Unions plan Lansing rally to highlight attacks on Labor

Source: Detroit News


Lansing— Organized labor will send 300 to 400 workers and union officials to the Capitol on Tuesday to try to stop "Wisconsin-style assaults" on collective bargaining, the president of the Michigan AFL-CIO said today.

Mark Gaffney said he and his members are especially concerned about bills before the GOP-controlled state Legislature that would allow emergency financial managers to scrap union contracts; end binding arbitration for police and firefighters and repeal Michigan's prevailing wage law that sets minimum pay and benefit rates for state-sponsored or state-financed construction projects.


Public sector employees don't like health-care concessions and other measures included in the budget Republican Gov. Rick Snyder unveiled Thursday, but "our problem may not be with Gov. Snyder as much as it is with Republicans in the Legislature," Gaffney said.

"To have the right-wing Republican Legislature come out and say the only way to work through concessions is to end collective bargaining and to end contracts is just wrong," Gaffney said at a news conference in Lansing.





Read more: http://www.detnews.com/article/20110221/POLITICS02/102210378/1001/Unions-plan-Lansing-rally-to-highlight-attacks-on-labor

the 1930's? Are some of them federal laws? Can they do that?

Federal prevailing wage rules only apply to federal projects.

Michigan has prevailing wage laws applicable to STATE funded projects.

If the state laws are repealed, then everything can go to the lowest bidder, who pays the lowest wages.

the WI protests will continue to cascade throughout the country!

I would have to hitch a ride from someone. If anyone from the Greenville area is heading there and would like company drop me an email.

peace

Kim

There are a series of Emergency Financial Manager bills coming up in the State House (HB 4214-18) that would give the State Treasurer general powers to take over villages, townships, cities, counties and school districts that are considered "financially distressed." (75 people have already been trained as Emergency Financial Managers and 100 more in the pipeline.)

Under the proposed bills, if an emergency financial manager were appointed, that person would have more power over items including the termination of contracts negotiated with labor unions.

Local elected leaders would lose power when an emergency financial manager is appointed and they would be prohibited from running for office for 10 years.



http://detnews.com/article/20110210/POLITICS02/10210043...

FYI


The Wall Street Journal is running a poll, "Should state employees have collective-bargaining rights?"

Right now poll results are saying no by a wide margin. The website is listed below.

After completing the poll, consider sending to your email distribution list, if friendly of course.

http://online.wsj.com/community/groups/question-day-229/topics/should-state-employees-have-collective-bargaining?commentid=2114076

In Solidarity,

Brent Gillette

MI State Political Director


419 S. Washington Sq. Ste. 200

Lansing, MI 48933

I took the poll and passed along...