Editor: Former union official Mike Smith and Democrat Ben Boyce have a vested interest in preserving public sector unions’ power. And it’s all about power. As Bob Chanin, chief legal counsel for the National Education Association said, “…NEA and its affiliates are effective advocates because we have power. And we have power because more than 3.2 million (members) are willing to pay us hundreds of millions of dollars in dues.” That power is used to buy public office for Democrats who in turn agree to exorbitant health and retirement benefits for union members.
For federal workers it’s a different story. The Democrats’ revered President Franklin Delano Roosevelt opposed collective bargaining for public sector workers. In a letter to the National Federation of Public Employees he wrote, “All Government employees should realize that the process of collective bargaining, as usually understood, cannot be translated into public services.”
The federal government has long operated on a General Schedule (GS) classification and pay system for workers who have no say in health insurance or retirement plans. That system was beefed up in 1978 when Jimmy Carter and a Democratic Congress passed the Civil Service Reform Act, which very clearly lays out which issues can be bargained. Compulsory union membership is strictly prohibited. Federal workers cannot bargain for wages or benefits. Recently Obama put a freeze on federal workers’ pay.
That’s not to say union officials lack power when it comes to national politics. Their political action committees have poured millions into political campaigns. They have lobbied for card check and against Free Trade Agreements.
Like Wisconsin, California has collective bargaining laws. It also has a $26.6 billion deficit. Currently the California Public Employees Retirement System (CALPERS) is underfunded by 35-46 percent. Interestingly, Mr. Boyce comments: “We demand an end to attacks on workers’ rights and public service…” More to the point, Boyce might ask what got us into this fiscal mess.
Close to home we see Sonoma Mission and the Vallejo Home closed on Mondays due to a staff shortage. For several years Sonoma County offices have closed for 10 days at year’s end. This paper reports the local school district faces a $2.9 million budget cut for 2011-2012.
Of the 27,000 public employees in Sonoma County, 97 percent are represented by unions or associations. A front-page story in the liberal Press-Democrat stated flat out that “generous pension benefits have caused jobs and service cuts.” Take note, Mr. Boyce.
June England
Sonoma
Unions in Government and many of the unskilled sectors sustain inadequate performance and productivity. They shelter and protect underachievers.