Big Labor's Influence on Iowa Elections: Example 1B
Friday, January 2, 2009
Gronstal Says 'Fair Share' is Fair Just hours after my post on Monday, Senate Majority Leader Mike Gronstal said this to Radio Iowa's Kay Henderson:
"If 'fair share' is so bad and it's going to make everybody exit a state that would adopt it, why the heck hasn't every business moved out of Minnesota, Wisconsin and Illinois and moved to Iowa, because they all have it?"
Perhaps the $100,000 his campaign received in 2008 from JUST ONE union has helped shape his opinion.
Fair Share as it is called forces non-union employees to pay a bargaining fee for the master contract negotiation. Labor views this as a fee for service. In their eyes, the non-union employee is free-loading on the union contract without paying for representation.
My wife is a teacher and does not belong to the teacher's union. Because the school district is unionized, she MUST operate under the master contract that the union negotiates. There is no other option for her. The union will say that my wife gets paid more because of their representation. Perhaps that is true, but there are other issues with operating under a master contract. The master contract schedules pay according to education and years of service. That's it. Good teachers make the same as bad teachers.
In the private sector, pay is determined by a number of factors including performance. Should we not expect the same thing from the public sector?
I will have an additional post further disagreeing with Gronstal that fair share is no big deal.
Cool Link of the Day
For those of you with New Year's resolutions, check out what your ideal weight should be.
Big Labor's Influence on Iowa Elections: Example 1
Monday, December 29, 2008
The Iowa State Education Association (ISEA) PAC injected nearly $340,000 into Iowa Legislative Races during the 2008 cycle. Last session, the Iowa Legislature passed House File 2645 expanding the collective bargaining rights of public employees. Governor Culver vetoed the legislation because "It is not in the best interests of the taxpayers of Iowa to let this legislation become law. It is vaguely written with the potential for far reaching, unintended consequences that could obligate the citizens of Iowa to substantial new public expenditures."
So that's it. The legislature passed the bill, and the governor vetoed it. End of story, right? Wrong.
The ISEA is bound and determined to see this legislation become law, and they put serious money behind it last fall. On its last disclosure report, the ISEA PAC spent the following in direct contributions: Citizens for Gronstal (Senate Majority Leader): $100,000 Murphy for State Representative (Speaker of the House): $64,500 McCarthy for State Representative (House Majority Leader): $64,500 Kibbie for Senate (President of the Senate): $37,750 Iowa Democratic Party: $72,000 Dubuque County Democrats: $1,000
At the beginning of the reporting period, the ISEA had nearly $300,000 in the coffers. At the end of the period, it had only $5,000.
The ISEA went all out on this election. They will expect payback. Gear up, folks. This will be a battle.
Cool Link of the Day
Don't take my word for it. Check out the ISEA's disclosure report for yourself.
The Labor $$ Influence on Elections
Sunday, December 28, 2008
It is no secret that both the 2006 and 2008 election cycles were tough on Republicans. One of the biggest problems of solid democrat control will be the push by big labor to change laws- both at the state level and at the national level.
Big labor spent $400 million across the nation during the last election cycle. Yes- $400 million. Expect big paybacks. In Iowa, look for an expansion of collective bargaining rights and something called 'fair share.' In Washington, look for something called 'Card Check' legislation.
Card Check legislation would allow union organizers to use fear and intimidation in new organization efforts. It would do away with the secret ballot and would put thousands of small businesses across the county at risk. Is now really the time to pass anti-business legislation?
This is an issue I am very worried about. In the upcoming days, I will highlight specific concerns of these proposed changes to current labor law.
Cool Link of the Day
Read what the US Chamber has to say about Card Check legislation.