“Public employee unions make enormous contributions to our states and citizens,” Barack Obama said in defending the Wisconsin state’s public workers unions’ assault against the Governor’s economy plans. “Contributions” for sure. Unions contributed $400 million to his 2008 campaign and state, county, and municipal employees contributed $90 million to Democrats in 2010.
Obama made clear almost the moment he took office that he was union-owned. On Feb. 6, 2009, he signed Executive Order 13502 establishing Project Labor Agreements (PLAs). They require contractors on any large project to hand over exclusive bargaining control to pay inflated wages and benefits to unions, undermining a fair bidding process.
Money speaks louder even than the frenzied shouts of thousands of
union slackers. The White House wing of the Democratic National Committee reportedly was in full support of the union siege in Wisconsin, bringing in protestors from around the country.
No matter how the current battles between public-worker unions and various state governments turn out, public-sector employees face growing resentment across America in the future. The major reason: everywhere in the country public employees—whether union members or not–are seen as over rewarded in pay, benefits and pensions compared to compensation for Joe and Jane Average Citizen. This disparity is especially true on the West Coast and in the North East.
Most state governments are sitting in red ink and increasingly desperate as to how they can bring balance to their budgets as required by all the states except Vermont. Governors and legislatures are examining every means of trimming costs, including reducing overly generous rewards for public unions. Forty-five states and the District of Columbia face budget shortfalls in 2012.
While some of the unknowing sympathize with the union position that they should cling to their bargaining rights–as if they had the weight of human rights–few know what the provisions of any union contract are.
For instance: in Wisconsin, elected union delegates or alternates to the biennial convention of the union “shall be granted time off without loss of benefits, not to exceed a total of 10 workdays to attend such convention.” The time off may be charged to vacation credits, holiday credits, compensatory time or to administrative leave without pay and without loss of benefits, as the individual employee may designate.
The union shall be allowed to prepay the retirement contributions for employees who are on leave of absence without pay for contract negotiations.
Local union officers and stewards may use existing telephone facilities during non-instructional hours for union business. Likewise with e-mail facilities.
Obama loves the unions, they got him where he is today. There's a reason the top union leaders come and go from the White House like rats at the garbage dump. Let's vote him and his administration out in 2012, let him go back to community organizing. Then we can fumigate the White House.
And let's not forget BO's admin's determination to destroy a major company–Toyota. Why? I believe the whole reason why the gov't went full-throttle against a company which actually had a higher safety rating than Gov't Motors or Chystler, was the UAW wanted the union forced on a successful company that employed thousands of Americans but tended to build its plants in Right to Work states.
This morning I just heard that the unions have put out a fatwa on small business.
That’s right the unions are calling for a boycott of small businesses.
Many small businesses that have been targeted (oops I used the word targeted. I guess its okay the unions are doing it) because some of the owners and staff in small business have donated to Governor Scott Walker and the Republican Party in Wisconsin.
Yet the 95% of the union donations are made to the Democrat Party.
Still that is not what concerns me, the fact that the union rank and file who are made up of mostly honorable proud Americans are being used by the Socialist movement does. http://www.therepublicrevealed.com/forums/index.p…
That’s right the unions are calling for a boycott of small businesses.
Many small businesses that have been targeted (oops I used the word targeted. I guess its okay the unions are doing it) because some of the owners and staff in small business have donated to Governor Scott Walker and the Republican Party in Wisconsin. More… http://www.therepublicrevealed.com/forums/index.p…
Victor Laslow
Good article.
Only individual rights exist, not group rights which negate an individual's rights. There is no right to collective bargaining. All the laws that have required collective bargaining between employers, be they public or private, with certified labor unions as the exclusive representative of employees in a bargaining unit have extended privileges, not rights, to labor unions, often at the expense of the rights of individual employees. There are several federal court decision in cases where government employee unions have claimed the right to collective bargaining and in every instance the courts have ruled that there is no right to collective bargaining. In the private sector the federal government gave unions monopoly bargaining powers through the National Labor Relations Act, which doesn't cover public employees. Many states have enacted similar laws covering public employment. Many states have enacted "right to work laws" which outlaw a compulsary union membership to be allowed to work.
"….. fundamentally transform America…..". What else needs to be pointed out?
Superb article. The cancer of America – UNIONS. I believe in FREEDOM of choice. Consequently, I believe in the RIGHT TO WORK without the coercion of unions and their thugs. I have always wondered What is the salary of the union leaders i.e. Trumka, etc. Does anyone know? The question arises because the unions use class envy to create discord among its members. Yet, the union ELITE are members of the so-called 'RICH'.
Shame on this administration that promotes using class envy to get ahead. It reminds me of Soviet Russia and the Communist Party. Union thugs = communist revolutionaries???? SHAME, SHAME,SHAME. Actions speak louder than words, Obama is displaying his true color – RED ( hammer and sickle??? ).