From the desk of Steve Cabot:

Since the soothsayer’s warning to Julius Caesar, the Ides of March has carried a dark connotation of doom and betrayal by someone close – a trusted advocate or ally. And that’s what came to mind as I read several items within the past week which highlighted the increasing divergence between the priorities of Organized Labor and the workers they claim to represent.

Here we are, still mired in the worst economic times since the Great Depression, and what do we hear from the union bosses – words of concern and a willingness to work with management to save jobs and build productivity? Not even close.

In a recent interview, AFL-CIO president Richard Trumka spelled out his commitment to partner with radical (which he calls Progressive) political action groups to push the Far Left agenda of this administration. These are ideologically-driven efforts utterly disconnected with – and often in direct opposition to – the well-being of the American worker.

Is it any surprise, then, that employees – at least in the private sector – are questioning the value (and values) of their union leaders?  They see the abuses, the pointlessly confrontational attitude toward management, the unauthorized allocation of dues to political purposes antithetical to their interests, the intimidation in organizing elections, and the general hijacking of their rights. And increasingly, they don’t like it.

But out of this disillusionment has come great opportunity. For years, the Cabot Institute has believed in – and counseled clients to embrace – a WIN/WIN approach in the workplace, one that sees employees as partners, not pawns. One that rejects us/them in favor of a true shared vision.

And today, more than ever, we are seeing the fruits of this philosophy. I encourage you to reach out to discuss the specific ways we can assess your situation and suggest the best strategies going forward. You can call me directly on my cell phone (215-990-3423) or contact Georgetta McCabe, my administrative assistant, on her direct line: 800-655-2042.

cabot institute · Employee Free Choice Act · Labor Relations · National Labor Relations Board · organized labor · President Obama · richard tromka · Right to Work · Steve Cabot · Wisconsin

From the desk of Steve Cabot:

I wasn’t too surprised when Organized Labor decided to throw in with the motley mobs currently laying siege to cities across the country. After all, they have a lot in common. The anti-capitalist, redistributionist rhetoric coming from the agitators is standard fare at union rallies, and the paramilitary tactics of intimidation, disruption, and forcible occupation of public and private property are right out of the SEIU handbook.

The truth is, this is a natural – if unholy – alliance:  the demonstrators want to weaken corporations and demonize profits, and the labor unions are more than happy to provide logistical and financial assistance as a means of building their own public support and political power. For them, this is simply another step toward their goal of reestablishing workplace hegemony.

This is an ongoing saga, one with significant long-term implications. If you’re interested in learning more about the state of Organized Labor today and its impact on our economy, I invite you to read a compelling special report just released by Human Events entitled, “The Big Labor Stranglehold:  Killing Jobs & Hurting America.” Written by Dr. Carl F. Horowitz, project manager for the National Legal and Policy Center, this 26-page report looks beyond the well-publicized but misleading statistics about declining union membership and documents the strategies, goals, impact, and prospects of Big Labor in America.

To receive your complimentary copy, simply click here or on the image below to go to the Human Events website. Once you register, a pdf version of the report will be sent directly to the email address you specify.

For assistance with any labor relations issues, I encourage you to call me on my cell phone (215-990-3423) or contact Georgetta McCabe, my administrative assistant, on her direct line: 800-655-2042.

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From the desk of Stephen Cabot:

In a further attempt to promote card checks, the National Labor Relations Board has filed suit to void a voter-approved constitutional amendment in Arizona that allows the formation of unions only by secret ballot elections.

This is not only blow against democracy, for Arizonians voted to approve the way unions could be formed, but it is also evidence of the NLRB’s ongoing determination to promote Card Checks as a way of increasing union membership.

Arizona’s attorney general will fight the lawsuit, making a stand for democracy and the rights of workers and management to decide upon unionization based upon secret ballot elections.

That, however, has not curtailed the intentions of the NLRB, which now plans to sue South Dakota as well over its passage of a constitutional amendment similar to Arizona’s In addition, the NLRB may initiate legal action against South Carolina and Utah in the coming weeks or months. It is apparent that if organized labor cannot get congress to pass the Employee Free Choice Act (aka, Card Checks), then it will let the NLRB do its bidding, even if it involves abrogating the votes of citizens.

