Apparently Scott Walker must be doing something
right as evidenced by the fact that Barry “Almighty” recently felt it
appropriate to take the extraordinary step of publicly criticizing the
Wisconsin governor for signing a "right to work" law that blocks
unions from collecting mandatory fees from ‘non-union’ members. Walker, as you may or may not know, is a
rising contender for the 2016 GOP presidential nomination. He has built a
national reputation, of sorts, for countering union influence. In 2011, as a newly elected governor, he
worked to undo the collective bargaining powers of Wisconsin's public employees'
unions. He has continued to draw the ire
of big unions that spent a great deal money trying to remove him from office.
Barry declared, "I'm deeply disappointed that a
new anti-worker law in Wisconsin will weaken, rather than strengthen, workers
in the new economy." And he went on
to say, "Wisconsin is a state built by labor, with a proud pro-worker
past.” He added, "So even as its
governor claims victory over working Americans, I'd encourage him to try and
score a victory for working Americans, by taking meaningful action to raise
their wages and offer them the security of paid leave." Barry acts as if he has scored so many
victories for working American. But on
the contrary, it has been his policies that have decimated our economy, and
have had the result of removing 10 million Americans from the nation’s
workforce.
Barry went on to say, "That's how you give
hardworking middle-class families a fair shot in the new economy — not by
stripping their rights in the workplace, but by offering them all the tools
they need to get ahead.” And he
continued, "It's no coincidence that the rise of the middle class in
America coincided in large part with the rise of unions — workers who organized
together for higher wages, better working conditions, and the benefits and protections
that most workers take for granted today."
The new law means that in Wisconsin unions may no longer enter into
arrangements with the private sector in order to collect fees from non-members. You’d think that even Barry would see that as
being reasonable.
But Barry said it was "inexcusable that, over
the past several years, just when middle-class families and workers need that
kind of security the most, there's been a sustained, coordinated assault on
unions, led by powerful interests and their allies in government." Barry likes to spend a great deal of him time
talking about such things as fairness, but what’s fair about having to pay dues
to an organization of which you are not even a member? Critics of “right to work” laws, which you’ll
find in considerable number there on the left, like to point out how it is that
non-members are able to obtain the same wages, benefits, and grievance process
won by the union for its workers. It’s really
the only argument they have, lame as it may be.
So now Wisconsin will join 24 other states that have
"right to work" laws on their books.
Let’s face it, while once unions provided a useful purpose, today that
is no longer the case. Unions have
morphed from being and advocate and guardian of the American worker, into what
is, today, nothing more than an arm of the Democrat Party, spending millions in
dues money provided by members to elect Democrats or, as Walker’s case, to
unseat sitting governors. In 2013 there
were 14.5 million members in the U.S., compared with 17.7 million in 1983. In 2013, the percentage of workers belonging
to a union was 11.3%, compared to 20.1% in 1983. The rate for the private
sector was 6.7%, and for the public sector 35.3%, a trend that must continue.
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