Minnesota Legislature Passes Home Care Union Bill
By Sean P. Redmond 5/20/13
On May 20, the Minnesota legislature passed legislation to permit the unionization of home child care and personal care attendants. Following a 17 hour debate last week, the state Senate had passed the measure, known as Senate File 778, on a slim, party-line vote of 35-32 . Over the weekend, the state House of Representatives debated a companion bill, narrowly passing it today by a vote of 68-66...
Yet Another Court Rules President Obama’s NLRB Recess Appointments Unconstitutional
Yesterday, the Third Circuit invalidated yet another one of President Obama’s recess appointments to the NLRB. As you may remember, the D.C. Circuit, in its Noel Canning v. NLRB decision, sided with the U.S. Chamber’s lawyers and held that the President’s appointments of Sharon Block, Terence F. Flynn, and Richard Griffin to the NLRB were unconstitutional. Yesterday’s decision invalidated the recess appointment of Craig Becker, whose recess appointment was made in March 2010. Becker's term expired in early 2012, and he has since left the board. Both the Third Circuit and the D.C. Circuit have said that these appointments were unconstitutional because the appointments were made while the Senate was in session and not in a recess as required by the U.S. Constitution...
Unions Forgetful on Filibusters
By Glenn Spencer 5/14/2013
The Hill newspaper recently reported on a meeting between union officials and 25 Democratic Senators at which the so-called “nuclear option” was discussed. The nuclear option refers to using a simple majority of 51 senators to change Senate rules to prevent filibusters. According to the article, use of the nuclear option with regard to nominations is under serious consideration...
Union Management: Don’t Trespass Against Us
Last year, the Workforce Freedom Initiative published “Sabotage, Stalking & Stealth Exemptions: Special State Laws for Labor Unions,” which described various state laws that seemed to defy common sense, such as — as the title implies — union exemptions from sabotage and stalking laws. Among the numerous statutes highlighted in the report were also union exemptions from trespassing laws, including one that actually provided immunity for invading the home of an academic researcher...
D.C. Circuit Voids NLRB “Poster Rule”
By Sean P. Redmond 5/7/13
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit today voided a final rule by the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) that required employers to post a one-sided notice informing employees of their right to join a union. Today’s decision puts to rest, at least for now, a contentious debate over the Board’s attempt to force businesses to promote the current NLRB’s union-friendly agenda...
