Posts tagged Public Sector Workers
Fetterman introduces bill to allow striking workers to collect SNAP benefits
July 28, 2023 // The Food Secure Strikers Act comes amid a summer wave of union organizing activity — from locomotive plant workers in Erie to Hollywood writers and actors. A strike by newsroom workers at the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, Fetterman’s hometown newspaper, has been going on for nearly a year. “Every union worker who is walking the picket line this summer needs to know that we have their back here in Washington,” Fetterman said in a statement. “The union way of life is sacred. It’s what built Pennsylvania and this nation. It is critical for us to protect workers’ right to organize, and that includes making sure they and their families have the resources to support themselves while on strike.”
Federal court hands down a major conviction of corrupt union bosses
July 2, 2023 // "LEEBA inflicted severe damage on its members over the years, to the point that it created division, disgust and disdain," said Bruce Mateer, a former member of the union. "Thanks to LEEBA, we have one of the worst-paid police departments in the entire state of New York and we lack proper retirement benefits. LEEBA is supposed to serve their members, but both contracts that LEEBA signed did not meet their members’ needs." Labor unions are supposed to have one simple function: represent their workers during negotiations with management and try to get the best deal possible. Kenneth Wynder and his cronies are unfortunately just the latest in a long tradition of union bosses who decided to make enriching themselves their No. 1 priority.
Know your Janus rights: Government employees still can’t be forced to pay unions in Michigan
March 31, 2023 // “Passing bills that are currently unconstitutional can mislead employees into believing that the law has changed and that they must now pay a union,” said Steve Delie, director of labor policy at Mackinac Center for Public Policy. “Public sector employees across the country have a First Amendment right to not pay a union thanks to the U.S. Supreme Court’s Janus v. AFSCME decision. Repealing right-to-work does nothing for public sector employees except cause confusion.”
Opinion: Labor unions, workers and the need to think outside the box
February 23, 2023 // The California Policy Center reports that as of December 2022, 27.1% of eligible public employees in California have chosen not to pay into government unions. Last November, employees of the local union SEIU 2015, a statewide union representing public employees in California, went on strike alleging unfair labor practices at SEIU 2015. Every two year election cycle hundreds of millions of dollars worth of membership dues from public sector unions in California alone are spent financing elections and lobbying efforts. And, because of a longstanding California employment law, employees from the University of California system are now being forced to repay wages they received while on strike last fall. These examples point to a larger issue: traditional unions are not protecting and supporting their own members.
Supreme Court Misses an Opportunity to Protect Workers from Public-Sector Unions
January 26, 2023 // The Supreme Court decided today that it will not grant certiorari in the case Wright v. SEIU Local 503, one of several union-forgery cases currently working their way through the court system. By not hearing the case, the Court is allowing confusion about public-sector workers’ constitutional rights to persist. The Freedom Foundation, a conservative union-watchdog group, has found about a dozen cases where unions allegedly forged someone’s signature in order to keep taking money from their paycheck. Though it may seem like a simple question, lower-court rulings have failed to address the issue head-on.
Union membership grows the fastest of any state in Tennessee over the past two years
January 24, 2023 // The number of Tennessee workers belonging to labor unions has grown over the past two years at the fastest rate of any state in the country. Fueled by a growth in unionized government employees, building trades and autoworkers, union membership in Tennessee jumped by more than 39% from the pandemic low in 2020 to reach 163,000 members last year, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. For all its gains, however, organized labor still represents only a fraction of workers in Tennessee, especially in the private sector. Last year, 5.5% of all workers across Tennessee were union members, or only about half of the 10.1% share of workers nationwide who belong to a labor union, according to the statistics bureau.
Michigan Right-to-Work Repeal Bills Are Unconstitutional
January 19, 2023 // “A state legislature cannot overturn a U.S. Supreme Court interpretation of First Amendment rights,” said Patrick Wright, vice president for legal affairs at the Mackinac Center for Public Policy. “These bills show a grave lack of understanding of the U.S. Constitution and the rights of public employees. This attempt to put forth blatantly unconstitutional legislation is concerning.” The Mackinac Center is also opposed to House Bill 4005, which would repeal right-to-work for private sector employees. Senate Bill 5 and House Bill 4004
Railroad workers aren’t the only Americans without paid sick days
December 2, 2022 // While the vast majority of union members have paid sick days, the freight railroad workers do not. Among other demands, they have been threatening to strike in order to get paid sick days that are not in the current contracts. The railroads say that workers can use personal time if they need a sick day. But the unions argue that with current staffing levels and scheduling rules, it’s difficult for workers to have personal days approved, and they are likely to be penalized or even fired if they call in sick anyway.
Illinois: Local unions celebrating anticipated passing of Workers’ Rights Amendment
November 10, 2022 // Marilee Smith, with the Illinois Policy Institute, said the amendment could give union leaders too much power. “It could allow government unions to negotiate virtually anything,” Smith said.
COMMENTARY America’s seeing a historic surge in worker organizing. Here’s how to sustain it
September 7, 2022 // Likewise, strikes by public-sector workers in the 1960s produced state-level statutes endorsing collective bargaining. Similar policy changes will be needed to sustain contemporary worker efforts, both by fixing the basics of existing labor law to ensure that workers who want collective bargaining are successful in achieving contracts, and by opening up labor law to new forms of worker voice in workplace affairs and corporate governance. But legal changes won’t lead the process. As in the past, policymakers will respond to pressure for change coming from the workforce, a broad base of public interest groups, and ultimately some in the business community.