Hey UAW Union Bosses: How About Mopping Up Your Own Problems?
As Freedom @ Work readers are aware, the United Auto Workers (UAW) union wants its very own federal bailout. On Friday, UAW president Ron Gettelfinger, expressing frustration that his union doesn’t own everybody in Congress, indirectly blamed the mess in Detroit on the fact that the National Right to Work Foundation fights for voluntary unionism while protecting its donors’ from being harassed by union goons.
But rather than worrying about the Foundation’s funding sources and demanding the American taxpayers to bail out his pension scheme, perhaps Gettelfinger should examine his union’s financial mismanagement. The DC Examiner has more:
What do UAW executives and workers do to relax? They play golf at the union’s highly touted championship caliber Black Lake Golf Club, designed by Rees Jones. The UAW golf club is in secluded Onaway, MI, as part of the union’s Walter and Mary Reuther Family Education Center. Also part of Black Lake are a learning center, a practice facility with practice bunkers, chipping and putting greens, and a small, nine-hole par-three Little Course.
Golf Digest named Black Lake as one of top “upscale public courses.” And Michigan Golf described the course as a “classic” that includes “wide, well-groomed fairways [that] provide ample room for big hitters.” But some big hitters get special privileges at Black Lake. Tee times can be reserved up to two weeks in advance by UAW execs, compared to only three days for non-UAW duffers. Cost to play Black Lake is $95 per round.
Remember all the much-deserved bad press Detroit’s high-paid Big Three executives received last month when they flew in their corporate jets to beg Washington for a tax-paid bailout? Has anybody in Congress or the media bothered to ask UAW head Ron Gettelfinger about his union’s assets and perks like Black Lake Golf Club?
Michelle Malkin points out that the UAW union’s golf course and education center have managed to lose $23 million over the last five years, even though both are supposedly run as for-profit businesses, according to an independent audit.
Fox News: Foundation President Mark Mix On Solis’ Selection for Secretary of Labor
Right to Work President Mark Mix discusses Obama’s upcoming appointment of forced unionism activist Hilda Solis as Secretary of Labor with Neil Cavuto of Fox News:
For more on Solis, here’s some background on her career and political views.
Statement: «Solis Nomination Slap in the Face to America’s Independent Minded Workers»
The National Right to Work Committee has issued a statement on the announcement that Barack Obama intends to name Hilda Solis as the next Secretary of Labor. National Right to Work president Mark Mix had the following to say:
Obama’s appointment of Hilda Solis is very disturbing news for America’s independent-minded workers.
Congresswoman Solis is a die-hard forced unionism activist who apparently believes that all workers should be gathered into union collectives – whether they like it or not. Throughout her political career, she has unfailingly carried water for Big Labor and voted in favor of every forced unionism power grab that has come before her. In fact, she had a 100% voting record from the AFL-CIO, in support of their radical forced unionism agenda.
Hypocritically, she advocated for a secret ballot election in 2007 for the Congressional Hispanic Caucus elections, yet she cosponsored and voted for a bill (H.R. 800) to strip America’s workers of this same right, instead subjecting them to intimidation by union organizers when choosing whether to unionize.
She also cosponsored and voted for another bill (H.R. 980) that would have subjected every police officer, firefighter, and EMT in the country to Big Labor’s forced unionism regime.
The U.S. Department of Labor is not supposed to be the U.S. Department of Big Labor. The Labor secretary should be on the side of workers, not union bosses who seek to trample workers’ rights.
As Secretary of Labor, we fear she will gut the Office of Labor Management Standards, the one division of the agency that works to root out corruption and make unions accountable to workers. Her track record indicates that she will allow the AFL-CIO to use all the tools of the Department of Labor to pressure companies until they hand over their employees to forced unionization.
This appears to be the first in a long line of paybacks that Big Labor expects from President Barack Obama.
You can download the entire statement here.
Obama’s DOL Pick: Secret Ballot Process «Unquestioned And Above Reproach,» But Only When It Protects HER
Today, President-elect Barack Obama named his pick for Labor Secretary, California Congresswoman Hilda Solis. Unsurprisingly, union bosses are rallying behind the pick.
Solis is a prominent supporter of the so-called Employee Free Choice Act (a.k.a. the Card Check Forced Unionism Bill), which would replace the secret ballot with intimidating "card check" campaigns in which union goons repeatedly harass workers at work and at home to sign union authorization cards. Once the union collects a simple majority of these public "votes," every worker in the bargaining unit loses the right to negotiate directly with the employer.
