The actions of Wisconsin state government union officials outraged the nation but have managed to gain the support of AFL-CIO boss Richard Trumka who plans to rally his troops on the ground this weekend. The protesters have also gained another…
Subscribe to The National Right to Work Committee® by Email Former Big Labor front-group Treasurer and Obama’s current Labor Secretary Hilda Solis attempted to the play the Washington game of not answering questions while trying to ramble-on long enough…
Subscribe to The National Right to Work Committee® by Email Click Gov. Walker's image to send him a meesage. A major newspaper in Wisconsin is backing Gov. Scott Walker's efforts to reform the runaway power of government workers unions: Restoring Wisconsin to fiscal health is not for the squeamish. The medicine is going to be bitter. Gov. Scott Walker's proposals to strip state employee unions of much of their bargaining power illustrates just how bitter. But Walker is right to do this. He must insist that state workers pay a bigger share of their benefits. And he's right to take steps to compel them to do so. The governor is overreaching in some respects. And even if he wins the bruising fight to come in the state Capitol, he risks alienating broad swaths of independent voters. But Walker must fill a gaping budget hole of $137 million for the fiscal year that ends June 30 and a much larger imbalance in the next two-year budget. Something has to give. Walker's proposals affect virtually every unionized public worker in the state, at both the state and municipal levels. But the alternative to trimming benefits is laying off thousands of workers. The state, not to mention the economy, is better served by keeping as many of its workers on board as possible, albeit at a lower cost. Walker estimates his proposals will save the state $30 million between now and June 30 and $300 million over the course of the next two-year budget. That doesn't count savings at the local level, which should help make up for expected cuts in state aid. Our analysis:
Subscribe to The National Right to Work Committee® by Email Click Gov. Walker's image to send him a meesage. A major newspaper in Wisconsin is backing Gov. Scott Walker's efforts to reform the runaway power of government workers unions: Restoring Wisconsin to fiscal health is not for the squeamish. The medicine is going to be bitter. Gov. Scott Walker's proposals to strip state employee unions of much of their bargaining power illustrates just how bitter. But Walker is right to do this. He must insist that state workers pay a bigger share of their benefits. And he's right to take steps to compel them to do so. The governor is overreaching in some respects. And even if he wins the bruising fight to come in the state Capitol, he risks alienating broad swaths of independent voters. But Walker must fill a gaping budget hole of $137 million for the fiscal year that ends June 30 and a much larger imbalance in the next two-year budget. Something has to give. Walker's proposals affect virtually every unionized public worker in the state, at both the state and municipal levels. But the alternative to trimming benefits is laying off thousands of workers. The state, not to mention the economy, is better served by keeping as many of its workers on board as possible, albeit at a lower cost. Walker estimates his proposals will save the state $30 million between now and June 30 and $300 million over the course of the next two-year budget. That doesn't count savings at the local level, which should help make up for expected cuts in state aid. Our analysis:
What is Big Labor's role in driving our deficit spending to unimaginable levels? The Washington Examiner answers the question: To hear President Obama, liberal mainstream media outlets and congressional Democratic leaders tell it, Washington is "still" in the grip of evil special interests like Big Oil, Wall Street and the pharmaceutical drug industry. It's a familiar line, but when the actual numbers for campaign donations by the top 100 special interest donors are toted up, it becomes quite clear which is the biggest one of them all -- Big Labor. The union bosses spent more than $500 billion on campaign donations between 1989 and 2009, with well more than 90 percent of the total going to Democratic presidential and congressional candidates. That's more than 10 times as much as was spent by Big Oil during the same period, according to federal campaign finance data compiled by professor Antony Davies of Duquesne University. In fact, Big Labor gave twice as much as the totals for the Big Oil, telecommunications, insurance, pharmaceuticals and real estate industries combined. Probe a little deeper, as blogger Doug Ross did recently, and something else becomes clear: More than half of all union members are also public employees. In the federal government alone, three unions represent nearly half of the 2 million civil servants. Overall, more than a third of all government workers at all levels are union members, compared with only 11 percent in the private sector. That's why it is no coincidence that for the third consecutive year, the federal government will spend more than a trillion dollars it doesn't have. That money will be borrowed, much of it from China and other foreign powers that don't necessarily have the best interests of America in mind. Federal spending under President George W. Bush and the Republican congressional majority greatly increased, to be sure, more so than it did under Democrat President Clinton during the prior decade.
