Union Member Seeks to Block Obama Labor Department’s Efforts to Roll Back Union Disclosure Rules
Washington, DC (May 23, 2011) – With free legal aid from the National Right to Work Legal Defense Foundation, a Maryland county government employee is asking a federal court to stop the Obama Administration from allowing union bosses to conceal lavish and corrupt union expenditures from workers.
Chris Mosquera, a member of a Municipal County Government Employee Local of the United Food and Commercial Worker (UFCW) union, filed the lawsuit against Secretary of Labor Hilda Solis in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia for rescinding a union boss disclosure rule which would make it less difficult for workers to hold union officials accountable.
Unions covered by the Labor Management Reporting and Disclosure Act (LMRDA) with total annual receipts of $250,000 or more are currently required to submit annual financial statements to the U.S. Department of Labor. LM-2 forms are the public disclosure documents for these larger unions and are available online on the U.S. Department of Labor’s (DOL) website.
These forms have helped workers and citizen activists expose many unscrupulous union boss schemes, including lavish benefits to high-ranking union officials and loyalists, superfluous spending on union boss transportation (including private jets), and shady political spending (such as the Service Employees International Union bosses’ links to the disgraced political organization ACORN).
Mosquera seeks to intervene for the millions of workers who are forced by federal mandate to accept union boss “representation” and pay union dues or fees to a union in order to get or keep their jobs.
The lawsuit alleges that Solis exceeded her power as Secretary of Labor by repealing a January 2009 LM-2 Final Rule because the rule put a “burden” on union officials to report their expenditures to the public. However, under federal law, Solis cannot use “burden” as a justification for rescission of a rule. Solis further overstepped her legal authority by singlehandedly creating a new rule that allows union bosses to more easily evade and circumvent the LMRDA.
The Right to Work Foundation also has a federal lawsuit pending in U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia against the DOL over a Freedom of Information Act request for internal DOL communications and communications with union officials concerning the LM-2 rule change.
“Once again the Obama Administration puts union boss priorities ahead of the rights and well-being of individual employees,” said Mark Mix, President of National Right to Work. “Hilda Solis apparently believes that not only should union bosses have the power to compel workers to pay union dues and fees as a condition of employment, but that those same union bosses should be able to keep workers in the dark about how those forced union dues and fees are spent.”
Foundation Fights Back Against Obama Labor Board’s Assault on Right to Work
South Carolina newspaper and television outlets have highlighted the National Right to Work Foundation’s efforts to challenge the National Labor Relations Board’s scheme to undermine laws that protect worker freedom.
The Acting General Counself of the NLRB filed a complaint last month against Boeing for creating over 1000 new jobs in South Carolina, where International Association of Machinists union bosses can’t force workers to pay dues or "fees" as a condition of employment.
The Foundation is offering free legal aid to current or potential Boeing employees affected by this power grab. Also this week, the Foundation filed a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request with the NLRB.
Charleston’s The Post and Courier interviewed Foundation president Mark Mix earlier this week:
"They’re really saying that private companies can’t make a business decision," he said Monday.
His Springfield, Va.-based foundation’s legal team is looking to persuade as many local Boeing workers as it can to provide affidavits and justify its request for an official place at the litigation table. The group has already heard from at least two unidentified employees who have expressed an interest in participating, he said.
WSCS Live 5 News also covered the Foundation’s offer:
The Foundation relies on the voluntary support of individual Americans who believe in our cause and wish to advance our strategic litigation program. To make a fully tax-deductible donation in whatever amount, please click here.
News Release: Union Forced Dues Threats against WRTV Anchor Highlight Need for Indiana Right to Work Law
Union Forced Dues Threats against WRTV Anchor Highlight Need for Indiana Right to Work Law
Union hit with federal labor board charges for demanding TV anchor pay union dues despite lack of valid contract between her employer and the union
Indianapolis, IN (May 19, 2011) – With free legal assistance from the National Right to Work Foundation, WRTV anchor Patricia Shepherd has filed federal unfair labor practice charges against the American Federation of Television and Radio Artists (AFTRA) union.
