Transforming the U.S. Department of Labor to the Department of Organized Labor

In their first year in office, the Obama Administration has re-made the U.S. Department of Labor into the Department of Organized Labor, working hard to make certain that those who spent hundreds of millions of dollars to put them in office get a return on their investment.  While many dismiss the importance of the Department of Labor, virtually every person in America is directly touched by the rules and regulations that this federal bureaucracy creates and enforces, so changes at the top have real consequences for every working American.

As we evaluate the impact of the past year on the nation’s workforce, it is worthwhile to remember the accomplishments of President Bush’s Secretary of Labor, Elaine L. Chao.

When Secretary Chao left office, workers were safer in their workplaces than at any time in history, the Labor Department was focused upon encouraging private sector job creation, and created an enforcement environment that successfully protected workers from employers who egregiously violated the law while providing the necessary education to limit inadvertent violations.

Secretary Chao put an emphasis on clarifying workplace regulations to make it easier for employers to know the rules of the game.  Her efforts led to overtime requirements being more clear-cut for employers while explicitly guaranteeing overtime protections for blue collar workers, police and fire fighters, EMTs, construction workers and others.

The Labor Department under Secretary Chao brought transparency to the spending of Big Labor through regulations which for the first time shined a light upon labor union expenditures.  These reports revealed the massive labor expenditures supporting ACORN’s efforts,and were used by LA Times reporter Paul Pringle in his Polk Award winning series that brought down the SEIU powerbrokers in the California SEIU.

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Tags: ACORN, AFL-CIO, Andy Stern, Big Labor, Boston Big Dig
Posted Jan 20th 2010 at 12:17 pm in Big Labor, Economics | 6196268 Commentshttp://biggovernment.com/rmanning/2010/01/20/transforming-the-u-s-department-of-labor-to-the-department-of-organized-labor/Transforming+the+U.S.+Department+of+Labor+to+the+Department+of+Organized+Labor2010-01-20+20%3A17%3A17Rick+Manning

Obama Gives Big Labor Another Gift in Final Days of 2009

In November BigGovernment.com, sounded the warning – here’s the update.

As 2009 fades away, President Obama has decided to let disclosure of hundreds of millions of dollars in forced-union-dues disclosure fade away too. Under current law and regulations valid until December 30th, union bosses were supposed to carefully document the billions of dollars they extract from workers as a condition of employment that they in turn pour into front groups and other “funds” each year.

A large part of the billions were about to be made public and reported on a Department of Labor disclosure form known as the Form T-1 Annual Report. But, that won’t happen now!

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Tags: closed shop, forced dues, Labor Department, SEIU, union corruption
Posted Jan 1st 2010 at 8:39 am in ACORN, Big Labor | 54134129 Commentshttp://biggovernment.com/dloos/2010/01/01/obama-gives-big-labor-another-gift-in-final-days-of-2009/Obama+Gives+Big+Labor+Another+Gift+in+Final+Days+of+20092010-01-01+16%3A39%3A52Don+Loos

Obama’s Labor Department Gives Big Labor and Its Front Groups Another Gift

Thursday, the Obama Administration announced that it will rescind rules requiring the disclosure of financial information for Big Labor slush funds and front groups.  And, the Obama Administration is giving you only 11 (eleven) days to comment!

At least they are consistent!  Just as they did for union conflict-of-interest disclosure reporting that SEIU’s Andy Stern may be ignoring and just as it rescinded union-boss perk disclosures, the Obama Administration continues to rollback union financial disclosures.

It is not surprising that Obama’s Secretary of Labor Hilda Solis would rescind these financial disclosure rules since she is the former treasurer of the Big Labor funded American Rights at Work (ARAW) lobbying and political group.   These disclosures would reveal much about the group’s expenditures on behalf Big Labor’s agenda; the very types of expenditures Solis would have signed-off on as ARAW Treasurer.

Union officials have fought these financial disclosures since 2003.  One of the AFL-CIO lawyers involved in opposing these disclosure requirements was Deborah Greenfield.   Now, Greenfield is the Obama Administration’s Acting Deputy Solicitor of Labor and Director of the Office of the Secretariat.  As Deputy Solicitor, Greenfield oversees these regulations.

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Tags: Americans Rights at Work, Andy Stern, Big Labor, comment period, conflict of interest
Posted Dec 4th 2009 at 6:57 am in ACORN, Big Labor, Featured Story | 4090276 Commentshttp://biggovernment.com/dloos/2009/12/04/obamas-labor-department-gives-big-labor-and-its-front-groups-another-gift/Obama%E2%80%99s+Labor+Department+Gives+Big+Labor+and+Its+Front+Groups+Another+Gift2009-12-04+13%3A57%3A55Don+Loos

Did SEIU’s Andy Stern Violate Federal Conflict of Interest Reporting Laws, the Same Regs that the Obama Labor Department is Repealing?