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From the desk of Stephen Cabot:

Not satisfied with bringing the Detroit automakers to near financial collapse as a result of onerous union rules and regulations, the United Auto Workers (UAW) now wants to impose its typically stifling workplace scenarios on foreign auto makers that have built manufacturing facilities in the United States. Those facilities employ tens of thousands of workers who enjoy middle class salaries and benefits. Their morale and levels of productivity are high.

Nevertheless, the UAW has not only promised to expose so-called human rights violations at those facilities as if shining a light on third world dictatorships, but it also intends to utilize $60 million of its $800 million strike fund to achieve its objectives.

To further the achievement of its goals, the UAW is also demanding that auto makers give up their right to free speech by agreeing not to discuss unionization on company grounds unless UAW representatives can participate. Yet, union representatives can and do visit employee homes where they proselytize for unionization without company representatives being present.

And card checks (as one might have expected) are also included in the UAW strategy. Utilizing card checks, unionization would occur if a majority of employees sign cards signifying that they want to be represented and if the union can claim there has been a history of “anti-union activity.” Once unionization has been established and there is no agreement on a contract after six months, the UAW wants the matter turned over to binding arbitration, which had been an ingredient of the congressionally rejected Employee Free Choice Act.

It is apparent that the UAW is intent on driving up its dues-paying membership rolls, which have dropped from 1.5 million members in 1979 to 400,000 members today. Its $800 million strike fund could be enormously increased by unionizing workers at those entire foreign car manufacturing facilities that are building vehicles in the United States.

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From the desk of Stephen Cabot:

The National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) has threatened to sue four states for ensuring that workers can enjoy a basic democratic right to cast secret ballots when it come s to the possibility of unionization. The four states, South Dakota, South Carolina, Arizona, and Utah, have mandated the use of secret ballots in union elections.

The NLRB has made the Alice-in-Wonderland assertion that secret ballots violate federal law. Though Congress has refused to pass the Employee Free Choice Act that would have permitted unions to coerce workers into signing “card checks” to ensure union representation, the NLRB has repeatedly looked for opportunities to present unions with opportunities to impose the use of “card checks” on workers, who may not want to join a union.

Indeed, the most effective tactic that workers have against forced unionization is the secret ballot. No union organizer gets to coerce, embarrass, or intimidate a worker to join a union when the workers’ preferences are made oblique by casting secret, anonymous ballots.

We back the efforts of Minnesota Republican Representative John Kline to amend the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA) with the passage of the Secret Ballot Protection Act. While the Republican dominated House of Representatives very well may pass the amendment, the Democrats in the Senate will not pass it. Corporate America, therefore, will have to wait until the election of 2012 to be delivered from the high-handed, pro-union actions of the NLRB. Meanwhile, it is essential that corporations put in place survival strategies that prevent labor relations problems before they arise.

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From the desk of Stephen Cabot:

The National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) has threatened to sue four states for ensuring that workers can enjoy a basic democratic right to cast secret ballots when it come s to the possibility of unionization. The four states, South Dakota, South Carolina, Arizona, and Utah, have mandated the use of secret ballots in union elections.

The NLRB has made the Alice-in-Wonderland assertion that secret ballots violate federal law. Though Congress has refused to pass the Employee Free Choice Act that would have permitted unions to coerce workers into signing “card checks” to ensure union representation, the NLRB has repeatedly looked for opportunities to present unions with opportunities to impose the use of “card checks” on workers, who may not want to join a union.

Indeed, the most effective tactic that workers have against forced unionization is the secret ballot. No union organizer gets to coerce, embarrass, or intimidate a worker to join a union when the workers’ preferences are made oblique by casting secret, anonymous ballots.

We back the efforts of Minnesota Republican Representative John Kline to amend the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA) with the passage of the Secret Ballot Protection Act. While the Republican dominated House of Representatives very well may pass the amendment, the Democrats in the Senate will not pass it. Corporate America, therefore, will have to wait until the election of 2012 to be delivered from the high-handed, pro-union actions of the NLRB. Meanwhile, it is essential that corporations put in place survival strategies that prevent labor relations problems before they arise.

