As we approach Labor Day, the Evergreen Freedom Foundation (EFF) released its The State of Labor report for 2008. According EFF, the costs of state collective bargaining have helped to increase state payroll and benefit expenditures in Washington. Between 2004 and 2007, taxpayer dollars spent on state salaries (excluding K-12 education) increased from $1.9 billion to $2.2 billion due, in part according to EFF, to changes in state law that strengthen state worker collective bargaining. State spending on employee health benefits increased by $100 million over the same three-year period.
EFF has four recommendations to reform the public sector collective bargaining system. They include:
- Open contract negotiations to the public;
- Require financial transparency of union finances so unions spend dues on legitimate bargaining and grievance issues, member services and intra-union educational activities;
- Provide paycheck protection so union political expenditures are truly voluntary and not commingled with union dues; and,
- Public sector unions should not be permitted to hold taxpayers hostage and force negotiating concessions by going on strike or threatening to do so.
In the introduction of the report, EFF calls attention to the nationwide union effort to pass what is called the Employee Free Choice Act which would eliminate secret ballot elections in the workplace over whether or not to unionize with a card-check system. Union leaders want to allow union organizers to come into your business, circulate cards asking for worker support to organize a union and stand over the shoulders of workers while they fill out the cards. Get enough signed cards and the union is established.
Former Democrat Presidential Candidate George McGovern (South Dakota) thinks eliminating the secret ballot is a bad idea even though Sen. Barack Obama, the current Democrat Presidential Candidate, says it is not a matter of "IF" card check is passed, it is a matter of "WHEN."
EFF estimates the unions will spend over $360 million nationally in this election cycle which is a whopping $200 million more than in the 2004 general election. The goal is to elect a filibuster proof U.S. Senate and a Democrat President.
Don C. Brunell, President (DonB@awb.org)