Shepherd’s charges allege that AFTRA officials demanded she pay dues despite the fact that she is not a union member and the union has not had a contract with her employer for the past two years.
Because Indiana lacks a Right to Work law, employees can be forced to pay union dues for the purposes of workplace bargaining just to get or keep a job. In recent months, Indiana legislators were considering a law to make union dues payments strictly voluntary, but Governor Mitch Daniels and House Speaker Brian Bosma, despite strong majorities on record in favor of a Right to Work bill in both chambers of the state legislature, ultimately killed the legislation.
Click here to read the whole thing . . .
Union Forced Dues Threats against WRTV Anchor Highlight Need for Indiana Right to Work Law
Indianapolis, IN (May 19, 2011) – With free legal assistance from the National Right to Work Foundation, WRTV anchor Patricia Shepherd has filed federal unfair labor practice charges against the American Federation of Television and Radio Artists (AFTRA) union.
Shepherd’s charges allege that AFTRA officials demanded she pay dues despite the fact that she is not a union member and the union has not had a contract with her employer for the past two years.
Because Indiana lacks a Right to Work law, employees can be forced to pay union dues for the purposes of workplace bargaining just to get or keep a job. In recent months, Indiana legislators were considering a law to make union dues payments strictly voluntary, but Governor Mitch Daniels and House Speaker Brian Bosma, despite strong majorities on record in favor of a Right to Work bill in both chambers of the state legislature, ultimately killed the legislation.
In this case, the AFTRA union has not had a contract with WRTV since March 2009 and therefore is not entitled to collect dues for negotiations with management. Moreover, the last contract between the union and the television station indicated that joining AFTRA or paying union dues was not a condition of employment at WRTV.
Although the union’s own contract includes language stating that dues payment is not a condition of employment, AFTRA officials continue to insist that Shepherd pay union dues. The union has gone so far as to refer Shepherd’s name to a professional collections agency in Pennsylvania.
Shepherd’s charges will now be investigated by the National Labor Relations Board.
“The decision by Speaker Bosma and Governor Daniels to block a vote on an Indiana Right to Work law means that union bosses will continue to order employees fired for refusing to pay union dues,” said Patrick Semmens, Legal Information Director for the National Right to Work Foundation. “In this case, union officials broke the law by attempting to collect dues without a valid forced unionism clause, but other Indiana union bosses are still empowered to collect hundreds of millions of dollars from workers who face termination if they don’t pay up.”
Semmens continued: “Ultimately, a Right to Work law for the Hoosier State would be the best way to end this injustice, ensuring that union membership and dues payment are strictly voluntary.”
News Release: Worker Advocate Files FOIA Request to Disclose Political Motives Behind NLRB’s Attack on Boeing
Worker Advocate Files FOIA Request to Disclose Political Motives Behind NLRB’s Attack on Boeing
Foundation offers free legal aid to current and prospective Boeing employees in South Carolina who would lose their jobs if IAM union bosses have their way
Washington, DC (May 16, 2011) – The National Right to Work Legal Defense Foundation filed a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) disclosure request with the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) on the heels of the agency’s recent announcement that it will prosecute airline manufacturer Boeing Corp.
If International Association of Machinists (IAM) union officials and the NLRB are successful, over 1,000 Boeing employees in South Carolina would be out of work as Boeing will be forced to relocate the aircraft assembly jobs to Washington State which lacks Right to Work protections for employees.
The NLRB’s acting general counsel, Lafe Solomon, issued the complaint against Boeing late last month at the behest of IAM union bosses. In 2009, Boeing opened the new plant to produce 787 Dreamliner airplanes in South Carolina, largely because South Carolina is a Right to Work state that protects workers from being required to join or pay dues to a union just to get or keep a job.
Foundation President Mark Mix submitted the FOIA inquiry on Monday.
Read the Foundation’s FOIA request here (pdf).