But in January 2007, Solis joined other members of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus to protest the lack of a secret ballot in the election for CHC officials. The San Diego Union-Tribune has a good summary of their complaint (emphasis added):
On Wednesday, Sanchez did not elaborate on the claim of election rules violation. However, in a letter to Baca earlier this month, she, her sister, Solis and Velazquez contended the vote did not follow procedure because secret ballot votes were not taken.
The letter requested a new vote, by secret ballot.
“While this request is not likely to change the results, and while it may seem like a mere formality, it is important that the integrity of the CHC be unquestioned and above reproach,” it said.
There you have it — incoming Labor Secretary Hilda Solis is on the record favoring the secret ballot as "unquestioned and above reproach." But only when it protects her from intimidation.
For more on the selection of union-label Hilda Solis as Secretary of Labor, click here to read the statement issued by National Right to Work Committee President Mark Mix.
Washington State Appeals Court Upholds Teachers’ Right to Restitution for Dues Illegally Spent By WEA Union Officials
Washington State Appeals Court Upholds Teachers’ Right to Restitution for Dues Illegally Spent By WEA Union Officials
After securing U.S. Supreme Court victory, National Right to Work attorneys pick up the pieces of an otherwise impotent campaign finance regulation
Seattle, WA (December 17, 2008) — A recent decision by a Washington State Court of Appeals, Division 2, has ruled union officials can be held liable for illegally spending teachers’ forced union dues under a now-effectively defunct campaign finance regulation.
The ruling means that thousands of Washington State teachers may receive restitution for the amount Washington Education Association (WEA) union officials illegally docked their paychecks to pay for union political expenditures. The ineffective campaign finance law at issue had been adopted in 1992 and has since been voided by the Washington State Legislature.
The teachers are receiving free legal aid from National Right to Work Foundation staff attorneys. In 2007, Foundation attorneys successfully brought the Davenport v. WEA case to the U.S. Supreme Court, which overturned an earlier Washington State Supreme Court decision using the campaign finance law to undermine the First Amendment. The state appeals court ruled Friday on a number of issues, including upholding the teachers’ tort claim for restitution and approving the certification of thousands of employees as a class.
Before it was gutted by amendment in 2007, the Washington law had required union officials to obtain the prior consent of nonunion public employees before spending their mandatory union dues on a small fraction of what the union actually spends on politics. According to an amicus brief filed by the Evergreen Freedom Foundation, the amount of political expenditures actually covered by the law was “miniscule… less than one quarter of one percent of the WEA’s total expenditures.” However, in striking down the law, the state Supreme Court had erroneously found a constitutional “right” for union officials to spend the money of non-union employees who are compelled to pay union dues as a condition of employment.
Washington State Appeals Court Upholds Teachers’ Right to Restitution for Dues Illegally Spent By WEA Union Officials
Seattle, WA (December 17, 2008) — A recent decision by a Washington State Court of Appeals, Division 2, has ruled union officials can be held liable for illegally spending teachers’ forced union dues under a now-effectively defunct campaign finance regulation.
The ruling means that thousands of Washington State teachers may receive restitution for the amount Washington Education Association (WEA) union officials illegally docked their paychecks to pay for union political expenditures. The ineffective campaign finance law at issue had been adopted in 1992 and has since been voided by the Washington State Legislature.
The teachers are receiving free legal aid from National Right to Work Foundation staff attorneys. In 2007, Foundation attorneys successfully brought the Davenport v. WEA case to the U.S. Supreme Court, which overturned an earlier Washington State Supreme Court decision using the campaign finance law to undermine the First Amendment. The state appeals court ruled Friday on a number of issues, including upholding the teachers’ tort claim for restitution and approving the certification of thousands of employees as a class.
Before it was gutted by amendment in 2007, the Washington law had required union officials to obtain the prior consent of nonunion public employees before spending their mandatory union dues on a small fraction of what the union actually spends on politics. According to an amicus brief filed by the Evergreen Freedom Foundation, the amount of political expenditures actually covered by the law was “miniscule… less than one quarter of one percent of the WEA’s total expenditures.” However, in striking down the law, the state Supreme Court had erroneously found a constitutional “right” for union officials to spend the money of non-union employees who are compelled to pay union dues as a condition of employment.
