Saturday, January 07, 2017

FRIEDRICHS THE SEQUEL FAST TRACKING TO THE U.S. SUPREME COURT

All of you who were disappointed because Justice Antonin Scalia died so the public sector unions surprisingly won the Friedrichs case to preserve automatic dues checkoff, your wish to stop paying union dues may eventually be granted.

There is a new case that is fast tracking its way through the federal courts to overturn the Abood precedent that allows automatic dues check off for public sector workers. It is called Janus vs AFSCME.

The right wing, anti-union groups that are trying to destroy what is left of the union movement in this country are using the same Friedrichs strategy in this case to get it through to the Supreme Court quickly by conceding in the lower courts.

A national right to work law is now a real possibility following the election of Donald Trump as President.

I say this to the readers here who are hoping the unions lose so they can stop paying dues to the UFT:

I agree with you that our union is a mess. Starving it of funding, however, is not the way to repair or save it.

As for those who want a new union movement to emerge from the wreckage of a Donald Trump Supreme Court Janus decision:

I hope you folks are ready to step up and start that movement to build a union whose focus is to take care of its members.

21 comments:

Anonymous said...

Yeah, sure. And if this doesnt go thru, the union and mulgrew will just keep laughing all the way to the bank as we suffer. Fool me once, shame on you, fool me 500 times, its my stupidity. Just like the last contract...

Anonymous said...

I believe in unionism. Unions save us from what's going on in the rest of the country and what happened to our ancestors. I HATE the UFT and I loathe Randi Weingarten and her hairless poodle, but they'll still get my money - if from now until then they show me something, anything, that helps all of us - new teachers, veteran teachers and ATRs.

Anonymous said...

Uft stays in power, more of the same

Anonymous said...

Anonymous 10:53pm:

And far worse if the UFT does not stay in power. Kis your pension goodbye. Kiss your medical benefits goodbye. I hate them too., but I will fight to keep Union alive. Do not ne fooled as those who voted for Trump were.

Anonymous said...

I can't wait for the Supreme Court to remove mandatory union dues. NYSUT and UFT must be held accountable for major losses over the years including TDA reduction to 7% (administrators still get 8.25%), oversized classes, excessive observations: 4 in NY City while only 2 outside NY City.

Anonymous said...

The has made itself obsolete and worthless. We've lost all protections, Tier 6 makes it far better to have a 401k, etc. I'm not paying for this crap! There will be horrible consequences, but none more than what effects me now. I could not personally live with myself paying dues to keep UFT union staff sitting around doing nothing! Bye bye bye!

Anonymous said...

Friedrichs decision may result in unions having to earn the trust of their members with better results, absolute transparency, and lower overhead expenses.

Those unions that fail to pass worker scrutiny will then wind up in the dustbin of history.

(In some ways the unions have brought this upon themselves by making it difficult to opt out of their lefty political donations...which has bred resentment by their generally middle-of-the-road constituencies...and fed the appetite for this pending reform.)

Anonymous said...

All the folks who voted for the last contract 78% will opt out of UFT. The teachers that voted against it and want change in the UFT will not opt out. These are the same people discriminated, stereotyped and ignored by the UFT.

Anonymous said...

Oh the irony.

Anonymous said...

Bottom line, we are getting screwed. They are sitting in their ivory tower, making tons of money, while we get abused, destroyed and sick from admins and students. Mulgrew and company have clearly shown they will continue to bloodsuck and will not change. And they, by not helping, are assisting the city and those admins.

Anonymous said...

Next excuse is, what could we do, its a constitutional convention. And then when we get another set of tiny raises, what did you expect, you are getting all the retro.

Anonymous said...

Sycophants who bow at the feet of Randi and Mulgrew and a good number of the rebels who are informed and critical of our union leadership but believe in unionism will be the only ones that voluntarily hand over their money. I also think there are a good number of critics who will refuse to pay up. Those who settle for any little piece of change thrown to us and vote yes to bullshit contracts will be the first people to save their $100+ a month and end their union membership. If the union wants members to pay up they better start delivering more than bullshit talking points and spin to the members. Telling people to kiss their med benefits and pensions good-bye--true or not-- is NOT a winning strategy. The UFT better come up with something better if they want a shot at keeping their membership as large as it is. If they think scare tactics will work, they learned nothing from the democrat's mistake in the 2016 presidential election. Teachers are pissed because they are abused daily by students and administrators and the absurd and unreasonable requirements of Danielson. They feel as if they have no control over their professional lives so when the time comes, if the only control teachers have is to deny our union membership dues, that control will be exerted to the union’s detriment. If the UFT/NYSUT/AFT continue to operate as they have been, they are dead men walking. Denying that reality won’t change the outcome. Clock’s ticking…not much time for them to turn things in their favor. Roseanne McCosh

Anonymous said...

Good luck negotiating your own contract.. Hahaha. Without a union the city will be able to do whatever they want 10 fold and give different raises to different people. Everyone will be on a different playing field... If you think now is bad.. Just wait till that day comes.

Anonymous said...

At least we agree now is bad...Terrible. Ok, so lets withhold dues, let our leadership start working, then we can pay dues again. All i keep hearing is that it will be worse. Its already worse. And why is it so bad now, while we are paying $1300 a year each?

Anonymous said...

3:25 pm
dont care about next contract.
trs goes by highest 3-5 year window anyway.
what can they/city do? 0ffer us 1% for 7 years straight?
oh wait that was done and approved already.

Anonymous said...

When your best argument is that it will be worse even though its bad now, we need a drastic change. Starve the uft, so be it.

Anonymous said...

So our objective is to have no union and see how it goes?

Anonymous said...

100% correct Roseanne. I will enjoy watching it. Watch Weingarten's impassioned ingratiating pleas to stay. Mike may threaten to punch us. Amy may grace us with her presence and LeRoy bore us to death. I usually prefer PD to listening to UFT drivel, but will enjoy this.

Anonymous said...

Nothing focuses the mind better than the fear of death. You better believe this union will sit up and take notice when they lose 30% of dues paying members, with the prospect of more dropping out.
If their smart, they will become lean and mean. A welcome change from what they are now, fat and lazy.

Anonymous said...

30%! More like 80%! If it's less than 70%, I would be shocked. I'd bet $1300 on right now.

Anonymous said...

Look to Wisconsin to see what happened when the union's lost.

http://projects.jsonline.com/news/2016/11/27/for-unions-in-wisconsin-fast-and-hard-fall-since-act-10.html

"Dues from membership, a tough sell without collective bargaining, are off nearly 50% — $12 million in lost revenue as of 2014, based on the most recent tax return available."

Figure a little more or a little less here.