Worker Advocate Files FOIA Request to Disclose Political Motives Behind NLRB’s Attack on Boeing
Washington, DC (May 16, 2011) – The National Right to Work Legal Defense Foundation filed a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) disclosure request with the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) on the heels of the agency’s recent announcement that it will prosecute airline manufacturer Boeing Corp.
If International Association of Machinists (IAM) union officials and the NLRB are successful, over 1,000 Boeing employees in South Carolina would be out of work as Boeing will be forced to relocate the aircraft assembly jobs to Washington State which lacks Right to Work protections for employees.
The NLRB’s acting general counsel, Lafe Solomon, issued the complaint against Boeing late last month at the behest of IAM union bosses. In 2009, Boeing opened the new plant to produce 787 Dreamliner airplanes in South Carolina, largely because South Carolina is a Right to Work state that protects workers from being required to join or pay dues to a union just to get or keep a job.
Foundation President Mark Mix submitted the FOIA inquiry on Monday.
In the request, Mix asks that the agency produce all the documentation regarding communications between NLRB officials and third parties, including communications with Obama administration officials; officials from the offices of the Governors of Washington and Oregon; and any other federal, state, or local government agency personnel regarding Boeing or the IAM union, the opening of the company’s facility in South Carolina, and about the NLRB’s complaint against Boeing itself.
“Once again the Obama Labor Board is putting union boss priorities ahead of the rights and well-being of individual employees,” said Mark Mix, President of National Right to Work. “If the NLRB succeeds in its prosecution of Boeing and Boeing is forced to move its production at the whim of IAM union bosses, over 1,000 jobs in South Carolina would be eliminated and a troubling precedent would be set.”
“In addition, the National Right to Work Foundation has ramped up its legal program to assist all current or prospective Boeing employees who could lose their jobs as a result of the NLRB’s aggressive posture toward independent-minded workers.”
Read the Foundation’s FOIA request by clicking here (pdf).
Fasten Your Seatbelts and Put Your Trays in the Locked Position: Delta Flight Attendants Take Fight to Next Level
As we reported before, a group of Delta Air Lines employees — with free legal assistance from the National Right to Work Foundation — are appealing (pdf) a U.S. District Court judge’s decision to uphold a major rule change on how a union is imposed on railway and airline industry workers.
Last June, a U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia judge refused to impose an injunction halting the new unionization election procedures for workers in the shipping and transportation industries which were hastily instituted by the National Mediation Board (NMB).
The NMB — a government agency charged under the Railway Labor Act (RLA) with mediating labor disputes within the railroad and airline industries — voted 2-1 to dictate a new system which stacks the deck in favor of unionization by granting a union monopoly bargaining power over railway or airline industry workers if the union acquires support from just a bare majority of eligible workers in an election, no matter how few actually vote. This means that a small bloc of workers could force union boss "representation" on the whole group rather than having a true majority of all workers deciding for themselves.
The two NMB members who approved the new rule, Harry Hoglander and Linda Puchala are former union officials with the Air Line Pilots Association (ALPA) and Association of Flight Attendants (AFA) unions — two unions that have been pushing for the change — respectively.
Earlier this week, with help from Foundation staff attorneys, the flight attendants carried on their courageous fight and filed a joint appellant brief at the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia. To read their appeal, click here.
Wall Street Journal: Boeing NLRB Case Threatens Right to Work States, Protects Forced Unionism
Regular readers are already up to speed on the Obama National Labor Relations Board’s attempt to punish Boeing for opening a new production line in Right to Work South Carolina – and the National Right to Work Foundation’s efforts to help Boeing employees. Writing in The Wall Street Journal, Arthur Laffer and Stephen Moore explain why the NLRB’s actions are so pernicious:
The Obama administration’s National Labor Relations Board filed a complaint last month against Boeing to block production of the company’s 787 Dreamliner at a new assembly plant in South Carolina—a "right to-work" state with a law against compulsory union membership. If the NLRB has its way, Dreamliner assembly will return to Washington, a union-shop state, along with more than 1,000 jobs.
