Labor Related Articles
Robert Smith III, a former agent for the International Longshoremen’s Association Local 970, pleaded guilty to mail fraud after stealing more than $1 million from the union. The crime carries a penalty of up to 20 years in prison. Sentencing will take place February 17, 2017. Read more about it here.
A recent union sympathetic article by reporter Chris Serres of the Minneapolis Star Tribune has raised red flags. The MNPCA is planning to file a formal complaint with the Star Tribune against the reporter, citing conflict of interest and bias. Read more about it here.
In a video conference at the Laborers’ International Union of North America this week, Hilary Clinton declared states’ Right to Work Laws wrong for workers and wrong for America. Right to work laws give employees the right to work without being forced to join a union and currently, 26 states have these laws, including two Midwest states Clinton needs to win the election. Read more about it here.
21 States have sued the Labor Department to block its new overtime rule. The 30-page lawsuit, filed in a Texas court, asserts that the rule will allocate funds to paying overtime and salaries, rather than allowing States to determine their best policies and priorities. The lawsuit also contends that the 10th Amendment prevents the White House from decreeing how the States should pay their workers. Read more about it here.
A Houston jury today ordered the Service Employees International Union (SEIU) to pay Professional Janitorial Services (PJS) Houston $5.3 million in damages for making false claims about the company’s business practices and treatment of PJS employees.
The successful lawsuit is part of a plan to project PJS employees from forced unionization. Read more about it here.
It’s no easier for state employees to get rid of a union. A group of personal care assistants in Minnesota is trying to leave the Service Employees International Union-Healthcare Minnesota. Personal care assistants, who get Medicaid funds to look after disabled and sick people, are paid by the state of Minnesota.
In 2014, 3,500 workers chose to be represented by the SEIU. Minnesota is taking 3 percent (up to a maximum of $948 a year) out of the paychecks of those who voted for the union and sending the funds to the SEIU.
Read the full article in US News: http://www.usnews.com/opinion/articles/2016-08-17/leaving-a-union-should-be-easier-for-employees
Articles by the RWP Team
