Heritage Foundation: Don’t Force States to Unionize

The Heritage Foundation warns of the negative implication of forcing states to unionize firemen and police forces:

The Senate may soon consider a bill that would force states to allow for the unionization of public employees. In addition to the extraordinary amount of mandates imposed under President Obama, Congress has been attempting to extend the burden of collective bargaining imposed upon every state and local government. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D–NV) recently reintroduced the Public Safety Employer-Employee Cooperation Act in an attempt to rush it through Congress before Republicans take control of the House in January. This legislation would mandate collective bargaining for police, firefighters, and emergency medical personnel—even in states that have passed laws to ensure this can’t happen.

Minnesota Governor Tim Pawlenty made headlines today with his editorial against government unions. It is no secret that unions have increasingly resorted to government employees to boost membership. Minnesota has362,000 union members, and Governor Pawlenty has had his fair share of battles to keep taxpayers from footing the bill.

Government is the easy way to avoid pesky things like efficiency and competition. In September, Heritage expert James Sherk exposed the fact that since last year, most union workers now collect a check paid for by taxpayers. Some of that money is automatically deposited into union coffers to pay for their dues. This is made possible through a taxpayer-funded payroll system.

The rise of government unions has had many troubling effects.

            • Federal workers already receive up to 22 percent more than their private counterparts, resulting in $47 billion in additional taxes.

            • Many states force government employees to join a union or lose their job.

            • Since the beginning of the recession, private sector employment has fallen while federal employment has risen. Government employees have not faced the same hard decisions that many Americans have confronted during the recent economic decline.

            • Unions are able to take the money they receive from their members and lobby for increased wages in the form of more taxes.

Congress should let each state decide whether it wants to force its taxpayers to fund overpaid union employees.

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Reid’s Lame Payback Bill

****UPDATE 12/6/2010**** 

This evening, Senator Reid moved to proceed to the following bills and filed cloture on the motions:

- Calendar #662, S.3991, the Public Safety Employer-Employee Cooperation Act of 2009 (commonly known as Police -Fire Fighters Forced Monopoly Bargaining Bill);

By unanimous consent, the cloture vote on the motion to proceed to Calendar #662, S.3991 (the Public Safety Employer-Employee Cooperation Act of 2009) will occur upon conclusion of the impeachment proceedings. We expect to complete the impeachment proceedings Wednesday morning.

********

Sen. Harry Reid is trying to repay his political debts and is attempting for move legislation that would give union bosses monopoly bargaining power over taxpayer money for police and fireman. The Detroit News adds their thoughts on the deal:

Having survived a near-death experience on Election Day thanks largely to massive donations from labor unions, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid is paying back his benefactors. The Democrat from Nevada says that during Congress’ lame duck session he will try to once again force through a measure giving police and fire unions the upper hand in dealing with local communities.

Reid will seek a cloture vote on the Public Safety Employer-Employee Cooperation Act, which despite its name has little to do with cooperation. Rather, the bill would be a federal clone of Michigan’s disastrous Public Act 312, which is blamed with ruining the finances of scores of communities, including Detroit, and pushing many to the brink of bankruptcy — that’s you, Hamtramck.

The bill would make it easier for police and firefighters to organize labor unions and force all officers to join, even in right-to-work states. That’s a brazen usurpation of state authority, and very likely unconstitutional. (more…)

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Detroit News: Stop the Reid Union Giveaway

The Detroit News takes aim at Sen. Harry Reid’s effort to repay union bosses who supported his campaign with your tax dollars:

Having survived a near-death experience on Election Day thanks largely to massive donations from labor unions, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid is paying back his benefactors. The Democrat from Nevada says that during Congress’ lame duck session he will try to once again force through a measure giving police and fire unions the upper hand in dealing with local communities.

Reid will seek a cloture vote on the Public Safety Employer-Employee Cooperation Act, which despite its name has little to do with cooperation. Rather, the bill would be a federal clone of Michigan’s disastrous Public Act 312, which is blamed with ruining the finances of scores of communities, including Detroit, and pushing many to the brink of bankruptcy — that’s you, Hamtramck.

