By SUSAN FISCHETTI
Democrats in Congress are once again pushing radical proposals that would hurt the average Alaska worker and decimate small businesses.
This time, Senate Democrats have banded together to cosponsor the innocuous-sounding Protecting the Right to Organize Act. Contrary to its feel-good abbreviation, the “PRO” Act would only come with cons for Alaska’s businesses, workers, and economy.
Alaskans can be thankful that Sen. Lisa Murkowski has not supported this legislation. The senator should stay strong on this and continue to do what’s right for Alaskans.
Among other things, the PRO Act would remove a worker’s right to a private ballot vote during union elections, violate worker privacy by handing over their personal information to union leaders, and make it much more difficult for individuals to work as independent contractors.
At the same time, it would undermine contractual relationships between businesses and shift massive new costs and liabilities to business owners.
This bill is the last thing Alaska needs, especially as local businesses are still reeling from the effects of the pandemic and economic slowdown. Sen. Murkowski should continue fighting this anti-business legislation for the good of all Alaskans and our economic recovery.
Susan Fischetti of Eagle River was an elector for Alaska in 2000 and is an officer of the Anchorage Republican Women’s Club. She writes in her own capacity.
We, as Alaskans, support Big Labor over Big Corporations. The days of Trans-National Corporations making billions in profits on the backs of workers while paying peanuts IS OVER! We will win this fight, and corporate power will no longer control hard working-class people’s lives through intimidation, lies, and threats so that they can increase profits! Welcome to the new era of Biden!!!
Another Socialist Dreamer!
Murkowski (D) will always cave to the Union Bosses.
Daddy’s Princess will do whatever her Democrat bosses tell her to do whether it’s good for the public or not.
I agree with you but do you really believe Lisa will do anything to upset her masters in the Democratic Party. She is more loyal to them than she is to her Alaskan voters. I will support Kelly and do everything to see that Lisa loses her next election
Well said. Maybe others can understand the Alaska organized labor algorithm but I do not. Union leaders support gun control but their membership does not. Unions support the Jones Act and the associated restrictions on cruise ships but those old federal laws raise costs to all Alaskans, including union members without providing for any jobs at all. I would guess that fully 90 percent of union labor in Alaska works for government, and I would bet that percentage continues to grow. Elected Democrats espouse the union rhetoric but openly choose environmentalist causes over jobs every time. Alaska unions are too much about power for union leaders and Democrats and much too little about good paying jobs. Alaska unions are more about union dues than about family wage jobs. It’s Republicans who protect high wage jobs, and fight for more of them, while union leaders support the Democrats who work to keep those jobs out of Alaska (with some success in the Biden era). Perhaps someone can explain all this to me. Four years ago union big shots chose Walker over Begich, apparently leaving no choice for Begich but to go with greenies to support the anti-mining ballot measure; and then when Walker left the field because his running mate chased a 16 year-old Begich couldn’t backtrack to support union labor, and for me that epitomized the poor union leadership that Alaska union dues buy. If you’re in a union government job your dues keep the 37.5 hour week for state and city workers, and pay for defending terrible education performance. If you’re in a private sector union job all your dues buy is a great lifestyle for union bosses. Say, whatever happened with that incident in which union leaders were accused of posing as Alaska Department of Labor and Workforce Development officials on a job site?
The State could have had a 40 hour standard workweek anytime it wanted it and was willing to pay for it. It is a 6.7% pay increase. In my time there we were never willing to pay for it. I would have been willing to trade the paid 40 hr. week for a three year contract with no general increases, but the unions wouldn’t bite.
In reality, not that many State employees actually work the 37.5 hr. schedule. Most OT exempt professionals and supervisors/managers would love to only work a 40 hour week. Unfortunately, the State employees the citizenry are most likely to interact with do mostly work M-F, 8 AM to 4:30PM. Actually what caused the most grief and cost the most money with that schedule was not the hours but the guaranteed M-F work week. Only with great difficult were we able to get some relief in the contracts to better staff 24-7 operations. It is truly wasteful to have to use a $100K+ year Correctional Officer to do administrative tasks in a prison that could and should be done by a $30K year clerk.
Guaranteed shifts are the biggest cost driver in 24-7 operations. If anyone has go go to court, get training, do administrative tasks, or some special duty it means that a billet has to be left empty or somebody is on overtime, and maybe two somebodies are on overtime; that’s how you get $250K/yr. cops.
As to the AKDOL matter, it is really hard to tell a union leader from an AKDOL official. AKDOL is pretty much AFL-CIO chattel.
Susan quit kissing up to the princess. She is no friend to Alaska and needs to go.
I told Lisa that those mean Democrats were out to get me in 1986 when Glenn Olds and organized labor were making me out to be the boogy-man and a dumb, corrupt banker. Here we are 40-years later, and those mean Democrats are now Lisa’s best friends. More money coming your way, Kelly.
Good boy, Frankie. My old, conservative Republican women friends have literally ostracized me from membership. They all think I’m encouraging Lisa to run again, but I’m not. Me and Barbara Bush are similar in our views. Too many Bushes and too many Murkowskis in public office for too many years breeds contempt among the electorate. The difference between us and those Bushes is that they still have their own Lear Jet. Sarah Palin got rid of ours on EBay.
Thank you Susan for your perspective on the PRO Act. I am retired from two unions and I totally agree with you about the ill effects of this act on the fairness of union organizing in the workplace. Unions do not need an extra advantage when they approach employees about the “benefits” of joining a union. I certainly hope that Senator Murkowski will oppose this bill, but knowing her leftist leanings, I am not holding my breath waiting for her to vote against it.
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