Union Politics

Union's $200,000 Political Donation Goes Unreported

Nick Cote — Mon, 17 Nov 2008 11:16:59 -0500

Just two days before the election, the Washington Post's Tim Craig unearthed some last-minute, secretive union politicking:

The Virginia Democratic Party failed to properly disclose a $200,000 donation it received in early September from a labor union, party officials admitted today.

In Virginia, there are no limits on how much an individual or organization can give to a political candidate or party, but all donations of $10,000 or more have to be reported to the State Board of Elections within three business days. The information is then uploaded on the State Board of Elections' website so the public can keep track of who is funding political committees and candidates.

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Wall Street Journal: Big Labor Eyes Massive Union Power Grabs After Election

Patrick Semmens — Mon, 27 Oct 2008 11:34:50 -0400

Big Labor is spending north of a billion dollars to get their favored candidates elected, much of it from employees forced to pay dues to keep their job. Union bosses see it as a smart investment given the forced unionism power grabs that could quickly become law if their chosen candidates take office.

As detailed in today's Wall Street Journal, those power grabs would mean literally billions new forced dues dollars flowing into union bosses' coffers. There is no question that Foundation attorneys will be overwhelmed with legal aid requests from workers seeking refuge from the onslaught:

National Right to Work Podcast - Episode 2: Big Labor's Political Spending Machine At Full Tilt

Will Collins — Fri, 24 Oct 2008 12:05:05 -0400

Episode 2 of the Foundation's weekly podcast is now available online for download.

SEIU Union Hit with FEC Complaint for Illegal Political Fundraising Scheme

Nick Cote — Thu, 23 Oct 2008 11:59:23 -0400

This summer, we told you about one of the nation's largest unions imposing a fundraising quota on locals and workers in an illegal scheme to fund its political action committee. Here's the latest:

The National Right to Work Legal Defense Foundation will file a formal complaint with the Federal Election Commission asking it to investigate a campaign fundraising scheme adopted by the Service Employees International Union (SEIU) at its convention this summer.

The union and its officers appear to be violating federal labor law and the Federal Election Campaign Act by imposing financial penalties on local affiliates who fail to meet Political Action Committee (PAC) fundraising targets. On June 3, delegates to the SEIU convention approved Constitutional Amendment #317 in time to take effect for this year’s federal elections.

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Teacher Union Bosses Turn America's Public Schools into Campaign Zones

Anthony Riedel — Thu, 02 Oct 2008 17:44:35 -0400

Big Labor's big money boys are pulling out all the stops to get the presidential candidate of their choice elected. Across the country, teacher union bosses have been pushing their preferred political causes and candidates and the result is the disturbing politicization of the classroom.

Today, the Washington Times reported that union brass of the Virginia Education Association Union (VEA), an affiliate of the National Education Association Union (NEA), sent an e-mail to Virginia teachers which:

Foundation Action: Foundation Seeks Federal Investigation into Union Political Fundraising

Patrick Semmens — Mon, 29 Sep 2008 11:04:45 -0400

The cover story of the September/October issue of Foundation Action covers efforts by the Foundation to expose an SEIU union political fundraising scheme that coerces workers to support union politics, and to get the Department of Labor and Department of Justice investigate the scheme.

Read the whole story here (pdf) and sign up today for a free print subscription.

To receive the entire issue via email, just type your email address into the box in the top right corner of this page.

Even a Big Labor Ally Concedes the SEIU May Be Breaking Federal Election Law

Will Collins — Tue, 29 Jul 2008 11:50:08 -0400

Yesterday, a pro-Big Labor blogger at OpenLeft inadvertently highlighted the absurdity of the SEIU's apparently illegal fundraising scheme (emphasis mine):

If the local doesn't put enough money into the national PAC, they will have to pay a penalty of regular funds out of union dues to the international. PAC contributions are voluntary and only come when members feel empowered, whereas union dues are automatic, so this is a strong incentive for locals to organize and empower their members. It's a good policy move, and it was voted on and ratified at the SEIU Convention.

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"Union Bosses of the World Unite!"

Nick Cote — Tue, 08 Jul 2008 13:15:39 -0400

Last week, officials from the United Steelworkers union and "Unite the Union" -- among the largest unions in North America and the United Kingdom -- announced that they had signed an agreement to merge into a single, global union. From their joint press release:

Consistent with this calling, Workers Uniting will "match our words with action and resources, utilizing our collective expertise and knowledge through collective bargaining, organizing, global political action and international solidarity."

What might this "global political action" include? Among other activities... "Exposure to the political processes in each other's countries, including Democratic Party primaries and Labour Party conferences."

The Self Serving Labor Board

Nick Cote — Fri, 27 Jun 2008 14:58:20 -0400

Wednesday's Daily Labor Report (subscription required) featured a self-serving article likely placed by the National Labor Relations Board's PR flacks in which the two remaining board members assert that the NLRB "might actually be functioning more efficiently" with three vacancies than with a full five-member panel. Hmmm. Perhaps Congress should take another look at the NLRB's excessive funding levels.

We at Freedom @ Work also take issue with a false claim by the Board contained in the article:

Big Labor Unleashes Record Political Activisim

Nick Cote — Fri, 27 Jun 2008 11:13:55 -0400

Yesterday, the AFL-CIO officially endorsed its candidate for president. The endorsement should come as no surprise, of course, since Big Labor has always used member dues -- and forced dues from nonmembers -- to support its Far Left political agenda. But this year's campaign will apparently be the largest and most expensive yet:

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