Monday, February 28, 2011

Public Employees: Myths and Realities

Public Employees: Myths and Realities

A must read from Labor Notes!

Police won't arrest Wisconsin protesters

MADISON, Wis. — The occupation of the Wisconsin Capitol by protesters fighting efforts to strip public workers of union bargaining rights carried on Sunday after police decided not to forcibly remove demonstrators and end a nearly two-week-long sit-in.

Solidarity!

Sunday, February 27, 2011

A Joke from Facebook

‎"A public union employee, a tea party activist, and a CEO are sitting at a table with a plate of a dozen cookies in the middle of it. The CEO takes 11 of the cookies, turns to the tea partier and says, 'Watch out for that union guy. He wants a piece of your cookie."

Friday, February 18, 2011

A Comment on our Wisconisn Union brothers & sisters

I support our Union brothers and sisters in Wisconsin. Two days ago I listened to Rush Limbaugh refer to Wisconsin's Public Union Protesters as 'Pariahs,' and referred to Public Union member benefits as 'Welfare.'

Any adult can see money is tight for government. However, any cuts, increases in member contributions, etc should be made at the bargaining table at contract negotiations, not by executive order. We, at the bargaining table have agreed to wage freezes, increased health care contributions, increased pension contributions, etc. We've done our part.

If you have cable television there are several packages. There's a premium package with all of the movie and sports channels, a mid-range package and then basic cable. These assholes are saying, look we can't afford the premium package price. So we're going to pay basic cable rates but we want the same premium service.

All Union contracts have provisions for lay offs. While no one wants lay offs, if you can only afford 30 snowplow drivers and you have 35 you may have to lay off 5 and take longer to clear roads for the public. Public workers deserve a livable wage. Wisconsin just wants to cut everybody's pay, lay off no one and get the same level of service for cheap.

The bottom line is public employees didn't cause the housing bubble and didn't speculate oil prices through the roof. We are not to blame. When the private sector was getting 10% raises we were getting 2-3%. Most of us are experiencing wage freezes yet again. We don't get rich in public service.

The economy will only pick up when the private sector does. If we have to have less government and less workers in the mean time then so be it. Those provisions are already in our contracts. Public workers deserve honored contracts, and a living wage, and that wage must be negotiated, not ordered.

These politicians fail to realize that government doesn't give us the 'right to strike.' A strike is what happens when people get fed up. It's shutting things down to show our strength and value. The strikes in the 1930's that gave us the National Labor Relation's Act came after workers walked off of jobs, picketed and violently forced replacement workers away. They didn't need permission! History can and does repeat itself. Minnesota is trying to freeze teacher pay and make Minnesota a 'Right to Work' state. They think that because unemployment is high, people will fear for their jobs and do what they're told. The Union organizing and strikes that took place early in the last century happened during the Great Depression! When you take advantage of people they push back.

Imagine if public workers went on strike, governors ordered then back to work and they refused, and then the cops refused to arrest them and the jailers refused to book or hold them?

Solidarity!

Thursday, February 17, 2011

The fight is in Wisconsin

HUDSON, Wis. - AFSCME Council 5 is urging members to join a Rally for Union Rights Saturday, Feb. 19, in Hudson, Wis.

The rally begins at 10 a.m. at the Carmichael Road bridge over Interstate 94. (It's the second exit heading east on I-94, after you cross the St. Croix River from Minnesota.)“Unions have been part of every struggle for civil rights and economic justice,” said Eliot Seide, executive director of Council 5. “We won’t be destroyed by Gov. Walker. Minnesota Council 5 stands in solidarity with our union brothers and sisters in Wisconsin. We will fight until we win.”Council 5 represents 43,000 workers in Minnesota, including 1,300 members who live in Wisconsin.

Tuesday, February 15, 2011

Fred Gergare endorses 'Anyone But Hoffa'

Click to enlarge:

Sunday, February 06, 2011

Saturday, February 05, 2011

A message from Anyone But Hoffa

We checked where Local 320 has their credit cards and they informed us that there are Rewards on each card held by the the Officers and Agents. We then asked if the Officers and Agents are keeping the Rewards. They replied that ALL OF THE REWARDS GO TO SUE MAUREN! Apparently for at least the last 14 years! Why wouldn't the Rewards be turned into cash and applied to the monthly bills? The Teamsters Union is a sinking ship and the Rats At The Top Are Stealing Us Blind On The Way Out.

Support the
Anyone But Hoffa Slate
It's your slate, not theirs!

Tuesday, February 01, 2011

Who would support the Sue Mauren slate?

On her website Sue Mauren says, "Experienced, Proven Leadership You Can Trust."

But right below that is a notice from the OFFICE OF THE ELECTION SUPERVISOR
for the INTERNATIONAL BROTHERHOOD OF TEAMSTERS declaring she violated the election rules! Go to her website and see for yourself: http://suemauren.com/

What other rules does the Mauren Slate violate? United States Copyright Laws! Brett Ohnstad, a delegate on the Sue Mauren Slate has violated Copyright laws against me by illegally uploading music and/or videos of mine and against Mike Golen of our slate. Here's the links:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=haxF7HPzpAw
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yC_9aMc7nvY
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AQXdLddcFco

The Sue Mauren Slate also launched a bigoted campaign against me on religious grounds. See my video response to another one of their videos pulled by YouTube for Copyright violations. My YouTube response video is "I Am A Teamster."

In short the Sue Mauren Slate violates election rules, Copyright Laws and is willing to launch attacks on members who hold different religious philosophies then theirs. Is this the Experienced, Proven Leadership You Can Trust?

The Sue Mauren Slate is supporting Hoffa in the IBT elections. Teamsters Election Supervisor: Hoffa Lied to Cover Up Bribery Attempts Birds of a feather!

I am running as a Delegate on the Anyone But Hoffa Slate. You deserve better leadership.