The Republican majorities in both houses of the Ohio General Assembly have now passed Senate Bill 5 (SB 5) and Governor Kasich has signed it into law. The bill, as most of you know, dramatically reduces the rights of public employees in Ohio to bargain collectively with their members’ employers. Reduced to its simplest form, [...]
Apr
5
2011
5
2011
Mar
10
2011
10
2011
Senate Bill 5…It’s Not Better!
As I previously explained, Senate Bill 5 is not good for Ohio workers. Since then, with lots of gerrymandering and legislative shenanigans, an amended piece of legislation squeaked through the Ohio Senate on its way to the House. But the Amended Senate Bill 5 isn’t any better. There’s plenty of bad stuff in this legislation, even [...]
Mar
2
2011
2
2011
Bad Facts Sometimes Create Good Law
Lawyers often comment that bad facts quite often lead to bad law. On the other hand, there are ocassions when the  proverbial blind squirrel finds the  proverbial nut in the proverbial forest. Hence, sometimes bad facts can make good law for others. A case on point is the United States Supreme Court’s decision, issued today, in [...]
Mar
1
2011
1
2011
This is a Moral Fight!
The fight for worker rights has dominated the news for the past month, as everyone should know by now (unless you’ve been comatose). In this regard, I don’t think the Far Out Right had any clue what a nest of hornets they were stirring when they decided to attack working people and their unions. As [...]
Mar
1
2011
1
2011
The Lie Behind Right to Work
So-called Right to Work laws (more familiar as “right to work for less” laws to those in the labor movement) are state laws which make it illegal for workers to negotiate labor agreements requiring all employees who enjoy the benefit of collective bargaining to pay their fair share of the costs associated with negotiating, administering [...]
Feb
22
2011
22
2011
Wisconsin Governor Walker has a history…
This is what happened the last time Governor Walker of Wisconsin brainstormed about attacking union members. It’s a good ten minutes long, but well worth your time: This is the man who is supposed to lead the State of Wisconsin to the promised land. On the backs of working people, of course. John Roca Labor [...]
Feb
21
2011
21
2011
Ohio Senate Bill 5: Not good for Ohio workers
I’ve repeatedly sounded the alarm that the anti worker forces around the country have planned coordinated legislative attacks against working people. In Congress, efforts to defund the National Labor Relations Board are ongoing. So far, those efforts have failed. Across the country, anti-worker cabals are directing their targets against public employees. In Tennessee the state [...]
Jan
14
2011
14
2011
The Fight Is On
We recently posted about the plans, secret and not so secret, of right wing forces to dole out retribution against unions. Well, the first salvo in that upcoming battle was fired today. The National Labor Relations Board announced that it had notified the Attorneys General of the states of Arizona (of course), South Carolina, South Dakota and [...]
Jan
5
2011
5
2011
It’s Not Paranoia When They Really Are Out to Get You
“There was only one catch and that was Catch-22, which specified that a concern for one’s safety in the face of dangers that were real and immediate was the process of a rational mind. Orr was crazy and could be grounded. All he had to do was ask; and as soon as he did, he [...]
Dec
15
2010
15
2010
The Same Old “Old” Arguments
The debate about the constitutionality of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, otherwise known in polite circles as the 2010 Health Care Reform legislation, will slowly creep through the legal system until its eventual disposition by the United States Supreme Court. At the same time, it bears noting that the demagoguery and level of [...]