Posted on 05/08/2015 7:10:44 PM PDT by TurboZamboni
For decades now, conservatives have pressed the case that public sector unions do not serve the common good. The argument is philosophical and practical at once. First, the state monopoly on certain vital services makes even work slowdowns unacceptable and the ability to fire poor-performing personnel essential, and a unionized workforce creates problems on both fronts. Second, the government's money is not its own, so negotiations between politicians and their employees (who are also often their political supporters) amount to a division of spoils rather than a sharing of profits. Third, these negotiations inevitably drive up the cost of public services, benefiting middle-class bureaucrats at the expense of the poor, and saddling governments with long-term fiscal burdens that the terms of union contracts make it extremely difficult to lift.
Finally, union lobbying power can bias public-policy decisions toward the interests of state employees. To take just one particularly perverse example: In California over the last few decades, the correctional officers union first lobbied for a prison-building spree and then, well-entrenched, exercised veto power over criminal justice reform.
These points add up to a strong argument that the rise of public sector unions represents a decadent phase in the history of the welfare state, a case study in the warping influence of self-dealing and interest-group politics.
(Excerpt) Read more at twincities.com ...
If private-sector workers need unions to protect themselves from eeeeeevil corporations, why do government employees need unions?
To protect themselves from eeeeeeevil taxpayers?
Paid into a police union for over 28 years and received absolutely no benefits for my efforts. Money gone.
Exactly.
That they did. Big money in corrections. And the bribe taking spree in Sacramento was underway as the contractors lined up. Then they had to find enough occupants to justify these prison camps.
There are now more unionized government employees than exist in private sector America.
This thread will likely never make it to 40.
A buddy that lives in SoCal says they ‘import’ 40% of their
‘clients’ for a neverending supply.
They were supposed to protect them from being caught on cameras...
Failed.
Government unions were allowed by an executive order.
They can be rescinded by another executive order from another president.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Executive_Order_10988
It needs to happen.
The same politicians who play games and pull levers of power to unjustly or unfairly mistreat their political enemies also retaliate against public employees (cops, admin types, etc)
Having a union makes the employer follow some rules when they want to discipline someone. Problem employees can get disciplined and fired if only the employer would actually follow the rules. Too many times the employer fails to follow the rules or document the problem employees behavior.
Thats the employer’s fault not the union.....
“Stroke of the pen. Law of the land. Kinda cool.” —Clinton presidential aide Paul Begala, July, 1998
President Kennedy’s Executive Order 10998, allowing Federal unions, is what opened the door for public sector unions at the state and local level, which is leading to bankruptcy from bloated public sector salaries, benefits, and retirement plans. Businesses that offered plans like many governments have would go bankrupt. Gubmint entities will, too, eventually, but it will be much more painful.
This is why unions should again be outlawed for public employees.
As legendary New York teachers union leader Albert Shanker said, “When school children start paying union dues, that’s when I’ll start representing the interests of school children.”
What do we know of the history of mental health issues for reporters?
Are reporters required to take a 'warp' test; I would believe that this copper had to take at least one such test.
How is it public knowledge about some alleged personal issues?
Brian Williams makes ten million a year and has major issues with reality; therefore reporters are full of BS.
Why Firing a Bad Cop Is Damn Near Impossible
A brief history of the “law enforcement bill of rights”
http://reason.com/archives/2012/10/19/how-special-rights-for-law-enforcement-m
Scott Walker giving them exemption was the biggest mistake of his tenure.
Just a friendly suggestion to Mr. Douthat. Spend 5 years as a patrolman in any medium or large Police Department and you will understand why Police Officers need unions.
They should be abolished.
“Scott Walker giving them exemption was the biggest mistake of his tenure.”
Half a loaf was better than no bread at all! He did get the teachers, good for him!
The example they used first doesn’t apply across all jurisdictions.
The police officer bill officer rights basically just says you cannot auestion an officer for unreasonable length of time without being allowed mealnand water and bathroom breaks....gotta tellmthe officer what they are accused of...etc.
“Just a friendly suggestion to Mr. Douthat. Spend 5 years as a patrolman in any medium or large Police Department and you will understand why Police Officers need unions.”
How about the firefighters? Here, they eat til they’re sleepy, then sleep till they’re hungry. All for $100 grand in salary and another $100 grand in OT. Plus, since they’ve all worked so hard, they can retire at 50 with a full pension. And oh, I almost forgot, they all have side businesses that they run. You almost wonder how they have time to take the cabin cruiser out on the Delta for a day they are working soo hard!
That nonsensical stuff about special rights...haha...a suspect who is not a police officer can refuse an interview.
A cop has to submit to his employer’s questions....the supreme court of USA says the employer can order the employee to answer the questions truthfully or the officer can be disciplined up to and including termination.
Since it is a compelled statement it is protected and precluded from being used in a criminal investigation.
That is not special rights....its actually less rights than a run of the mill criminal suspect.
Not saying bad employees who work for the govt, including cops, failed to get fired but it is usually because the employer is lousy at documenting past rotten behavior or because the bosses failed to impose proper discipline on employees who they are in love with and don’t want to fire.
Then someone does the same thing later and they have created a bad precedent and lose when the appeal goes to arbitration.
I got a million examples....
My suggestion to the author was regarding being a police officer for 5 years.
“My suggestion to the author was regarding being a police officer for 5 years.”
I was simply pointing out that the FF’s are a similar problem, but since they are perceived as “the good guys,” they get away with as much or more union thuggery than the cops do but no one complains. But here in CA, the cops get almost as much money as the FFs, and they are abusive.
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