The Labor-Management Disclosure and Reporting Act (LMRDA) requires labor union officials to report potential or certain conflict-of-interests they might encounter if they receive gifts or cash payments from employers. Service Employees International Union (SEIU) President Andrew Stern may be in violation of that requirement since he has not filed a report disclosing $140,000 in advance payments from publisher and service industry employer Simon & Schuster.

In addition to this, documents made public during an intra-union California lawsuit and obtained by a “BigGovernment researcher” (posted on NRTWC.org’s Scribd, seen below) reveal that SEIU Treasurer Anna Burger recommended that the union use general treasury money, much collected from employees as a condition of employment, to promote Stern’s book, A Country that Works.

It’s not as if Stern has never filed a conflict-of-interest disclosure report; in fact, he has filed two in 2004 and one in 2005. But, why has he not filed any reports related to his special book deal?

SEIU President Andy Stern’s Book Advance and Past Conflict of Interest Reports (LM-30s)

Unfortunately for rank and file workers forced to pay dues or fees to the SEIU, rather than spending its resources investigating potential LMRDA violations, the Obama Labor Department (DOL) is busy rescinding conflict-of-interest and other union financial reporting requirements.

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Tags: A Country that Works, Andy Stern, Anna Burger, Hilda Solis, Labor-Management Disclosure and Reporting Act
Posted Dec 2nd 2009 at 6:51 am in Big Labor, Featured Story | 3933018 Commentshttp://biggovernment.com/dloos/2009/12/02/did-seius-andy-stern-violate-federal-conflict-of-interest-reporting-laws-the-same-regs-that-the-obama-labor-department-is-busily-repealing/Did+SEIU%E2%80%99s+Andy+Stern+Violate+Federal+Conflict+of+Interest+Reporting+Laws%2C+the+Same+Regs+that+the+Obama+Labor+Department+is+Repealing%3F2009-12-02+13%3A51%3A05Don+Loos

Teamster Boss Busted in Old Pay-to-Play Bribe Scheme

Just when the Obama Administration eliminates union boss disclosure that exposed union officer perks and self-dealing, a union boss has to get busted for demanding bribes from a trial lawyer. His actions certainly do not argue for the Administration’s ongoing effort to roll back union disclosure. 

The Associate Press reports:

The president of a national railroad employees union was arrested at his Ohio home on Tuesday and charged with bribery.

Edward Rodzwicz, who heads the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen, is accused of soliciting and accepting $20,000 in bribes from a St. Louis lawyer. In exchange, prosecutors say, Rodzwicz allowed the lawyer to remain on a list of attorneys approved to handle injury cases for union members.

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Tags: Barack Obama, Elaine Chao, Hilda Solis, LM-2, National Right to Work
Posted Oct 16th 2009 at 8:15 am in Big Labor, Obama | 1680233 Commentshttp://biggovernment.com/dloos/2009/10/16/teamster-boss-busted-in-old-pay-to-play-bribe-scheme/Teamster+Boss+Busted+in+Old+Pay-to-Play+Bribe+Scheme2009-10-16+15%3A15%3A35Don+Loos

Obama Labor Department Covers-Up Big Labor Bosses’ Perks

President Obama’s Department of Labor just ended disclosure of the lavish perks enjoyed by his Big Labor Boss supporters. But this should come as little surprise as Obama’s Labor Secretary Hilda Solis in a recent speech to the AFL-CIO tacitly acknowledged that she has turned the U.S. Labor Department over to them.  

The Obama Labor Department has been positioning themselves to rollback recent changes to the congressionally mandated union financial disclosure reports for unions with receipts of $250,000 plus.

And now they have announced that they are eliminating disclosure designed to protect millions of workers who are forced to pay dues as a condition of employment.  The specific disclosures being rescinded, among other things, exposed labor boss perks like John Sweeney’s alleged million dollar payment in 2000.  Now, Big Labor Union Bosses who receive special payments can continue to hide these payments from workers who are forced to subsidize them.

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Tags: ACORN, AFL-CIO, Barack Obama, Hilda Solis, John Sweeney
Posted Oct 15th 2009 at 9:00 am in ACORN, Big Labor, Economics, Obama, Politics | 1606251 Commentshttp://biggovernment.com/dloos/2009/10/15/obama-labor-department-covers-up-big-labor-bosses-perks/Obama+Labor+Department+Covers-Up+Big+Labor+Bosses%E2%80%99+Perks2009-10-15+16%3A00%3A13Don+Loos