Since I served in the leadership of several national business associations and was formerly the Regional Representative at the U.S. Department of Labor, I’m often asked about the power of unions vs. the power of business. I always answer the question the same way: There is no such thing as unorganized labor. Unions almost always out-organize...
Here are links to the top stories available online over the past week reporting on union activity including legislation, financial impact, reform activism, etc., from California and across the USA. The State of the Unions: With labor under full-scale attack, President Obama must speak up By Leo Gerard, United Steelworkers President, February 12, 2013, In...
“There’s a difference between being liberal and progressive and being a union Democrat.” San Jose Mayor Chuck Reed, Bloomberg The most powerful defenders of that broken system, without a question, is the teachers’ union.” Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa, Sacramento Press If you wish to challenge the conventional wisdom, that Democrats and liberals march in...
In his guest column last month in the Orange County Register, “Right to Work sets workers free to freeload,” Kevin O’Leary made some strong points for standing against the National Right to Work movement. Persuasive? Yes. Completely accurate? No. As a public school teacher working in California, I have 25 years of experience dealing with...
Here are links to the top stories available online over the past week reporting on union activity including legislation, financial impact, reform activism, etc., from California and across the USA. Michigan Union Tell-All: A memo shows how unions hope to keep coercing worker dues Editorial, February 5, 2013, Wall Street Journal When Michigan became the...
If you don’t read our weekly Union Watch Highlights, where we compile links and excerpts from the most relevant stories across the U.S. concerning union activity and union reform, this week would be a good time to start. Because across the country, an increasing percentage of state legislatures are beginning to seriously confront the challenges...
Last Friday’s opinion by the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals was a profound blow to Big Labor’s aspirations to achieve card check through use of regulatory action (see blog Card Check through Regulation vs. Legislation), especially after the re-election of President Obama and recent decisions by the pro-labor NLRB to extend Big Labor’s political money...
Here are links to the top stories available online over the past week reporting on union activity including legislation, financial impact, reform activism, etc., from California and across the USA. Can Latinos Save Labor Unions? By Kathleen Miles, January 28, 2013, The Huffington Post Facing an onslaught of anti-union legislation and the pressure of outsourcing,...
This month, a front group for organized labor called the Restaurant Opportunities Center (ROC) is asking Los Angeles diners to embrace a half-baked new “Diners’ Guide” that ranks restaurants based on their labor practices. In reality, this is a hypocritical ploy done for the benefit of ROC’s labor allies, not the general public. Given ROC’s history of...
Those looking for excellent news in the midst of a clearly-souring global economy can find it in Wisconsin, where a Federal appeals court upholds Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker’s restrictions on public unions A federal appeals court on Friday upheld Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker’s contentious law stripping most public workers of nearly all of their collective...
Here are links to the top stories available online over the past week reporting on union activity including legislation, financial impact, reform activism, etc., from California and across the USA. Another Walker Vindication: Government unions lose in court again Editorial, January 22, 2013, Wall Street Journal The last few years haven’t been great for limited...
Earlier this month leaders of the Obama reelection campaign announced the formation of a permanent advocacy organization called Organizing for Action that will enlist his supporters to fight for his policy agenda. The creation of this organization should come as no surprise, since the two key prerequisites for its existence are already in place. (1)...
Here are links to the top stories available online over the past week reporting on union activity including legislation, financial impact, reform activism, etc., from California and across the USA. Entertainment executives, unions join to promote Greuel candidacy By Michael Finnegan and Maeve Reston, January 15, 2013, Los Angeles Times The group, Working Californians, is...
When California Governor Jerry Brown unveiled his latest state budget, he explained that as the budget begins to generate surpluses, the state will finally begin to dismantle the “Wall of Debt” that has been accumulating. Whether or not Gov. Brown’s budget will generate surpluses, this year or any time soon, is an open question. But...