Marathon Pundit: NLRB overreach: "They left?" edition

Tuesday, February 21, 2012

NLRB overreach: "They left?" edition

Yes, when did Big Labor leave the Democratic Party. Picking up from a Los Angeles Times story, the New York Post writes:

When did they leave?

The Los Angeles Times quotes one union man saying they are rededicated to the Democrats because supposedly Republicans are so scary, with their Right to Work laws and questioning collective bargaining. "I think we'll be more engaged in 2012 than certainly in the last 20 years," said Mike Podhorzer, political director for the AFL-CIO, a federation of 57 unions. "Working people realize in a way they never have what a threat the current Republican platform is to their well-being."

But the very next sentence puts the lie to the entire proposition. "Organized labor is now expected to match or slightly exceed the estimated $400 million that unions spent to help elect Barack Obama and congressional Democrats in 2008, according to Marick F. Masters, a business professor who studies the labor movement at Michigan's Wayne State University.

Of course Obama placated his Big Labor buddies with three illegal recess appointments to the National Labor Relations Board last month.

More on the president and the NLRB from the Savannah Morning News:

His latest deal with labor bosses is especially radical — a rule that makes it easier for unions to hold "ambush elections" at workplaces to gain new members.

Blame the National Labor Relations Board. This important federal panel used to be an impartial arbiter of labor-management issues in this country. Under Mr. Obama, it has essentially functioned as another arm of his re-election team.

In December, prior to the expiration of NLRB member Craig Becker's recess appointment, the NLRB quickly issued a final rule to allow union bosses to "ambush" employers with union elections before employers have a fair chance to learn their rights and explain their views to employees, as required by law.

The change limits the issues and evidence that can be presented at a pre-election hearing. Thus if employees have questions or concerns about unions and management before they vote, they won't get answers. They'll be voting in the dark.

WBEZ-FM:

As Gov. Pat Quinn prepares his budget address for Wednesday, the president of the Illinois Senate says state workers might have to compromise between salary increases and pension benefits.