When asked, workers choose freedom, even union workers. In Frank Luntz’ recent poll, 80% of union members chose the Right to Work which allows individuals to freely choose whether or not to belong or pay fees to…
The facts speak for themselves in this Indiana Chamber of Commerce article: Improving the per-capita income of Indiana workers and creating more job opportunities for Hoosiers would be among the major benefits of Indiana becoming the 23rd state to pass…
Douglas Schoen is a political pollster and strategist that worked for President Bill Clinton. Schoen has a warning to his fellow Democrats — their relationship with big labor union bosses threatens their future. Writing in the …
(Source: January 2011 NRTWC Newsletter) Former Speakers Newt Gingrich (R-Ga., left) and Dennis Hastert (R-Ill.) both made campaign pledges to support roll-call votes on forced-dues repeal, but blocked action on such legislation when Congress was in session. Politicians Pledging to Back Right to Work Take Charge of House Thanks in significant part to the efforts of National Right to Work Committee members across the country, starting this month the U.S. House of Representatives will be led by a speaker and a majority leader who have pledged full support for Americans' Right to Work without being forced to join or pay dues to a union. Now Committee members' job is to make sure Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio), Majority Leader Eric Cantor (R-Va.), and other members of Congress turn their pro-Right to Work promises into action. John Boehner, Eric Cantor Owe Leadership Posts to Worker-Freedom Advocates Mr. Boehner and Mr. Cantor enjoy their top leadership positions in the House in part due to pro-Right to Work Americans' support for congressional candidates nationwide who had pledged to oppose compulsory unionism. Millions of pro-Right to Work Americans mobilized against candidates who supported compulsory unionism, or tried to hide their position on freedom in the workplace. These Americans expect Mr. Boehner and Mr. Cantor to lay the foundation for a new federal labor policy respecting each employee's ability to decide for himself or herself whether or not to join or financially support a union, declared Committee President Mark Mix. "Poll after poll shows nearly four out of five Americans who regularly vote support the Right to Work," explained Mr. Mix. "When these citizens helped John Boehner and Eric Cantor become the new House leaders, they sent an unmistakable message to Capitol Hill -- roll back Organized Labor's compulsory-unionism privileges." In the 2010 elections, voters firmly rejected major Big Labor power grabs such as the "card check" forced-unionism bill, which sailed through the House as recently as 2007 and seemed close to becoming law in early 2009, after Barack Obama became the 44th U.S. President. Momentum Swings Toward Right to Work A full-fledged Committee effort to get federal candidates on the record against the "card check" bill, or "Employee Free Choice Act," as proponents cynically mislabeled it, surpassed expectations in mobilizing citizens and increasing the number of Right to Work supporters in Congress. To activate Right to Work supporters, the Committee distributed a record-smashing total of nearly 8.4 million federal candidate Survey 2010 "information packets" through the U.S. Postal Service last year. Above and beyond that, the 2010 program had a massive Internet component, including nearly half a million e-mails transmitted in October alone. All this plus radio, TV, and newspaper advertising. Lobbying by Committee members persuaded hundreds of House and Senate candidates to take a pro-Right to Work position, which in turn helped many get elected. That's not surprising, given the Right to Work principle's overwhelming public support. "The political momentum is now against compulsory unionism," commented Mr. Mix. "That means in this Congress the Committee actually has a chance, if members keep up the pressure, to pick up enough votes from the 'mushy middle' to push pro-Right to Work legislation through the House." Committee Pushes For Floor Votes