The war on jobs and true employee free choice

The war on jobs and true employee free choice

South Carolina Boeing employee Dennis Murray, a quality assurance inspector, doesn't mince words regarding IAM union bosses' aims: "They're trying to spank us like unruly children, by having all of our jobs taken away." Credit: WCBD-TV (Charleston, S.C.) From the South Carolina State newspaper, and op-ed by Rep. Ron Paul: With jobs so hard to come by for many Americans, you would think a private company deciding to create more than 1,000 jobs would be cheered by Republicans and Democrats alike. But President Obama’s National Labor Relations Board is doing everything it can to stop Boeing from opening a new plant in North Charleston. And as sad as it may seem, at the heart of the board’s actions is political cronyism at its absolute worst. Since South Carolina is a right-to-work state, workers at Boeing’s new plant can’t be forced under the threat of losing their jobs to hand over a portion of their hard-earned money to union officials in dues. The labor board’s attempt to force Boeing to stay in a non-right-to-work state where the union bosses can force workers to pay up or be fired is political payback for their undying support during the last presidential campaign. If the Obama administration succeeds, it could result in the virtual destruction of right-to-work laws all across the country: No longer could private companies decide for themselves where to move or open new facilities; the government would now take on that responsibility and make decisions based solely on what benefits the big-labor elite. Right-to-work states would be left out in the cold. According to the National Institute for Labor Relations Research, right-to-work states had more than double the job growth of forced-unionism states over the past decade. In other words, big-labor control over American workers is a drag on our economy. It was organized labor’s stranglehold that drove the big three automakers to the brink of bankruptcy — until American taxpayers were forced to rescue them. And it’s not just in the private sector. Big labor’s control of government workers in California, Illinois and elsewhere has driven those states to the brink of bankruptcy.
Right to Work is right for Virginia

Right to Work is right for Virginia

From the Richmond Times by NRTW President Mark  Mix: Weathering an economic downturn is never easy, but some states are managing better than others. Despite the recession, Virginia boasts a modest unemployment rate, and its average hourly wages top the national mean. What's the Old Dominion's secret? One factor that sets Virginia apart from its less fortunate neighbors is the state's popular Right to Work law. Virginia's Right to Work law ensures that no employee can be forced to join or pay dues to a union just to get or keep a job. Protecting employee choice has always been the most important argument in favor of Right to Work, but Virginia's economic performance is another point for worker freedom. Recent studies from the Cato Institute and the National Institute for Labor Relations Research indicate that right-to-work states enjoy higher job growth and more disposable income (after adjusting for families' cost-of-living) than their forced-unionism counterparts. Eight of the top 11 states for wage and salary growth enjoy right-to-work protections. Meanwhile, 13 of the 14 worst performers lack right-to-work laws. Workers and their families are also voting with their feet: According to the National Institute for Labor Relations Research, the young adult population in forced-unionism states has basically stagnated since 1980. Virginia, on the other hand, continues to attract a stream of new workers and entrepreneurs. Protecting worker freedom also prepares states to handle a difficult recession better than their forced-unionism counterparts. Virginia's robust job and wage growth compares favorably with the sluggish performance of union-dominated states like Michigan, Illinois and Wisconsin.
Time for Kentucky to Get Right to Work

Time for Kentucky to Get Right to Work

Enacting a Right to Work law in Kentucky would be a boon for jobs and economic prosperity -- but don't just take our word for it.  The Bowling Green Daily News agrees: Gov. Steve Beshear and the Democrat-controlled House are beholden to labor unions in this state and for that reason, year after year we continue to lose companies and jobs to other Southern states because Kentucky is not a right-to-work state. Right-to-work laws protect workers’ freedoms by not forcing them to pay dues to a union upon becoming employed or throughout employment. Nearly any citizen in a right-to-work state is protected by a state’s right-to-work law. Labor unions make up less than 9 percent of Kentucky’s workforce, so it would make sense that Beshear and the House would have more concern for the majority of the workforce. Sadly, they don’t. They need the unions, who contribute millions of dollars every election year through political action committees or other ways to encourage the governor and those in the House to follow part of their agenda, which is not allowing Kentucky to become a right-to-work state. Kentucky is the only Southern state not to have a right-to-work law. For that reason, many companies don’t even consider our state when choosing plant locations. Business 101 would tell you that this is simply bad business. The governor and House are hindering our state because they ignore reality. Shame on them. It reflects poor leadership and it holds our state back when competing for jobs that could be coming to Kentucky. Simpson County Judge-Executive Jim Henderson is a strong supporter of the right-to-work concept. Henderson said on a number of occasions during the process of trying to get a company to come to Franklin, it was eliminated because of not being a right-to-work state. He said it was communicated through correspondence and other means of communication that not having a right-to-work law is why companies aren’t coming to his city.One only has to look at companies such as Nissan North America. The company admitted that one reason it decided to move its headquarters from California to Tennessee and not Kentucky was because of the lower business costs. Interestingly enough, the average Kentuckian has to work 13 months to make what an average Tennessean can in one year.

NLRB Update - "Obama Labor Board Kills Important Secret Ballot Precedent"

[stream provider=youtube flv=x:/youtu.be/lxElDWlj2_E img=x:/nrtwc.org/wp-content/uploads/2011/08/201107-Lamons-Gasket-Final.jpg embed=false share=false width=580 height=280 dock=true controlbar=over bandwidth=high autostart=false /]] From the National Right To Legal Defense Foundation who represented the employees at Lamons Gasket and who secured the "Dana Rights" for employees against Card Check Forced Unionism until the Obama NLRB took them away with this decision: Obama Labor Board Kills Important Secret Ballot Precedent Worker advocate denounces NLRB’s ruling to take away protection workers have against card check forced unionism Washington, DC (August 30, 2011) – Today, Barack Obama’s National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) overturned its Dana Corp. decision, in which National Right to Work Foundation attorneys secured for employees the right to challenge union card check organizing campaigns with a secret ballot vote. Under the Foundation-won Dana decision, workers may collect signatures to request a secret ballot election during a 45-day window period following notice that their employer has recognized a union based on a card check organizing drive. The ruling is intended to counteract coercive practices frequently associated with card check, which allow organizers to bully or mislead employees into signing cards that count as “votes” toward unionization. The NLRB overturned Dana just as President Obama-appointed NLRB Chairwoman Wilma Liebman’s term expired. Meanwhile, Obama-appointed Board Member Craig Becker, who co-authored a union brief in the original Dana case, refused to recuse himself from the case. Becker, a recess nominee, faces bi-partisan opposition to his confirmation in the U.S. Senate. One Board Member, Bryan Hayes, vigorously dissented and called the ruling a blatant roll back of employee freedom. Any decertification votes that have been cast but not counted by the NLRB will now be discounted, thereby invalidating the voice of thousands of workers nationwide. The National Right to Work Legal Defense Foundation is a charitable organization that provides free legal assistance to employees nationwide. The Foundation is providing free legal aid in both the original Dana case and in the newly-decided Lamons Gasket case in which the Board overturned the Dana protections. Mark Mix, President of the National Right to Work Foundation made the following statement regarding the ruling: “The Obama Labor Board’s ruling to kill the Dana Corp. precedent that allows workers a secret ballot vote to kick out a union that gained control of the workplace in an abusive ‘card check’ campaign adds to an already exhaustive list of paybacks from the Obama Administration to Big Labor.