INK: October 21, 2008

by | Oct 21, 2008 | Labor Relations Ink

inkquill22 Labor Relations INK Download a PDF of this issue with links here.   Labor Relations Insight from Phil Wilson EFCA: No Time To Lose We are only 2 weeks away from what at this point looks like a big win for Barack Obama and a substantial – perhaps filibuster-proof – Democratic majority in the Senate. Many people we’ve talked to over the last several months about the Free Choice Act have told us they are waiting until after the elections before they do anything. I have a feeling many of those will say that they are going to wait until the legislation passes before they take action after the election. These “conservative” strategies seem logical. After all, why prepare for a change in the laws when you don’t even know what the rules are going to be? But the strategies are not logical. And they’re not conservative. They are reckless. Companies who aren’t fully engaged in devloping an action plan and educating new and incumbent employees right now about union cards are going to be sorry.

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********** Boeing Strikers Should Take Note Boeing Strike Daimler Trucks North America has scheduled a closure of a Porland, OR plant. The closure will send 900 machinists looking for jobs, as the production work is be shifted to climates with less union encumbrances in the Carolinas and Mexico. Striking Boeing machinists, represented by the same union representing the Freightliner employees, could drive Boeing to a similar move once production on the 737 comes to an end. In a related reinforcement of the point, Boeing executive Fred Kiga, speaking at a Washington state aerospace industry conference, warned of the northwest becoming known as a “strike zone.” “I don’t think anyone would call this region an aerospace rust belt today,” he said. “But we cannot afford to become known as the strike zone either. The stakes are much too high.” ********** McCain vs. Obama: Labor Policy

The Alliance for Worker Freedom has release a chart comparing the two presidential candidates on labor positions, including right-to-work, card check, and other key issues. Check it out!

********** UFCW vs. Business Reality The six Wal-Mart employees of a Tire & Lubrication Express department in a Canadian store probably thought they had finally cracked open the “evil empire” when they won a 3-year court battle over representation by the United Food & Commercial Workers union. Business realities soon hit home when the Express was closed due to the unprofitability of the venture adjusted for the new wage hikes. The employees were offered employment – non-union – at other Wal-Mart locations. ********** More Cash from the UAW

Piling on to the huge Big Labor financial commitment to sway the November elections, the United Auto Workers launched a $3 million ad campaign in the manufacturing states of Indiana, Michigan, Ohio and Pennsylvania. The campaign, supporting the Obama ticket, is targeting active and retired members of the UAW, of which more than half of the total of one million live in one of those four states.

********** Former Union Organizers Expose “Psychological Battery” [flashvideo file=http://www.youtube.com/v/Y1b2UtZ2S6Q&hl=en&fs=1 image=wp-content/uploads/organizer.jpg /] Big Labor has been spouting about the supposed coercive tactics that empoyers use during organizing campaigns to intimidate employees into voting in favor of the company. We’ve put together a three-minute video of several former union organizers exposing the truth about the tactics used by unions during such campaigns. This “insiders view” highlights the dangers of the horribly mistitled Employe Free Choice Act, and indicates what the American workforce should prepare for should this legislation pass, and exposes who the real culprits are of coercive tactics. Watch the video on YouTube at this link:  http://www.youtube.com/v/Y1b2UtZ2S6Q&hl=en&fs=1 ********** If you missed this – here it is again! An Interview with Don Wilson: The EFCA. This is a complete interview with the CEO of Labor Relations Institute on the Employee Free Choice Act and its impact on American businesses.   Pre-Election Special! There is still time to educate your employees about the dangerous impact of the Employee Free Choice Act prior to the November election. We are offering the About the EFCA module from our EFCA Tool Kit for only $895. You still have time to make a difference! Review the details and preview the videos here. **********  OCTOBER SCOREBOARD Who are the winners (and losers) of the labor movement? Don’t guess, just check the LRI Scoreboard

View this month’s scoreboard (archives also located here).

Download a PDF of this month’s scoreboard.

        ********** Employee Relations tip-of-the-month Ask for employees who are “subject matter experts” at something outside of work (fishing, hunting, crafts, cooking, etc.) to do a “brown bag lunch” presentation on the topic – ask for volunteers to cover topics. Remember how excited you got for show and tell when you were in school? It’s still pretty fun. ********** Sticky Fingers! Current charges or sentences of embezzling union officials: Kenneth Campbell – IUOE: $270,000 Carol Bruno – CSEA: $16,000 Charles Bohanon – BLET: $18,074 Donna Roles – USW: $60,000 Kenneth Saltz, Jr. – USW: $15,809 Betty Wing – USW: $6,600 Michael LaPorte – USW: $20,000 Jeffrey Granberg – BAC: $2,500 ********** Labor Relations INK is published semi-weekly and is edited by Labor Relations Institute, Inc. Feel free to pass this newsletter on to anyone you think might enjoy it. New subscribers can sign up by visiting: https://lrionline.com/free-stuff/newsletter-signup If you use content from this newsletter please attribute it to Labor Relations Institute and include our website address: www.LRIonline.com Contributing editors for this issue: Phillip Wilson, Greg Kittinger Labor Relations Institute 7850 South Elm Place – Suite E Broken Arrow, OK 74011 US

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