Unions

Unions are, by nature, republican organizations. They are not democracies with a mob-like majority vote. Instead, they elect representatives, who in turn represent them in collective bargaining. This is a textbook republican system that mirrors our own form of government.

The issue of unionization is primarily a State issue. Each State must decide for themselves whether they want to embrace a right-to-work (non-union) policy or a policy of unionization. California is a union State, and I support that because the voters embraced it. However, for far too long, the Democrat Party has been able to categorize all unions under one umbrella and that needs to stop.

There are 3 basic types of unions, and they are all different: Private Unions, Trade/Labor Unions and Public Unions.

Private Unions – For companies of a sufficient size, it is almost standard practice to bargain collectively with the labor force. In the absence of such representation, worker abuse is almost bound to occur as in the case of Amazon and its treatment of its warehouse workforce. The good thing about Private Unions is that there are natural safeguards or barriers in place that constrain negotiations. If you go too far on either side, the company will go out of business, and everyone loses.

Trade/Labor Unions – These are the backbone of the American Dream. Skilled and unskilled alike, these are the men and women who safeguard our infrastructure, put a roof over our heads and food on the table. They are also the last bastions of excellence in their comparative fields, and we need to champion them in the schools of our nation. We need to get VOCATIONAL TRAINING back in the classroom, starting in Middle School! College is not for everyone, and we should quit with the “one size fits all” approach to education. Imagine a young man or woman entering the workforce after High School with the skills to provide for themselves and their families. It used to be that way in America. We need to return to that way of thinking.

Public Unions – These are very different from the other two but are lumped together for political effect. In a Public Union, the workers are compensated with taxes paid by the public taxpayer for services necessary for the public at large. Public Unions should be able to collectively bargain, but the Union as a whole (not individual members) should not be able to strike, engage in political activism or in the direct support of elected officials. Why? Here’s the problem, when Public Unions negotiate, they sit across from elected Public Officials. These Officials were elected to represent their constituents, the taxpayers. So, when a Public Union is directly engaged in the election of that same Public Official, the People (the taxpayers), have no one representing them! Their representative (the elected Public Official) now represents the Public Union who funded their election! This is UNCONSTITUTIONAL! Article 4, Sect. 4 clearly states that the Federal Government is supposed to provide a Republican (representative) form of government, and in the case of Public Unions, the People have no representation. Union members are taxpayers too! Therefore, at the end of the day, the only people sitting at the negotiating table are the Union leaders and the politicians, but the taxpayer is paying for it all! So, while you may have a good pension and benefits, at what cost does it come? Our country is being invaded, our cost of living has skyrocketed, our families and children are being destroyed and our streets are full of crime. We can do better.