April 20, 2011 NILRR News Clips
Senate Passes Right-To-Work Bill
WMUR Online, 4/20/2011
CONCORD, N.H. — The New Hampshire Senate on Wednesday
passed a right-to-work bill by a veto-proof majority.
The House did not approve its version by a veto-proof
majority, but several members were absent for the vote. Gov. John Lynch has said
he would veto the bill.
Oklahoma Senate approves collective bargaining repeal
Newsok.com, 4/19/2011
The Senate on Tuesday sent Gov. Mary Fallin a bill that
would strip collective bargaining rights from city employees in Oklahoma’s
largest cities.
‘Koch brothers’ confusion results in death threat for Iowa company
Des Moines Register Online, 4/18/2011
Angry callers are mistaking Koch Brothers, a Des Moines
office supply firm, with the brothers who own Koch Industries, the global energy
conglomerate. Billionaires Charles and David Koch have fought Wisconsin unions,
financed the tea party and opposed climate change rules.
Editorial: The Union Latex Glove Treatment
The Orange County Register Online, 4/19 2011
If you think the Transportation Security Administration is
pushy and intrusive, just wait until they unionize. April 19 is the last day
44,000 TSA workers vote on whether they will join a union. The results will be
announced April 20. A yea vote widely is expected. Workers also are voting on
whether to join the American Federation of Government Employees or the National
Treasury Employees Union.
Scranton Police File Grievance after Police Chief Makes Off-Duty Arrest
Times-Tribune, Scranton, PA, 4/19/2011
The complaint, which was filed with the state Labor
Relations Board on April 14, takes issue with the chief arresting a man who was
allegedly in possession of marijuana because the chief is not a member of the
collective bargaining unit and was “off duty” when the March 20 arrest was made
Paterson Cop Layoffs May Affect Response Times
NBC News online
4/19/2011
The police union warned of lawlessness. The mayor said a
busted budget left him no choice.
On Monday, pink slips for 125 cops took effect in Paterson,
N.J.  It’s not clear if the cuts affected response times for the short-handed
force, but NBC New York took to the streets with a police scanner to shadow
officers as they grappled with reduced manpower in the neighborhoods of New
Jersey’s third-largest city.
Volunteer cleanup in parks seen by city union as threat
Seattle Times Online, 4/18/2011
Chris Martin, president of the Seattle trash-collection
company CleanScapes, says he was being a good corporate citizen when he offered
to have his crews clean Westlake Park — free of charge — during the holidays.
But union officials representing the city’s
parks-maintenance workers didn’t see Martin’s offer as a goodwill gesture. They
considered it an attempt to privatize city services and eliminate the union jobs
of laborers responsible for downtown parks.
The Auto Bailout and the Rule of Law
National Affairs Online, 4/18/2011
The bailouts of General Motors and Chrysler have been held
up by President Obama and his supporters as a great success story — proof that,
by working together, government and business can save jobs and strengthen the
economy. But this popular narrative is dangerously misleading. Far from a
success story, the events surrounding the bailouts offer a cautionary tale of
executive overreach. And their example clarifies the Obama administration’s
broader approach to economic policy — an approach that is both harmful to
economic growth and dangerous to the rule of law.
THE FAIRY TALE
AFL-CIO Targets CEO Compensation
Wall Street Journal Online, 4/19/2011
The CEO-workers comparison isn’t exact. The AFL-CIO’s
measure of CEO compensation includes stock options, equity awards and some perks
while the measure for workers just includes pay, excluding pensions or employer
contributions to 401(k) plans.
Union Pay Rules in Construction Draw Fire
Wall Street Journal Online, 4/15/2011
Lawmakers and governors in 21 states are seeking to curb
union clout in government-funded construction projects by limiting the use of
wage requirements that generally favor union workers.
The proposals open another front in a battle largely
pitting Republican lawmakers against unions, and push the debate further into
the private sector. At issue are so-called prevailing-wage rules, which require
contractors working on government projects to pay workers a rate that usually
closely tracks union wages.
Teamsters chief Hoffa says Mo. lawmakers waging ‘war on workers’ with anti-union
proposals
Fox2now.com, 4/19/2011
The most contentious of those would make Missouri a “right
to work” state in which union fees could not be required as a condition of
employment. Other bills would require annual consent for union dues to be
deducted from paychecks and require secret ballots for unionization elections —
something that already occurs.
‘Paycheck’ act levels playing field
Florida Sun-Sentinel Online
4/14/2011
Florida’s small business owners are asking state and local
governments to stop serving as a collection agent for union dues. As taxpayers,
they are aghast to learn that this occurs, and in this time of cutting
government services, this is one that should be jettisoned.
New contract for California prison guards lifts cap on saved vacation
Los Angeles Times Online, 4/19/2011
The guards, who are among Brown’s largest political
benefactors, would be able to save an unlimited number of vacation days under
their new deal. When they leave state service, those days could be exchanged for
cash at their final pay rate, which would probably be higher than when they
earned the time off.
The governor is extending this benefit only to members of
the California Correctional Peace Officers Assn., a union that spent nearly $2
million to help him win election last year.
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