The bill would make it easier for police and firefighters to organize labor unions and force all officers to join, even in right-to-work states. That’s a brazen usurpation of state authority, and very likely unconstitutional. (more…)

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The Detroit News: Harry Reid’s Big Labor Payback

According to the Detroit Free Press, Harry Reid intends to reward Big Labor for pulling out all the stops during his reelection by forcing union dues on first responders across the country among other actions.  See the excerpt below and click on the link for the full story. (also see the related National Right To Work Action Alert)

From The Detroit News:

Having survived a near-death experience on Election Day thanks largely to massive donations from labor unions, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid is paying back his benefactors. The Democrat from Nevada says that during Congress’ lame duck session he will try to once again force through a measure giving police and fire unions the upper hand in dealing with local communities.

Reid will seek a cloture vote on the Public Safety Employer-Employee Cooperation Act, which despite its name has little to do with cooperation. Rather, the bill would be a federal clone of Michigan’s disastrous Public Act 312, which is blamed with ruining the finances of scores of communities, including Detroit, and pushing many to the brink of bankruptcy.

In Michigan, where most major police and firefighters are already unionized, the largest impact would be in rural areas, since the law would also likely apply to volunteer fire departments. That would put most of those volunteer outfits out of business, and destroy an important grass-roots community protection network. These volunteers are often highly trained individuals who provide the only defense for their neighbors’ homes and property.

But the worse part of Reid’s union-buttering bill is that it would codify in federal law a state act that Michigan must get out from under if communities are to regain control of their finances.

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Again, Reid-Pelosi Plan to Expand Government Employee Forced Unionism

Excerpt from NRTW President Mark Mix Op-Ed in the Washington Times (to read the full version, click here):

Today, Big Government, not the private sector, is Big Labor’s bread and butter. That’s why union officials push relentlessly for higher taxes and bigger government and seem completely unconcerned that the policies they advocate will slash overall private-sector job growth in future years.

Just three decades ago, less than a third of all employees subject to “exclusive” union bargaining worked for the government. Earlier this year, the U.S. Labor Department reported that for the first time ever, a majority of unionized workers across America are now government employees.

The outsized power and privileges of government union bosses clearly are a major force behind the unsustainable growth of government payrolls. According to data furnished by respected labor economists Barry T. Hirsch and David A. Macpherson, nonunion government employment nationwide actually fell by 2 percent, but Big Labor-controlled government employment grew by nearly 4 percent from 2007 to 2009.

Incredibly, nearly all Democrats and many Republicans on Capitol Hill appear eager to make matters even worse by rubber-stamping legislation (H.R. 413 and S. 3194) that would federally grant public-safety union officials monopoly bargaining privileges over state and local public employees nationwide. (more…)

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President Obama (D-IL), House Speaker Pelosi (D-CA), and Senate Leader Reid (D-NV) are risking the nation’s fiscal health to payback Big Labor Bosses for forced-union-dues financed political campaign operations.  Michael Barone in the Washington Examiner:

Starting around 1980, the country began to revive. Big Government lowered taxes and deregulated transportation and communications. Entrepreneurs and investors replaced stodgy corporate management with new companies and new products.

The conformist “organization man” Americans of the 1950s were replaced by nonconformist innovators, risk-takers and creators who created a new economy that central planners could never have envisioned. Bill Gates and Steve Jobs didn’t wait for those at the top of Big Units to tell them what to do.

Big Business changed: The Fortune 500 list of 2010 doesn’t look anything like that of 1970.  … Most union members today are public employees.

The Obama Democrats, faced with a grave economic crisis, responded with policies appropriate to the Big Unit America that was disappearing during the president’s childhood.

Their financial policy has been to freeze the big banks into place. Their industrial policy was to preserve as much as they could of General Motors and Chrysler for the benefit of the United Auto Workers. Their health care policy was designed to benefit Big Pharma and other big players. Their housing policy has been to try to maintain existing prices. Their macroeconomic economic policy was to increase the size and scope of existing government agencies to what looks to be the bursting point.

What we see is Big Government colluding with Big Business and trying to breathe life into Big Labor.

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