That's certainly devastating news. The Bush White House has mounted an extraordinary offensive against labor since day one, from successfully purging ergonomics regulations from OSHA to appointing anti-labor zealots into key positions at the Dept. of Labor that sit quietly even as Bush proposes budget cuts to that agency. Simply banning unions at federalized airport facilities should come as no surprise, however, given that Bush also banned unions at the Justice Dept.
It's interesting that earlier Republicans had protested the federalization of airports, because it was argued that doing such would amount to a boondoggle for unions like the AFGE. Now they've got the best of both worlds - state-run transportation facilities cleansed of employee rights.
>From 10-18-2001:
"Card and the White House have claimed keeping the screeners private
employees would allow them to be replaced if they could not function
properly instead of giving them the job protections of federal employees.
Republican House Majority Whip, Rep. Dick Army, appearing on the same
show, repeated his charge that, 'What the Democrats want is 30,000 new
dues-paying contributors.
'It's pretty clear,' Army said. 'What the Democrats are pushing here is that Congress write a law that says everybody who is screening at the airports must be a federal employee and thereby a member of the union -- a federal union that happens to also be their most generous single contributor to their campaign.'"
Ha.
Brian
On Fri, 10 Jan 2003, Ian Murray wrote:
> [ Los Angeles Times ]
> White House Steps Up Labor Fight, Denies Screeners Right to Organize
> Union calls the move illegal and vows to file suit on behalf of 56,000
> airport workers.
> By Ricardo Alonso-Zaldivar
> Times Staff Writer
>
> January 10 2003
>
> WASHINGTON -- WASHINGTON -- Launching a new battle with organized labor,
> the Bush administration said Thursday it will deny 56,000 federal
> airport security screeners the right to negotiate for better working
> conditions and higher pay.
--
"At times one remains faithful to a cause only because its opponents do not cease to be insipid." - Friedrich Nietzsche
"Il etait enfin venu, le jour ou je fus un pourceau!" - Comte de Lautreamont, Les Chants de Maldoror, 4th Hymn, Strophe 6