I have never been a big fan of unions. They force
individual members to join, then force them to pay the fees for their
collective bargaining representation. Then they spend the members’ money on
candidates and causes, regardless of the individual members’ support. Granted,
such forced cooperation would not be so bad, except that unionism and its
precepts are hurting the very people whom they claim to represent. When unions
functioned from a position of liberty and service, they succeeded and assisted
their working man. Now in collusion with Big Government and Big Business, labor
unions are working over their members rather than working for them.
Today, in spite of economic data discouraging this
agenda, Big Labor is on the forefront of the open border amnesty lobby. Do
these interest groups really think that driving in more cheap, unskilled labor
will help the employment opportunities for Americans living here? Big Labor
wants forced wage hikes, such as the $15 minimum wage bump in Los Angeles, then
the same syndicates spend more resources backpedaling out of the requirements
in their own firms. In California, the Unified Food and Commercial Workers
colluded with the Grocery Industry in a backroom deal to ban plastic bags
statewide. This ridiculous policy does nothing to stop waste, and will end up
costing consumers money and put manufacturers out of work.
Whatever happened to “An injury to one is an injury
to all?”
Consider the expose
from Watchdog.com, including desperate smear tactics of corrupt labor
unions, protecting their free gravy train of political funding: “Using money
taken from workers’ paychecks, union bosses are portraying Friedrichs and her
peers as allies of evil corporations and white supremacists.”
In case you missed it, Rebecca Friedrichs of Orange
County, CA
is suing the California Teachers Association for their agency fees imposed
on her and other working teachers. Friedrichs supports charter schools, school
choice, and educational vouchers, yet her union vigorously opposes these
reforms, and uses her money with her permission to frustrate these reforms.
One teacher, a middle-class working mom, has frightened
the Labor Union establishment, enough that they are fundraising like crazy to
stop her and prevent the Supreme Court, already siding more with individual
liberty on this issue, from removing the coerced dues.
American Federation of Teachers President Tweeted
the following:
What do
you need to know about #Friedrichs,
the latest assault on working people? @AFLCIO
explains https://t.co/8YzTmL0nie
#worktogether
—
Randi Weingarten (@rweingarten) November
21, 2015
Really? How about this attack from the National
Education Association?:
What do you need to know about #Friedrichs,
the latest assault on working people? @AFLCIO
explains https://t.co/8YzTmL0nie
#worktogether
—
Randi Weingarten (@rweingarten) November
21, 2015
Of course, who can forget this petty
hit from AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka: “Scott Walker is a national
disgrace.”
Despite his failure to win the 2016 Presidential
nomination, Walker’s leading example and legislative reforms against Big Labor
have worked wonders in Wisconsin. Right to Work (RTW) legislation is gaining
ground in once hostile, pro-labor states. Today, the Labor Movement is on the
run throughout the country, trying to put out more fires from individual
workers fed up with bad representation and less money in their paychecks.
From twenty-five states which have gone RTW, three
more are likely to join the ranks of liberty rising as union influence is
fraying (yet flailing). Left-leaning
Politico lamented that Kentucky elected a “right to work” governor Matt
Bevin, who campaigned on bringing statewide. Individual Bluegrass state counties
have enacted this pro-liberty policy despite the lagging
state legislature. Similar divide political roadblocks have halted RTW in
Missouri (Democratic
Governor vs. supermajority GOP legislature) and New Mexico (GOP
Governor and state assembly vs. a recalcitrant state senate).
West
Virginia is looking like another prime target for RTW to win, since a
supermajority of voters (and Republicans in the state legislature) support it. RTW
does
face more opposition in Big Sky Montana, http://www.nrtw.org/free-tagging/coloradobut
Colorado workers are learning about the rights, in spite of a current lack of
RTW support.
Next year will determine how much longer the anti-liberty
puppets of union money will last. Unions are losing their present influence,
and future recruitment. Townhall columnist Jared Meyer noted that millenials
oppose joining them: “. . .[Y]oung workers are not interested in diverting
a portion of their paychecks to dues that offer them few benefits in return.”
Unions reward tenure rather than talent, and take money from the young to
safeguard the aged and retired. Rather than providing better service to the
current members, labor unions have opted for buying legislatures and corralling
political influence.
Thankfully, this interventionism is waning, and Rebecca
Friedrichs’ case will be the coup de
grace, if SCOTUS rules in Friedrichs favor.
Despite the growing attacks on liberty from a rogue Occupant in the White
House, the progressive overreach of the state into individual lives has
awakened a resurgence to fight for our rights, including the right to work,
whether an individual joins a union or not.
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