Posted on 01/03/2009 5:30:07 PM PST by NormsRevenge
The executive board of the Service Employees International Union will take up a proposal Thursday to consolidate in a single local all long-term-care workers in California, despite the vehement protests of critics who say the change will weaken labor's hand.
...
The idea is to move the 65,000 long-term-care workers of the 150,000 members of United Healthcare Workers-West in Oakland, San Jose's Local 521 and Los Angeles-based Local 6463 into a single group.
Proponents say the concretion of wealth and globalizing corporate ownership requires unions to organize on a scale to compete with employers. Opponents, and in particular Sal Rosselli, the president of United Healthcare Workers-West, lambaste the international union president, Andy Stern, for what Rosselli says is a top-down management style that does not engage workers. He said Stern's practice is to negotiate contracts with weakened worker provisions in exchange for employers' willingness not to stand in the way of union organizing efforts.
"We have found international officers' unchecked power was causing deals with employers without involving workers or local union leaders that adversely affected our workers," said Rosselli. "SEIU has evolved into a dictatorship in which Andy Stern and others have consolidated power and decision-making authority and resources among a few. It's top-down versus our bottom-up. So we are coming from opposite points of view."
For its part, the SEIU has accused Rosselli and other leaders of United Healthcare Workers-West of "financial malpractice," allegedly diverting $3 million in dues for the personal and political benefit of the leadership. A seven-day administrative hearing looking into the matter was held this summer, conducted by former Labor Secretary Ray Marshall. His decision whether the Oakland local should be taken over in a trusteeship is pending.
Rosselli says the charge is bogus.
The consolidation matter is proceeding on a separate track.
(Excerpt) Read more at sfgate.com ...
unions destroyed the big 3 auto makers,
and they’re doing the same to the state of california.
Vultures destroy their own food source.
And what AREN’T they arguing about??
How to improve their own viability by making the companies they work for more successful during a recession. Never crosses their mind. Never affected their paychecks. Never had anything to do with whether or not they needed a union.
Can you just imagine what the national GDP would be if California were a free place to work and was unleashed to actually produce and succeed? It would be astonishing and it would be almost impossible for the US to go into a recession.
But instead, California is the second largest socialist country in the world behind China.
It's sickening to see such a rich state fall to socialism. We've reached a point where we can no longer afford the government we have. All the laws, taxes, and compliance costs associated with doing business in this state exceed what normal businesses expect as the 'cost of doing business'.
I repeat: we can no longer afford the government we have. Something has got to give.
Some 'thing', some 'force' has to come along and detach from this hog's teats, the special interests who theaten to take the life of the sow. She can't support this parasitism any longer.
This may not be something voters may resolve by 'voting' the correct party into power. This is a condition where parasites directly threaten the life of the host from whom they find their sustinance. The need to act is paramount.
The key is to be able to look into the eye of every policeman, every firefighter, every prison worker, and every teacher, and say with conviction: "We can no longer afford your services." "Good luck with your job search."
If government can grow, it can shrink. And it had better be looking at ways to shrink itself regardless of these current hard times, or the market will do it for them.
We can't afford this level of government even in GOOD times. MY GOD! The private sector would have to be doing three times what they're doing now to be able to support such a parasitic class while exposing themselves to the risks associated with doing business. They aren't, but 'they' get treated as if they should be. In fact, with this much government, they ain't gonna ever see 'good times'. Dream about them, yes, see them, hardly.
How much socialism must/should/can a capitalist society support? One sixth of production, one third, one half, two thirds? We're at fifteen sixteenths, folks.
Someone needs to hit the re-set button on this state. Re-boot, add some malware protection, and get back to being free and productive Californians. If the answer weren't staring me in the face, I wouldn't be staring back.
the only thing Californians can really do to combat this (other than vote out the socialists) is what a small number of Californians have done in the 1980 and 1990s when we faced prior recessions - invent something amazing which creates a new economic reality (in the 80s it was computers and in the 90s it was the internet).
California creates nearly 1/3 of all capital gains taxes in America. If the CA businesses invent something ‘must have’ then the growth of those companies will create the new tax base which pays off the Obambi spending spree and debts.
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