nimh wrote:Quote:Firefighters union assails Giuliani
One of the nation's largest firefighters' unions has accused Republican presidential contender Rudy Giuliani, the former New York City mayor, of committing "egregious acts" against firefighters who died in the September 11 terrorist attacks.
Their complaint is as follows:
Quote:[T]he International Association of Fire Fighters, excoriated Giuliani for his November 2001 decision to cut back the number of firefighters searching the rubble of Ground Zero for the remains of some 300 fallen comrades.
The 280,000-member union accused him of carelessly expediting the cleanup process with a "scoop-and-dump" operation after the recovery of millions of dollars in gold, silver and other assets from the Bank of Nova Scotia that had been buried. [..]
The former mayor and the union have feuded for years over his policies in the aftermath of the attacks [..].
"Mayor Giuliani's actions meant that firefighters and citizens who perished would either remain buried at Ground Zero forever, with no closure for families, or be removed like so much garbage and deposited at the Fresh Kills landfill," the letter said, adding: "Hundreds remained entombed in Ground Zero when Giuliani gave up on them."
"What Giuliani showed is a disgraceful lack of respect for the fallen and those brothers still searching for them," it added.
The union said the purpose of the letter was "to make all our members aware of the egregious acts Mayor Giuliani committed against our members, our fallen on 9/11 and our New York City union officers following that horrific day." [..]
Large unions are typically anti-GOP, anti-conservative, and anti free trade. Large unions also speak from the leadership bureauocracy, oppose right to work laws, and support candidates who support unions. They shamelessly use union dues to support pro-union leadership candidates, as often than not against the convictions of the majority of the workers. The unions can also make it quite difficult for workers who presume to openly oppose the leadership.
Both Clinton and Obama are on the record as supporting the unions in their efforts to make it easier for workers to join unions against the wishes of their employers. Giuliani is pro business.
This is only the first volley of what the unons will probably be launching against Giuliani, and they probably won't care whether they distort or exaggerate the truth when they do it.
The following was a Chicago rally, but there will almost certainly be similar events in New York City and elsewere:
Quote:--March 4
With Democrats in control of Congress and seeking to boost a struggling labor movement, national union leaders joined Illinois' two senators at a rally Saturday in Chicago to promote legislation to make it easier for workers to join a union against the wishes of their employers.
"We will pass the Employee Free Choice Act. It's not a matter of if, it's a matter of when," said Sen. Barack Obama (D-Ill.). "We may have to wait for the next president to sign it, but we will get this thing done.". . . . .
, , , , ,The labor rally followed a vote Thursday in the House, where Democrats, in a nod to organized labor for its help in retaking control of Congress, approved a bill that would take away the right of employers to demand secret balloting by workers before unions could be recognized.
Under the bill, the National Labor Relations Board would certify a union if it wins a majority of cards signed by workers. Currently, the NLRB calls for a secret vote if more than 30 percent of workers say they support a union. In order to win the election, the union must garner the majority of the workers' votes.
SOURCE
