“No working man nor working woman should have to pay union dues or fees of say $700 a year as a condition of getting or keeping a job,” he said. “That’s just a matter of liberty.”
“Freedom of Movement,” would strip the National Labor Relations Board of the power to order any employer to move, shut down, or transfer employment.
Allen’s plan would also seek to prohibit project labor agreement requirements on federal and federally assisted construction contracts, and repeal Davis-Bacon wage laws, which require that federal government construction contract workers be paid no less than the locally prevailing wages and benefits on similar project.
On September 10, 2011, By NRTW Committee Staff
South Carolina Boeing employee Dennis Murray, a quality assurance inspector, doesn't mince words regarding IAM union bosses' aims: "They're trying to spank us like unruly children, by having all of our jobs taken away." Credit: WCBD-TV (Charleston, S.C.)
From the South Carolina State newspaper, and op-ed by Rep. Ron Paul:
With jobs so hard to come by for many Americans, you would think a private company deciding to create more than 1,000 jobs would be cheered by Republicans and Democrats alike.
But President Obama’s National Labor Relations Board is doing everything it can to stop Boeing from opening a new plant in North Charleston.
And as sad as it may seem, at the heart of the board’s actions is political cronyism at its absolute worst.
Since South Carolina is a right-to-work state, workers at Boeing’s new plant can’t be forced under the threat of losing their jobs to hand over a portion of their hard-earned money to union officials in dues.
The labor board’s attempt to force Boeing to stay in a non-right-to-work state where the union bosses can force workers to pay up or be fired is political payback for their undying support during the last presidential campaign.
If the Obama administration succeeds, it could result in the virtual destruction of right-to-work laws all across the country: No longer could private companies decide for themselves where to move or open new facilities; the government would now take on that responsibility and make decisions based solely on what benefits the big-labor elite. Right-to-work states would be left out in the cold.
According to the National Institute for Labor Relations Research, right-to-work states had more than double the job growth of forced-unionism states over the past decade. In other words, big-labor control over American workers is a drag on our economy.
It was organized labor’s stranglehold that drove the big three automakers to the brink of bankruptcy — until American taxpayers were forced to rescue them. And it’s not just in the private sector. Big labor’s control of government workers in California, Illinois and elsewhere has driven those states to the brink of bankruptcy. (more…)
On July 10, 2011, By NRTW Committee Staff
Rep. John Kline’s (R-MN) Education and Workforce Committee probed the unelected Obama-appointed National Labor Relations Board’s (NLRB) ill-conceived ‘Ambush Elections’ proposals that will negatively impact employees and bring Card Check Forced Unionism closer to reality. Though most of the news related to hearing was swallowed by the continuing increase in Obama’s unemployment numbers report on Friday, the hearing should not be overlooked.
DANA employee Larry Getts (a NRTW provided witness) testified that he and his fellow co-workers came under attack by union operatives during a UAW Card Check campaign. He appealed to congress to stop the NLRB’s planned quickie elections that would leave workers unable to investigate their options during an extremely short time period that will include union organizers flooding employees with lies.
On the same day of the Ed & Workforce hearing, the National Right To Work distributed copies of David A. Bego’s The Devil At My Doorstep, a firsthand account of SEIU’s three-year attempt to organize Bego’s employees through intimidation and without allowing his employees a secret ballot election.
National Right To Work President Mark Mix included the following explanation of the NLRB’s plans with a copy of The Devil At My Doorstep book that the National Right To Work Committee gave to members of congress: (more…)
On June 2, 2011, By NRTW Committee Staff
The Obama Administration goes to bat for Big Labor – again. The Hill’s John T. Bennett reports:
The White House said it “strongly opposes” a provision in the House Appropriations Committee’s military construction and Veterans Affairs appropriations bill that would block the administration from encouraging the use of so-called “project labor agreements” (PLAs). Such pacts allow government contracts to be awarded exclusively to unionized companies.
The Obama administration says the use of these arrangements “can provide structure and stability to large construction projects,” according to the policy statement. “The coordination achieved through PLAs can significantly enhance the economy and efficiency of Federal construction projects.”
That wording is similar to a February 2009 executive order stating it was the administration’s policy to encourage “executive agencies to consider requiring the use of project labor agreements in connection with large-scale construction projects in order to promote economy and efficiency in federal procurement.”
The House panel’s language would prohibit future use of that order.
“The vast majority of contractors and their employees — more than 80 percent — have voluntarily opted against unionization,” according to the National Right to Work Legal Defense Foundation. “Because most contractors and employees choose to refrain from unionization when they have the free choice, Big Labor turned to politicians to remove that choice and impose union representation on employees from the top down.” (more…)
On January 18, 2011, By NRTW Committee Staff
(Source: January 2011 NRTWC Newsletter)
Former Speakers Newt Gingrich (R-Ga., left) and Dennis Hastert (R-Ill.) both made campaign pledges to support roll-call votes on forced-dues repeal, but blocked action on such legislation when Congress was in session.
Politicians Pledging to Back Right to Work Take Charge of House
Thanks in significant part to the efforts of National Right to Work Committee members across the country, starting this month the U.S. House of Representatives will be led by a speaker and a majority leader who have pledged full support for Americans’ Right to Work without being forced to join or pay dues to a union.
Now Committee members’ job is to make sure Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio), Majority Leader Eric Cantor (R-Va.), and other members of Congress turn their pro-Right to Work promises into action.
John Boehner, Eric Cantor Owe Leadership Posts to Worker-Freedom Advocates
Mr. Boehner and Mr. Cantor enjoy their top leadership positions in the House in part due to pro-Right to Work Americans’ support for congressional candidates nationwide who had pledged to oppose compulsory unionism.
Millions of pro-Right to Work Americans mobilized against candidates who supported compulsory unionism, or tried to hide their position on freedom in the workplace. These Americans expect Mr. Boehner and Mr. Cantor to lay the foundation for a new federal labor policy respecting each employee’s ability to decide for himself or herself whether or not to join or financially support a union, declared Committee President Mark Mix.
“Poll after poll shows nearly four out of five Americans who regularly vote support the Right to Work,” explained Mr. Mix.
“When these citizens helped John Boehner and Eric Cantor become the new House leaders, they sent an unmistakable message to Capitol Hill — roll back Organized Labor’s compulsory-unionism privileges.”
In the 2010 elections, voters firmly rejected major Big Labor power grabs such as the “card check” forced-unionism bill, which sailed through the House as recently as 2007 and seemed close to becoming law in early 2009, after Barack Obama became the 44th U.S. President.
Momentum Swings Toward Right to Work
A full-fledged Committee effort to get federal candidates on the record against the “card check” bill, or “Employee Free Choice Act,” as proponents cynically mislabeled it, surpassed expectations in mobilizing citizens and increasing the number of Right to Work supporters in Congress.
To activate Right to Work supporters, the Committee distributed a record-smashing total of nearly 8.4 million federal candidate Survey 2010 “information packets” through the U.S. Postal Service last year. Above and beyond that, the 2010 program had a massive Internet component, including nearly half a million e-mails transmitted in October alone. All this plus radio, TV, and newspaper advertising.
Lobbying by Committee members persuaded hundreds of House and Senate candidates to take a pro-Right to Work position, which in turn helped many get elected. That’s not surprising, given the Right to Work principle’s overwhelming public support.
“The political momentum is now against compulsory unionism,” commented Mr. Mix.
“That means in this Congress the Committee actually has a chance, if members keep up the pressure, to pick up enough votes from the ‘mushy middle’ to push pro-Right to Work legislation through the House.”
Committee Pushes For Floor Votes (more…)