Obama Administration

Obama Administration Backs Down (For Now) Rather than Defend Discriminatory Project Labor Agreements

Will Collins — Sun, 08 Nov 2009 17:19:13 -0500

After only a few months in office, the Obama Administration issued a controversial executive order that encourages federal agencies to use discriminatory Project Labor Agreements (PLAs) when allocating lucrative government contracts. For those of you unfamiliar with the term, PLAs give unionized companies preferential access to government work, which allows federal agencies to pressure unwilling employers to turn their workers over to union bosses. Fortunately, the first federal PLA issued under this executive order has just been defeated in New Hampshire:

SEIU Union Czar Andy Stern: Most Frequent White House Visitor

Nick Cote — Wed, 04 Nov 2009 10:49:50 -0500

Here on Freedom@Work, we've kept you updated about the Obama Administration's payback after payback to the union bosses who spent over one billion dollars in 2008 getting Barack Obama and other forced unionism proponents elected.

From rolling back union disclosure guidelines to slashing the budget of the Department of Labor's union watchdog agency to blacklistining nonunion construction workers from "stimulus" projects, the Obama Administration hasn't been shy about rewarding union brass.

American Spectator on Government-Run Health Care Plan: "Taking Care of Big Labor"

Nick Cote — Mon, 02 Nov 2009 10:19:34 -0500

In The American Spectator, reporter Kevin Mooney interviews Right to Work experts about the hidden payoffs to union bosses tucked away in the thousands of pages of health care overhaul legislation. Here's a sample:

Consider the language contained in section 2531 submerged deep within the House version. Here the bill stipulates that any participating health care employer "provides wages and benefits to its nurses that are competitive for its market or that have been collectively bargained with a labor organization."

"This phrase 'competitive for its market' is not defined," said Greg Mourad, the main author of the NRTWC study. "This means the Obama administration will be free to define the phrase using Davis-Bacon standards and this would make it almost impossible for non-union employees to qualify."

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Obama Administration Ethics Coverup? Right to Work Foundation Responds to Labor Department Stonewalling

Anthony Riedel — Wed, 30 Sep 2009 11:08:35 -0400

After President Barack Obama made numerous promises for a more transparent government, the Department of Labor (DOL) has, for nearly six months, hidden Big Labor insiders Hilda Solis and Deborah Greenfield activities from National Right to Work Foundation President Mark Mix's Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request.

Administration Bureaucrats May Have Unethically Given Union Bosses Inside Information; Documents Demanded

Will Collins — Tue, 15 Sep 2009 18:09:21 -0400

Union officials are apparently getting inside information from the Administration, and the National Right to Work Foundation is demanding the documents to prove it.

Not long ago, the Foundation filed formal comments opposing the Obama Administration's attempt to push government contractors into Project Labor Agreements (PLAs), which discriminate against nonunion employees in favor of unionized contractors.

DC Examiner: Health Care Overhaul is More Payback to Union Bosses

Nick Cote — Thu, 03 Sep 2009 16:25:46 -0400

In the Washington Examiner, columnist Kevin Mooney discusses a shocking new analysis of the "Obamacare" health care overhaul legislation distributed by National Right to Work Committee experts.

The proposals are a Trojan Horse for forced unionization of the health care field. Numerous troubling provisions in the proposed bills would divert billions of dollars into union coffers and facilitate the imposition of unionization on unsuspecting doctors, surgeons, nurses, and home care providers all across the country.

Union officials are likely to fill key positions on committees making major decisions if President Barack Obama's government-run health care reform proposal becomes law, according to a new study by the National Right to Work Committee.

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Union Car Czar Poised to Dictate America's Manufacturing Policy

Will Collins — Thu, 20 Aug 2009 10:54:44 -0400

Regular Freedom@Work readers may remember Ron Bloom, a former Steelworker union operative charged with running the American auto industry from Washington. Now that car manufacturers are doing so "well," Bloom is about to get a promotion:

The Obama Administration may elevate Ron Bloom, head of the government's auto task force, to a job that would set U.S. manufacturing policy more broadly, people familiar with the matter said.

Bloom's responsibilities at the new position? They're extensive, to say the least:

Foundation Challenges Obama Executive Orders Designed to Blackball Efficient Non-Union Contractors

Will Collins — Thu, 13 Aug 2009 17:02:33 -0400

Regular Freedom@Work readers may remember the now-infamous Executive Order 13502, which pressures all federal agencies to use discriminatory "Project Labor Agreements" (PLAs) to freeze out non-union contractors and workers from any opportunity to work on government projects.

Once adopted, PLAs require all companies - unionized or otherwise - to agree to unionization as a condition of receiving a government-funded contract. Project labor agreements usually require contractors to grant union officials monopoly bargaining privileges; use exclusive union hiring halls; force workers to pay dues to keep their jobs and work under wasteful union work rules.

Obama Administration Claims Desire to Cut Federal Spending, Places Union Corruption Unit on the Chopping Block

Will Collins — Wed, 29 Jul 2009 10:09:10 -0400

Here at Freedom@Work, we've spent some time documenting the Obama Administration's efforts to gut basic union transparency guidelines under the guise of saving money. We've also urged concerned readers to get involved to help stop the Department of Labor from rolling back transparency requirements aimed at curbing Big Labor's corrupt practices. Unfortunately, the worst may be yet to come -- the Administration has just announced its potential plans to close the Employment Standards Administration, an office tasked with rooting out union corruption:

New Obama Car Czar is Militant Union Boss

Will Collins — Thu, 16 Jul 2009 17:24:48 -0400

Good news! The Obama Administration's Car Czar - tasked with reorganizing the auto industry with government tax dollars - is resigning. The bad news? His replacement, Ron Bloom, is a union label hatchet-man. The Washington Examiner digs up a choice quote on his managerial prowess:

Bloom's relevant experience appears to be negotiating for unions with troubled companies, and so it would be useful to know his approach. Thanks to an old Time magazine collection of quotes, here it is:

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