“Ineffective ‘paycheck protection’ campaign finance laws such as this have unfortunately opened a Pandora’s Box, creating an opportunity for activist courts to award new privileges to union officials and even to jeopardize state Right to Work laws,” said Stefan Gleason, vice president of the National Right to Work Foundation. “While the underlying law was deeply flawed, the National Right to Work Foundation had a duty to limit the broader collateral damage done to employees’ rights by the state court’s response and to fight for the return of dues illegally seized under the now totally ineffective law.”
“Ultimately, Right to Work laws are the only way to protect workers from the misuse of their funds. By making membership and the payment of dues entirely voluntary, Right to Work laws allow employees to prevent the theft in the first place,” stated Gleason.
Free Right to Work Stocking Stuffers
Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays from the National Right to Work Legal Defense Foundation!
Year round we distribute and give away hundreds of books so that employees know their legal rights, and so that Americans understand why the fight for employee free choice is so vital. But with the holiday season upon us, a reminder about the FREE books you can receive from the National Right to Work Foundation seems in order.
If you act now, you can order two free books Stranglehold – How union bosses have hijacked our government by Reed Larson and Union Dues and Religious Do Nots by Foundation attorney Bruce N. Cameron, and they should arrive in time for Christmas.
In Stranglehold, Reed Larson reveals the astonishing story of how organized labor has acquired incredible, hidden power over local, state, and national government in America.
Union Dues and Religious Do Nots is a guide for employees who find their forced full-dues-paying union membership in conflict with their sincere religious beliefs and want to explore ways to save their conscience.
Order these books today – they would make the ultimate stocking stuffer for the Right to Work supporter in your family!
Video: Foundation Discusses Blagojevich’s Corrupt Ties to Top SEIU Union Bosses on Fox Chicago
A Fox affiliate in Chicago investigated Blagojevich’s corrupt relationship with the powerful Service Employees International Union (SEIU). We’ve got the video, which includes a clip from Foundation VP Stefan Gleason:
For more on Blagojevich’s connection to the SEIU, be sure to check out the Foundation’s latest podcast.
SEIU Union «Charity» Isn’t the Least Bit Charitable
In August, we told you about allegations of corruption against Tyrone Freeman, then head the largest Service Employees International Union (SEIU) affiliate in California. Over the weekend, the Los Angeles Times published new allegations against Freeman and his union.
In 2004, Freeman’s local launched what they called a "charity" to develop affordable housing for its members. The charity’s board is mostly comprised of union officials, and the charity shares office space with the union.
The problem? In at least two years of operation, the "charity" failed to spend a single cent on its charitable mission.
The charity, launched by a scandal-ridden Los Angeles chapter of the Service Employees International Union, had total expenses of about $165,000 for 2005 and 2006, and all of the money went to consulting fees, insurance costs and other overhead, according to its Internal Revenue Service filings.
Charity watchdogs say that nonprofits should never have zero program expenses in two successive years and that well-performing charities direct at least 70% of their annual spending to their charitable purpose.
"Of the 5,000-plus charities we’ve looked at, I don’t think we’ve ever seen one that didn’t spend anything on its charitable programs," said Sandra Miniutti, vice president of Charity Navigator, an online rating service.
Running a union-affiliated charity that doesn’t actually do any charity — sounds a bit like the kind of job Rob Blagojevich was asking the SEIU to set up for him.
Union Brass: Go Along with Sexual Harassment or Lose Your Job
Last week, the Detroit Free Press reported that a jury has found that a UAW local must pay a Chrysler worker $300,000 for not being protected by union officials from sexual harassment at the workplace.
Chrysler employee Mee Sanders was harassed by Richard Lott, a union steward, when he "requested sexual favors in exchange for influencing her job placement." A distraught Sanders requested help from union brass on numerous occasions. However, the union officials were uninterested in helping her and "in one case, an official urged her to do what Lott wanted." The union hierarchy’s outright negligence and greenlighting of such behavior resulted in a hostile work environment for Sanders.
During the trial, adding insult to injury, the union’s lawyer told Sanders at the end of cross examination that she will be laid off as part of Chrysler’s downsizing [induced by forced unionism induced financial problems], stating "By the way, you know you’re not going to make the cut, and you’re going to lose your job."
Unfortunately, serious workplace abuses like this will continue as long as union officials can use their compulsory unionism special privileges to shield themselves from accountability to the employees whose interests they supposedly represent.
