Inside
Meeting Notices
See
Page 4
Volume 113
Number 11
June 1, 2012
Portland, Oregon
Anti-union governor of
Wisconsin faces recall
Lawyer games
hamper NLRB
effort to revive
The new rules were supposed to take
effect April 30.
A 1935 federal law known as the
National Labor Relations Act is sup-
posed to encourage collective bargain-
ing. It says workers have the right to
form unions, and it sets up the National
Labor Relations Board (NLRB) to ad-
minister the law. But employers long
ago learned to use a variety of legal ma-
neuvers to delay the NLRB’s bureau-
cratic process for conducting union
elections. That delay gives union-bust-
ing consultants more time to sow doubt,
division and fear in workplaces where
the employers have total control, and
unions — even pro-union workers off
the clock — can be forbidden from en-
tering.
In December, the NLRB announced
new rules would limit those employer
legal maneuvers. As Lafe Solomon, the
NLRB top lawyer put it: “these guide-
lines … provide opportunities for us to
fully effectuate the policies and pur-
poses of the Act, as they relate to the
representation process.”
But the anti-union U.S. Chamber of
Commerce howled in outrage, calling it
an “ambush rule” which would “greatly
shorten the time an employer had to de-
fend against an effort to unionize his
business, from 42 days to 10 days.”
[Wait, doesn’t the law say it’s workers’
decision whether to unionize?] Out-
lined in a 24-page memo only a lawyer
could love, the rules themselves contain
no specific timeline. However, it’s true
that eliminating irrelevant post-hearing
briefs and other delaying tactics would
result in quicker elections.
Luckily for the Chamber, its lawyers
found a technicality by which to over-
turn the rule cutting down on technical-
ities. When the National Labor Rela-
tions Board approved the rule change,
its Republican member Brian Hayes
(an Obama appointee) had refused to
vote. Thus, Chamber lawyers argued in
federal court, the NLRB had no quorum
when it approved the rule change, and
therefore the change was unlawful. On
May 14, U.S. District Court Judge
James Boasberg (an Obama appointee)
agreed with the Chamber that there was
no quorum: a win for legal delaying tac-
tics, and a loss for workers trying to get
a union in their workplace.
In footage released by a
documentary-maker,
Walker describes his bill
as ‘divide and conquer’
Teaching a new trade
Kat Lakey of Iron Workers Local 29 helps a participant climb a steel column
during a workshop at the Women in Trades Career Fair held May 17-19 in
Portland. The three-day interactive fair is produced by Oregon Tradeswomen
Inc. to introduce women and girls to the possibility of a future career in the
trades. The first day was for middle school girls; Day Two was set aside for
high schoolers; and Day Three was open to the general public. Nearly 1,200
students from schools throughout Oregon and Southwest Washington were on
hand to learn about apprenticeship training opportunities and to take part in
the free workshops. Another 600 attended the Careers for Women Day on
May 19. This year marked the 20th year of the event. Photo by Dawn Jones.
If there’s a better-known union
buster than Wisconsin’s Republican
Gov. Scott Walker, it’s hard to think
who that would be. Just months after
winning office with 52 percent of the
vote, Walker directly attacked organized
labor with a bill that stripped public em-
ployees of all meaningful collective bar-
gaining rights, provoking an outcry that
spread to 50 state capitols.
On June 5, Wisconsin voters decide
whether to recall him from office. The
choice will be between Walker and Tom
Barrett, the Democrat who lost to him
in November 2010.
Also up for recall are four Republi-
can state senators who voted for Act 10
(Walker’s anti-collective bargaining
bill), and Wisconsin lieutenant gover-
nor Rebecca Kleefisch, Walker’s run-
ning mate. Voters will choose between
Kleefisch and Mahlon Mitchell, an out-
spoken state Fire Fighters union leader
who rose to prominence in the fight
against Act 10. [If Mitchell wins, he’d
be Wisconsin’s first black lieutenant
governor.]
The June 5 recall election comes 15
months after citizens occupied the state
Capitol in Madison and Democratic
state senators fled Wisconsin to prevent
Act 10’s passage. Protesters redirected
their energy to gathering signatures on
recall petitions, and in August 2011, six
Wisconsin state senate Republicans
faced recall elections, with two losing
office to Democrats. Wisconsinites then
gathered over a million signatures to re-
call Walker. Only two times before in
U.S. history has a state governor been
recalled.
But recalling a governor isn’t a “yes-
no” vote; someone must run to replace a
recalled candidate. On May 8, Demo-
cratic voters chose Barrett — Milwau-
kee mayor and former congressman —
over Dane County executive Kathleen
Falk, the candidate who was backed by
organized labor. Barrett — who put
himself through college and law school
working as a member of the Teamsters
Union on the Harley-Davidson assem-
bly line — also has a solid pro-labor
record as a legislator and executive, in-
cluding a vote against NAFTA while he
was in Congress.
So, voters will have the same choice
they had in November 2010. Only now,
Walker has a record.
Besides eliminating public em-
ployee collective bargaining rights,
Walker pushed through major tax cuts
for corporations and wealthy individu-
als, and slashed state government budg-
ets, including money for schools. He re-
jected $810 million in federal funds to
build a high-speed rail line from Madi-
son to Milwaukee. And he signed a law
that requires voters to show govern-
ment-issued ID before casting a ballot.
Walker is also being circled as a pos-
sible target of a broad criminal investi-
gation stemming from his 2010 cam-
paign. The investigation, by a
Milwaukee district attorney, has re-
sulted in misdemeanor and felony
charges against multiple former Walker
appointees. While Walker was Milwau-
kee County executive, he was sur-
rounded by aides working at taxpayer
expense on his campaign for governor.
That violated Wisconsin law, and they
even set up a secret e-mail system to
avoid detection. The investigation has
(Turn to Page 8)
Lanning to depart AFL-CIO for Workers Comp Board position
Steve Lanning has been appointed by Gov. John
Kitzhaber to the Workers Compensation Board. The
appointment is a full time job with the Department of
Consumer and Business Services. The five-member
board resolves disputes arising under Oregon work-
ers’ compensation law and the Oregon Safe Employ-
ment Act.
Lanning, 61, of Salem, has been on staff of the Ore-
gon AFL-CIO for the past 22 years and is a
member of IBEW Local 48. He has held vari-
ous job titles at the state labor federation, most
recently as government affairs specialist.
Lanning will succeed Frank Biehl, a long-
time member and lobbyist of the Association of
Western Pulp and Paper Workers. Biehl was
first appointed to the post in September 1996
and is finishing his fourth term on the
board.
The Senate confirmed 71 new ap-
pointments by Gov. Kitzhaber to boards
and commissions on May 23. Lanning
will be sworn in Sept. 10.
He will remain at the Oregon AFL-
CIO through July.