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COMMENTARY: GIVING CREDIT WHERE IT’S DUE: PRIVATE SECTOR UNION TAKES STAND AGAINST THEFT

December 5, 2023 // One union, the United Food and Commercial Workers Local 3000, is actually instructing its members to go on strike and protest the reality that store managers are permitting criminality. This past weekend, in fact, hundreds of Macy’s employees walked off the job in several stores in western Washington to raise awareness about shoplifting and lack of security.

Recent Legal Battle Latest in War to Protect the American Worker

December 6, 2023 // To justify its actions, the union claimed Baker had signed a subsequent dues-authorization form in 2020 that included the opt-out window provision. But when she asked to see the document, the union refused. After being forced to hire an attorney, Baker was finally able to negotiate a settlement with CSEA in July 2022. Under its terms, her dues deductions would stop immediately, and she would be reimbursed for the dues that had been deducted from her pay since April. The union also acknowledged for the first time that Baker had not been considered a member since April 2022, which was news to Baker. CSEA also enclosed a copy of the dues authorization she had allegedly signed two years earlier. The document had an e-signature rather than a “wet signature,” and Baker denies ever having approved it.

Government Unions Love Democrats

December 6, 2023 // The four largest government unions are the National Education Association (NEA), American Federation of Teachers (AFT), Service Employees International Union (SEIU) and the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (Afscme). In the 2021-2022 election cycle, they spent more than $708 million combined on politics.

L’Oréal Employee Hits Union with Federal Charges for Illegal Dues Deductions, Threats for Seeking to Oust Union

December 6, 2023 // According to charge, union agent threatened: “The union is like a big mafia…something bad is going to happen to you” The election to decertify RWDSU, which took place October 19 and 20, is currently the subject of objections from Hoyos Lopez. The objections assert that union officials unlawfully interfered with the election through their intimidating actions during the September 22 meeting, as well as through campaign misrepresentations and racially-charged tactics. Hoyos Lopez’s federal charges, which she filed after submitting her election objections, state that employees she believed were acting on behalf of the union targeted her after she attempted to defend the integrity of the election. On November 27, “a L’Oréal contractor…intimidated [Hoyos Lopez]” and told her that “people say you have to leave because you have problems with the union.” The charges argue that all of these actions by RWDSU union officials and alleged union agents are clear violations of Hoyos Lopez’s rights under Section 7 of the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA), the federal law the NLRB is charged with enforcing. Section 7 protects workers’ right to refrain from union activities.

Labor unions are still giving Democrats climate headaches

December 6, 2023 // The United Steelworkers, whose members operate oil refineries around the state, has endorsed a 12-year transition roadmap developed by economists at the University of Massachusetts Amherst, which proposes California spend $470 million annually to support workers laid off from fossil fuel jobs. In October, USW joined a new labor coalition, including chapters from United Auto Workers, Service Employees International Union and American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees, that released policy priorities including wage replacement, healthcare coverage, retraining and relocation support for displaced workers.

Ex-Philly labor leader John Dougherty found guilty in embezzlement trial

December 7, 2023 // Former Philadelphia labor leader John "Johnny Doc" Dougherty and his co-defendant Brian Burrows were found guilty on multiple counts in their federal embezzlement trial. Federal prosecutors had alleged that Dougherty -- the former business manager of IBEW Local 98 and the Philadelphia Building and Construction Trades Council -- spent the money on home renovations, meals, concerts and groceries for himself and his family and friends.

Featured Research

Labor unions are still giving Democrats climate headaches

Alexander Thomas MacDonald

Federalist Society

Commentary: Is the NLRB Unconstitutional? The Courts May Finally Decide.

Editorial Board

Commonwealth Foundation

Government Unions Love Democrats

Timothy Snowball

Freedom Foundation

Recent Legal Battle Latest in War to Protect the American Worker

Isabel Blank

Americans for Fair Treatment

OREGON: Portland teachers union reaches tentative deal

Elisabeth Messenger, Andrew Holman

Americans for Fair Treatment Commonwealth Foundation

Op-Ed: Union bosses or real estate moguls? Tracking the PFT’s finances

Fairness Center

Fairness Center

Gustafson v. AFSCME, Council 13 CASE SUMMARY