May
2013 13
2013 13
Organized Labor’s New Southern Strategy: Don’t Hate, Replicate
As unions pursue an updated strategy to brighten their 21st century hopes, some speculate that the South is showing signs of revival. The South has traditionally been anti-union and, effectively, all Southern states have had “Right-to-Work” legislation in tact for decades. The fight to reorganize the South is and will be costly, but...
Apr
2013 30
2013 30
Sacramento Bee Refuses to Apologize for Cartoon That Takes Gov. Rick Perry to Task for Safety Deregulation
A political cartoon from the Sacramento Bee that suggests Texas Governor Rick Perry’s agenda of deregulation is partially to blame for the explosion at a fertilizer plant in West, TX is drawing reaction from the Governor himself. In a letter to the Bee, Perry writes: “It was with extreme disgust and disappointment I viewed your ...
Apr
2013 16
2013 16
CEO Supplies Resounding Endorsement of California’s SB7, the Pro-Prevailing Wage Bill
In California, Senate Bill 7 looks to end the practice of charter cities skirting prevailing wage requirements by making funds for public works projects available only if a city has a policy of requiring contractors to comply with the state’s prevailing wage law. The common wisdom might indicate that labor would support the measure and ...
Apr
2013 8
2013 8
Are Non-Union Contractors Abstaining from Bidding on Projects to Undermine PLAs?
It has been over a year since we first addressed Meriden, Connecticut’s interest in a Project Labor Agreement (PLA) for school construction which required a tie-breaking vote cast by the city’s Mayor for approval. So, it is rather shocking to read about new developments in what seemed like an “old news” item. But an article...
Apr
2013 5
2013 5
Belman: Repealing the Prevailing Wage Leaves Taxpayers on the Hook
As the attack on prevailing wages heats up in Michigan, Dale Belman, a professor in the School of Human Resources and Labor Relations at Michigan State University, has stepped forward with a rebuttal of prevailing wage detractors’ claims. Belman argues that the numbers used by opponents of the prevailing wage are flawed at best and ...
Feb
2013 28
2013 28
Yakima Op-Ed States the Uncomfortable: Minimum Wage Workers are a “Liability” for State and Federal Economies
In one of the most simple and direct arguments we’ve seen written in support of raising workers’ wages and defending prevailing wages, James E. Pratt of Toppenish, WA tells the editors of the Yakima Herald that underpaid and minimum wage workers are “a liability on every state and federal program.” Politicians in the...
Feb
2013 13
2013 13
UA Local 228 Rep. Defends the Prevailing Wage for Redding, CA
After an op-ed on Redding.com that called for the city to enact a charter to circumvent prevailing wage laws, former Associated Builders & Contractors (ABC) lobbyist Kevin Dayton received a response from the workers whose pockets he wishes to reach into. Dayton, a former member of the ABC’s “Mean Team”, was protesting the...
Feb
2013 4
2013 4
Anti-Union ABC Opposes California High-Speed Rail Because Unions Helped Make It a Reality
In California, union workers are waiting to reap the rewards of their leadership’s long fought battle for High-Speed Rail (HSR). The jobs associated with the long-term project are expected to pay solid wages for years and set the new standard for infrastructure spending in the United States. If there is any doubt about how promising ...
Jan
2013 28
2013 28
EPI: A Job Shortage, Not a Skills Shortage, is Holding the Recovery Back
There is a perceived fallacy, that of a lack of skilled workers in the United States, that permeates Republican thinking on jobs. This erroneous train of thought miraculously pulls into the station when jobs bills are being debated against and economy stimulating policies, like infrastructure spending, are being beaten back to the Democratic...
Jan
2013 14
2013 14
What Has “Right-to-Work” Brought Indiana? Increased Union Solidarity and an Enhanced Value Proposition.
When the Michigan legislature began its new session last week union activists welcomed the lawmakers back to the capital in a “walk of shame” rally intended to remind them that their brazen anti-worker agenda during the lame duck session which yielded “Right-to-Work” would not be met with pacifism. Michigan lawmakers are...
Dec
2012 21
2012 21
Boston Globe Op-Ed Calls Organized Labor “the Ultimate One Percenter,” Is Immediately Taken to Task
A flawed Boston Globe opinion piece by former Governor Mitt Romney staffer Charles Chieppo unsuccessfully tried to compare unions in Massachusetts to the “one percent” and has been rebutted more than once a result. Chieppo’s faulty logic went a little something like this: During the recent campaign, Massachusetts Democrats...
Dec
2012 17
2012 17
Sean Hannity: Construction Worker, Union Member, Sack of Sh*t.
It should come as no surprise to anyone that Fox News slander-monger Sean Hannity was working hard last week to demean union protesters in Michigan. What should come as a surprise, however, is that Hannity has both a background as a construction worker and is a loyal member of the AFL-CIO. Yes, Sean Hannity has ...
