Radical Teacher’s Unionists Join Oakland General Strike

President Obama continues to push a bailout for teacher’s union but it seems clear that in Oakland, there are at least 15% too many teacher’s.  How else could 300 teachers, about 15% of all teacher’s, take a day off and join a general strike organized by the radical Occupy Oakland crowd?

Gretchen Bailey, a kindergarten teacher at Global Family School in Oakland for 15 years, said she took the day off without pay to protest both local budget cuts and the national goals of the Occupy Wall Street movement.  ”I think we need new tax laws,” she said. “We all need to share more of the burden.”

Eric Robertson, a first-grade teacher who gave the district notice he was planning to join the protest, said he was frustrated with governmental divestment in local government and schools.  ”I’d like to see responsible capitalism,” he said. “I think it is a good model but you have to have restrictions on it.”  It is time people started paying government for what they expect of government, he said.  ”I am tired of smelling piss on the street,” he said. “We want responsibility.”

Later that day, masked Occupiers shattered windows, set fires and caused destruction throughout the city.  We can’t help but wonder if this is the responsibility these teachers are demanding?   If these are the people teaching our children, the future is indeed bleak

Union Bosses Busted

Workers in the grocery stores in New York City and surrounding areas are forced to pay union dues and fees to keep their jobs.  It appears this revenue is not enough for the union officials who enjoy the privilege.

From the Epoch Times:

Police arrested the president, former president, and treasurer of Local 348 United Food andCommercial Workers International Union (UFCW) on Thursday. Anthony Fazio Sr., John Fazio Jr., and Anthony Fazio Jr. were charged with racketeering, extortion, money laundering, and witness tampering.

The Fazios used their positions in the union to extort money from employers unionized by the UFCW. They stole more than $2.4 million from union members and employers over the course of 16 years, according to the indictment.

Each leader earned more than $150,000 in annual salary. The UFCW represents more than 6,000 members. It hold close to $7.4 million in assets [source: US DOL LM. The Local 348 office was closed during business hours and could not be reached for comment.

Judge Fines Longshoremen Union -$250,000

Despite a judge’s order to end the illegal strike tactics and violence, union bosses and activists from the Longshoreman’s union in Washington state have continued a reign of terror. In response, a judge has now fined the union $250,000 and has promised to do what it takes to ensure lives and property are protected. The union is so out of control, the NRLB is asking for them to be fined.

Another Big Labor Driven Recall Election?

In Washington State, Longshoremen have conducted an illegal campaign of destruction.  Cowlitz County Sheriff Mark Nelson has become the focal point of big labor’s ire as he tried to protect peace and property.  Longshoreman Boss Dan Coffman is contemplating a recall election against Nelson for carrying out his responsibilities.

Longshoremen have used threats, baseball bats,  vandalism, intimidation and hostage taking of guards at the embattled EGT company to impose their will on the SW Washington community.  Recalling the sheffif is tantamount to making big labor the sheriff of the county — not a great idea if you value equal protection under law.

Big Labor suffered an embarrassing defeat in Wisconsin when it took the recall election route.  It’s pretty clear they will suffer another one if they continue to pursue this embarrassing idea.

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Union Thugs Go Too Far

The Wall Street Journal notices that the Washington State’s Longshoreman’s acts of violence were too much for even the NLRB to ignore:

It turns out a union can go so far that even the current National Labor Relations Board can’t turn a blind eye. A grain operator at the Port of Longview in Washington state was hit with a violent strike yesterday by the International Longshore and Warehouse Union (ILWU). Longshoreman walked out at nearby ports in Tacoma and Seattle.

According to police reports, some 500 longshoreman broke in at about 4:30 a.m. Thursday morning and held six security guards hostage for two hours while the protesters rampaged through the facility. They cut brake lines on railroad cars and spilled grain from boxcars.

The grain terminal under attack is owned by EGT, LLC, which is a joint venture of U.S., Japanese and South Korean companies. The consortium built the facility for $200 million and announced it would employ non-union longshoreman to save $1 million a year in operating costs. Contract negotiations between EGT and the union broke down earlier this year. The facility has been under physical assault since July.

On August 31, the NLRB issued a complaint accusing the union of taking “violent and aggressive” actions, destroying EGT’s property and harassing its employees. In response to an NLRB request, federal Judge Ronald B. Leighton issued a temporary restraining order, which the union has ignored. It would have been impossible for the NLRB not to have issued a complaint when a union is publicly trashing people and property.

There is some concern that the strike against the two big ports could spread to other important U.S. points of entry if ILWU shops begin slowdowns in sympathy with the union in Washington state. If that happens, the events yesterday will become a national issue demanding the attention of a President who is desperately trying to hold his union base together. This one is worth watching.

Big Labor is unrestrained.

From the Associate Press‘ Mike Baker:

A federal judge is ordering union protesters to halt illegal activity as they battle for the right to work at a new grain terminal in Washington state.

U.S. District Judge Ronald Leighton says he feels like a paper tiger because the union clearly ignored a temporary restraining order he issued last week with similar limits. He now wants to hold a hearing to determine whether the union should be held in civil contempt. Leighton says he fears someone is going to be seriously hurt.