Posts tagged Vinnie Vernuccio
Florida sets the stage for labor reforms
May 18, 2023 // Whenever a union falls below 60 percent of membership in a collective-bargaining unit, public employees will have the right to an election. They can vote to keep the union at their workplace, replace it with a different union, or remove union presence altogether. A Florida-senate bill analysis found that at least 40 local teachers’ unions in Florida were below the 60 percent threshold, and a 2012 Heritage study showed that a mere 1 percent of teachers in Florida’s largest schools actually voted for their unions, meaning current workers may be ready to revisit previous generations’ decisions.
DeSantis touts ‘Teacher Bill of Rights’ as he signs 5 education bills Tuesday in Miami
May 11, 2023 // “This bill gives Florida teachers a voice and a choice,” said Senior Labor Policy Advisor Vincent Vernuccio. “Teachers and other public workers will know their rights. They’ll know exactly how much union membership costs them each year. And they’ll know that, if their union isn’t serving them, they can do something about it.” Workers for Opportunity said the legislation drew from its proposed reforms giving employees more control over their paychecks and union representation.
Tennessee Senate Committee Tackles Union Coercion Commerce and Labor Committee Passes SB 650 to Secure Workers’ Right to a Secret-Ballot Union Election
March 22, 2023 // Even with the constitutional right-to-work, Tennessee employees can still face union coercion. Card check organizing takes away employees' right to a secret ballot in unionization elections and subjects workers to intimidation, coercion and deception by union leaders. To get these cards, unions can visit workers at their homes or repeatedly call their personal cell phones. Tennessee taxpayers should never have to fund union coercion, nor should companies getting economic incentives need to worry about unions strong-arming them or their employees. Just like Tennessee voters enjoy the right to privacy at the ballot box, Tennessee workers deserve the right to decide union representation through a private, protected ballot. The passage of SB 650 would ensure that, in workplaces that accept state economic incentives in the future, workers have that opportunity.
Institute for the American Worker Head Vinnie Vernuccio: Tennessee Is Leading the Way with Right-to-Work 2.0
March 15, 2023 // You made it a constitutional right, so it can’t be repealed like Michigan. Now you’re going even further, you’re doing right to work 2.0 by making sure employees of companies that get economic incentives, the secret ballot for them in unionization elections is protected. And your governor is also out there, Governor Lee is protecting teachers’ paychecks, not only giving them raises, but also making sure they get their full paycheck. And part of it isn’t siphoned off and given to teachers’ unions.
Video: ALEC’s Labor of Love: A History of Championing Worker Freedom
March 10, 2023 // Today, ALEC debuts its first episode, “Worker Freedom,” in our 50th anniversary video series. The episode features ALEC champions Scott Walker (45th Governor of Wisconsin), Matt Hall (Michigan House Minority Leader and ALEC Board of Directors Member), and Vinnie Vernuccio (Senior Fellow, Mackinac Center), discussing ALEC’s pivotal role in securing Worker Freedom policy wins across the states. In some states, private sector workers can be forced to join, leave, or pay fees to a union as job requirement. The Right-to-Work Act, which ALEC task forces approved as a model policy, provides a solution to this issue. It prevents private employers from requiring or banning union membership (or fees) as conditions for employment, giving workers in Right-to-Work states a guaranteed right to support a union or not to support a union without this choice affecting their hiring or job security.
Department of Labor Rule – Coalition Letter
July 22, 2022 // The January 7, 2021 DOL rule has provided clarity to the decades-old economic realities test for the modern workforce, helping to apply determinations in light of the different types of work and technologies used to work and connect with customers today. Instead of removing this clear and sensible standard and attempting to diminish or eliminate independent contracting, we urge you to preserve paths to self-employment that allow tens of millions of working Americans, parents of children with special needs, workers seeking career changes, disabled workers and workers caring for disabled family members, and entrepreneurs growing small businesses of their own to pursue work on their own terms. Brent Wm. Gardner, Brandon Arnold, Grover Norquist, Michael J. Lotito, Greg Sindelar, Krisztina Pusok, Ph. D., The American Consumer, American Legislative Exchange Council, Lisa B. Nelson, Center for Freedom and Prosperity, Andrew F. Quinlan, Robert Fellner, Heather R. Higgins, Independent Women's Voice, Bethany Marcum, Alaska Policy Forum, Mike Stenhouse, Mike Hruby, New Jobs America, Paul Gessing, Rio Grande Foundation, Seton Motley, Less Government, Robert Alt, Steve Delie, Brian Minnich, Daniel Erspamer, Pelican Institute, Eric Peterson, Pelican Center for Technology and Innovation, Randy Hicks, Georgia Center for Opportunity, Alliance for Opportunity, Jeffrey Mazzella, Center for Individual Freedom, Douglas Carswell, Mississippi Center for Public Policy, David Williams, Taxpayers Protection Alliance, Ryan Ellis, Center for a Free Economy, Phil Kerpen, American Commitment, James Taylor, The Heartland Institute, Adam Brandon, FreedomWorks, Elaine Parker, Job Creators Network Foundation, Brandon Dutcher, Oklahoma Council of Public Affairs, Thomas A. Schatz, Citizens Against Government Waste, Justin Owen, Beacon Center of Tennessee, Matthew Kandrach, Consumer Action for a Strong Economy, Charles Mitchell, Commonwealth Foundation, James L. Martin, 60 Plus Association, Saulius “Saul” Anuzis, 60 Plus Association,
Episode 58: Unions have Forgotten why They were Originally Created
July 13, 2022 // As unionization in the private sector continues to decline, many labor activists are getting ever-more desperate to force workers into union representation. From the federal “PRO Act” in the private sector to state-level “opt-out” periods for public sector workers, unions are increasingly trying to make it more difficult for workers who don’t want union representation to say “no” to membership.
The NLRB doesn’t want Amazon workers to know the truth about unions
May 23, 2022 // Freedom of speech, even harassment, is protected by the NLRB, it seems, if it's under the guise of a protest. But if an employer hosts a meeting for all staff to hear about the implications of unionization, that's not OK.
REP. GOOD INTRODUCES THE SMALL BUSINESSES BEFORE BUREAUCRATS ACT
May 13, 2022 // “The Small Businesses Before Bureaucrats Act brings much needed updates to federal labor law. Congressman Good should be applauded for bringing the NLRB’s jurisdiction back to the levels Congress intended.With inflation rampant and prices skyrocketing it is absurd that these standards have not been updated since the 1950s. The modernization of NLRB’s thresholds will protect small businesses in Virginia and across the country from what many see as a partisan Board seeking to put union interest above workers and job creators.”
Indiana Leaders Safeguard Free Speech for Teachers
April 7, 2022 // In legible, 14-point bold text will be these words: The State of Indiana wishes to make you aware that you have a First Amendment right…to refrain from joining and paying dues to a union.