Opinion
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Model Labor Policy Language
Opinion -Big Labor's political clout has grown over the past decade despite falling membership, and much of this power has been gained at the expense of the First Amendment rights of workers. -
Government Unions Hide Behind Secrecy Protections
Opinion -There is little doubt that financial transparency is a major deterrent to labor union and political corruption. Yet, where the two meet--unions of government employees--there is virtually no financial transparency. -
New York’s “Taylor Law” Feeds Union Power, Raises Taxes
Opinion -"Over the past 40 years, the number of state and local government jobs has grown at more than twice the rate of private-sector employment in New York, and the average pay of state and local government workers is higher than that of private-sector workers -
Unions’ 2006 Campaign Money Buys Legislative Attention for Big Labor
Opinion -The State of Labor 2007 report by the Labor Policy Center of the Evergreen Freedom Foundation notes Big Labor's heavy investment in the Democratic Party's takeover of Congress in the 2006 elections has succeeded in buying attention from lawmakers. -
Prevailing-Wage Policy Drives Up Costs in Kentucky
Opinion -Prevailing-wage laws added 7 percent--nearly $137 million--to the cost of government construction projects in Kentucky in 2002, the latest year for which figures are available, according to the nonpartisan Legislative Research Commission (LRC). -
Unions Are Demanding Political Payback for 2006 Democrats’ 2006 Election Victories
Opinion -Big Labor invested heavily in the 2006 Democratic takeover of Congress. The AFL-CIO spent a reported $40 million to mobilize union households. The Service Employees spent $65 million. -
Fringe Benefits Keep the Total Compensation of Government Workers Ahead of Private Sector
Opinion -The nation's 16 million state and local government workers earned an average of $61,727 in total compensation (wages plus benefits) in 2006, 11 percent more than the $55,470 average earned by U.S. -
Missouri Judge OKs Defined Contribution Pension Plan for Local Firefighters
Opinion -The Mehlville, Missouri Fire Protection District (MFPD) board of trustees won a victory for fiscal responsibility when a judge ruled the district may switch employee retirement benefits from a defined benefit to a defined contribution plan. -
Prevailing Wages Controversy Continues
Opinion -As unionization in the construction industry continues to decline, prevailing wage laws are becoming even more controversial. Only 13.1 percent of U.S. construction workers were union members in 2006, representing a decline of 14. -
State of the Unions: Big Labor’s Decline Explained
Opinion -Is the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA), the 1935 law designed to protect and invigorate the labor movement, responsible for the past 50 years of the movement's decline? Michael Wachter, the William B. -
Negotiation Documents Are Public Record, Judge Rules
Opinion -A Washington state judge has ruled that documents exchanged between the state and public employee unions during contract negotiations are public records and can be disclosed to taxpayers. -
Washington State Government Workers Get Record Raises
Opinion -The current collective bargaining agreements between Washington state and its employee unions give state employees the largest raises some have ever seen. The minimum increase union-represented employees will receive is 12. -
Congress to Impose Collective Bargaining
Opinion -Congress is considering imposing unionism and collective bargaining on state and local public safety departments in states that have not given public-sector unions monopoly bargaining powers. H.R. -
Mo. Fire District Is Challenging Pension Law
Opinion -The Mehlville, Missouri Fire Protection District Board of Directors has filed a lawsuit challenging the constitutionality of legislation recently signed into law by Missouri Gov. Matt Blunt (R). -
Supreme Court Limits Unions’ Spending of Dues on Politics
Opinion -Labor unions must get permission from non-members before using mandatory dues for political purposes, according to a United States Supreme Court ruling that overturned the Washington Supreme Court's ruling in Washington v. -
Extent of Government Unionism Varies Greatly
Opinion -The public sector is the "growth industry" for labor unions, with membership in government employment about five times greater than it is on private payrolls. That's the conclusion of new research by Professors Barry T. -
Chicago Proposes 401(k) Accounts for Transit Workers
Opinion -A groundbreaking effort to switch a public employee pension system from a defined benefit plan to a defined contribution plan is underway in Chicago. -
Illinois Minimum Wage Hike Is Costing Jobs
Opinion -In fall 2006, Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich (D) signed his second increase in the statewide mandatory minimum wage in five years. The legislation raised the state's minimum wage to $7.50 per hour with an additional hike to $8.50 in 2010. -
Politicians Hand More to Public-Sector Unions
Opinion -The expansion of public-sector collective bargaining is happening again, this time in New York and Missouri. -
Unions Throw Weight into New Chicago City Council
Opinion -Union-backed candidates won five seats on the Chicago City Council in the April run-off election, and local unions vowed to press their agenda there. -
State of the Unions: Nevada, New Jersey at Opposite Ends of Public-Sector Growth
Opinion -The average state employs 530 government workers per 10,000 residents, according to a study by the Manhattan Institute reported in the spring issue of City Journal. -
Public Pensions, Benefits Are Unsustainable: Reports
Opinion -In a new report on the benefits of public and private employment, "Public vs. Private Compensation," the Alabama Policy Institute writes, "over the years, public sector compensation rapidly outpaced that of the private sector. -
Senator Sees Big Benefits in Defined Contributions
Opinion -Illinois state Sen. Bill Brady (R-Bloomington) said a defined-benefit pension plan and a defined-contribution plan such as a 401(k) "provide the same benefits under the actuarial averages, if the contributions are made and invested the same. -
Vote Seen as Referendum on Pensions
Opinion -School employee pensions are widely cited as a major reason for Michigan voters' landslide rejection of a November ballot initiative that would have mandated automatic annual increases in funding for public education in the state.