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From Stephen Cabot’s desk in Philadelphia:

In a recent decision, the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) has opened its back door ever wider for unions to enact a de facto Employee Free Choice Act (EFCA), also known as card checks.
The NLRB decided that an important auto supply company, Dana, in Michigan, can permit the further establishment of unionization amongst its employees through card checks. The UAW already represents workers at a number of Dana facilities. And the union wanted to organize the remaining workers. In an effort to win union concessions without resorting to collective bargaining, Dana agreed to permit the UAW to use card checks to organize those workers who were not represented by a union. No longer will there be secret ballot elections at Dana. Instead, union organizers can now pressure or even intimidate workers into signing card cards.
Dana agreed to the use of card checks and the abolition of secret ballot elections in exchange for the UAW agreeing to maintain the company’s plans to reduce employee benefits and permit mandatory overtime. The UAW further agreed not to call for a strike. And the NLRB gave this unusual deal its stamp of approval!
It may seem like a good deal for Dana, but if labor disputes arise in the future, the UAW can resort to a full assortment of union tactics to win concessions, and it will have the added leverage of representing all of Dana’s workers. In the meantime, the UAW will significantly increase revenues from the union dues of many new members.
Both the NLRB and the UAW have found a clever way to impose card checks on Corporate America and enlist millions of workers into the ranks of unions. It is a bad portent for Corporate America, the American economy, and every American industrial city from Philadelphia to Los Angeles, from Houston to Chicago, from Atlanta to Seattle.

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From the desk of Stephen Cabot:

If there was ever any doubt that the Obama Administration is pro-union, that doubt can now be extinguished. The President’s National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) has stated it wants all companies to post notices and perhaps even disseminate e-mails informing employees of their right to join unions.
So determined is the administration to do big labor’s bidding that this is the first time since the passage of the National Labor Relations Act in 1935 that the NLRB has demanded that employers post such a pro-union notice.
Organized labor, which supported the election of President Obama to the tune of tens of millions of dollars, has been frustrated that congress has not passed the Employee Free Choice Act (EFCA). As a result, the NLRB has been diligently working to enhance opportunities for unions to organize the workers of as many companies as possible. This latest move by the NLRB is just one of many acts designed to promote the ongoing unionization of American workers.

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From the desk of Stephen Cabot:

For several months, I have been writing that the NLRB has been looking for ways to do an end run around the mis-named Employee Free Choice Act. Ideologically disposed to providing whatever support it can to unions, the NLRB’s latest intention is to endorse quickie elections to hasten union representation.
The time from petition to election usually takes 38 days. However, Mark Pearce, a Board member, would like to shorten that period of time to between five and ten days, which is what exists in Canada.
In order for employers to present their side of the unionization story, to educate their employees to what they will be losing if they vote for union representation, they need sufficient time to communicate facts and concepts to employees. And because union organizers usually operate in secret, employers will not know that their employees have been the targets of union propaganda until a petition has been filed. Five to ten days will hardly be adequate time for management to present its case. After all, the union organizers may have been propagandizing workers for weeks, if not months.
A quickie election is indeed an end round around the dormant Employee Free Choice Act. Instead of card checks, union authorization cards will lead to petitions which will lead to quickie elections. Five days later, a union will be in place. Say hello to the Employee Free Choice Act in disguise. It is, therefore, essential that Corporate America pro-actively develop strategies for defeating such scenarios. And the time for doing so is Now!

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From the desk of Stephen Cabot:

President Barack Obama, in an effort to shore up support from organized labor, said that he will push for stronger organizing rights for unions. One can assume, based upon such a promise as well as his appointment of Craig Becker to the National Labor Relations Board, that while the Employee Free Choice might be lifeless, it will soon rise from the dead. (The EFCA is beginning to resemble a vampire that cannot be slain).
The president had made his revivifying remarks on August 4 to the executive council of the AFL-CIO. While the president received numerous standing ovations, he was warned that unions will only support those politicians who back organized labor’s multi-faceted agenda, which includes the passage of the EFCA. And the president stressed that his administration will, indeed, work to seek passage of the ACT, which – of course – he will proudly sign into law. (At that point, one can imagine another round of thunderous applause).
However, knowing that he cannot get congress to pass many of labor’s pro-union initiatives, the president not only stated that “We are going to keep on fighting to pass the Employee Free Choice Act,” but that he would use his executive powers to implement changes, ones that do not require legislative approval (e.g. the appointment of Craig Becker).
It is apparent that Mr. Obama is siding with big labor and against Corporate America. That is not only bad for American businesses, but it is also bad for the entire economy, which affects all Americans, including union members.

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