The NLRB’s action, which Boeing will challenge at a hearing next month, is a big deal. It’s the first time a federal agency has intervened to tell an American company where it can and cannot operate a plant within the U.S. It lays the foundation of a regulatory wall with one express purpose: to prevent the direct competition of right-to-work states with union-shop states. Why, as South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley recently asked on these pages, should Washington have any more right to these jobs than South Carolina?
The National Right to Work Foundation is offering free legal assistance to South Carolina workers affected by this complaint. If you work at Boeing’s Charleston Dreamliner plant, we strongly encourage you to contact us today.
News Release: Homecare Providers Win Settlement with State to Permanently Stop Childcare Unionization Scheme
Homecare Providers Win Settlement with State to Permanently Stop Childcare Unionization Scheme
Right to Work Foundation attorneys continue federal class action lawsuit against union officials to recover millions in illegally confiscated dues
Lansing, MI (May 11, 2011) – With free legal assistance from the National Right to Work Foundation, five homecare workers have reached a settlement with Governor Rick Snyder ensuring that Michigan will no longer be able to force home-based childcare providers into union ranks.
Carrie Schlaud, Diana Orr, Peggy Mashke, and Edward and Nora Gross originally filed a class-action suit against then-Governor Jennifer Granholm and a United Auto Workers (UAW) and American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME) coalition, the Child Care Providers Together Michigan (CCPTM) union, for designating homecare workers who accepted state assistance as state employees and forcing them to pay union dues and accept CCPTM “representation.”
Under Granholm’s direction, the Michigan Department of Human Services created an agency known as the Michigan Home Based Child Care Council to provide union officials with an entity to negotiate with as the homecare providers’ “management.” Working with the council, CCPTM operatives staged a union certification election to acquire monopoly bargaining privileges over Michigan homecare workers.
Click here to read more . . .
Homecare Providers Win Settlement with State to Permanently Stop Childcare Unionization Scheme
Lansing, MI (May 11, 2011) – With free legal assistance from the National Right to Work Foundation, five homecare workers have reached a settlement with Governor Rick Snyder ensuring that Michigan will no longer be able to force home-based childcare providers into union ranks.
Carrie Schlaud, Diana Orr, Peggy Mashke, and Edward and Nora Gross originally filed a class-action suit against then-Governor Jennifer Granholm and a United Auto Workers (UAW) and American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME) coalition, the Child Care Providers Together Michigan (CCPTM) union, for designating homecare workers who accepted state assistance as state employees and forcing them to pay union dues and accept CCPTM “representation.”
Under Granholm’s direction, the Michigan Department of Human Services created an agency known as the Michigan Home Based Child Care Council to provide union officials with an entity to negotiate with as the homecare providers’ “management.” Working with the council, CCPTM operatives staged a union certification election to acquire monopoly bargaining privileges over Michigan homecare workers.
Although only 15 percent of the 40,000 homecare providers receiving state assistance voted in the union certification election, CCPTM union bosses were then granted monopoly bargaining privileges and the power to collect union dues from home-based care providers.
The Michigan Home Based Child Care Council has since been disbanded, but the new settlement ensures that the state will never force homecare workers to financially support a union as a condition of receiving state assistance.
Despite this victory, the plaintiffs and their Right to Work attorneys continue to pursue the class-action lawsuit against the CCPTM union to reclaim the forced dues collected from child care providers before the Michigan Home Based Child Care Council was dismantled. The plaintiffs and their attorneys are currently pressing their case at a hearing before the United States District Court for the Western District of Michigan, Southern Division.
“We’re pleased that the settlement with Governor Snyder guarantees that Michigan homecare workers will never be forced into union ranks again,” said Patrick Semmens, Legal Information Director for the National Right to Work Foundation. “However, our work won’t be over until UAW and AFSCME union bosses are forced to give back over two million dollars in forced dues they extracted from unwilling childcare providers since 2008.”
