Anti-union animus pervades St. Johns County Republicans

Reading in the St. Augustine Record recently the antics of our all-Republican St. Johns County Commission vis a vis the firemen's union, I am appalled. They remind me of such union-busting organizations as J.P. Stevens, whose effort to bust unions in North Carolina led to the movie, "Norma Rae."

On one of our local hate websites, the Sheriff's erstwhile bagman, MICHAEL GOLD, has used the term "agitators" to refer to firemen who belong to a proud, free, democratic trade union. How trite.

"Agitators?" That's the same term the KKK used to refer to people who came to St. Augustine to help local people fight for their rights.

Every single legislative victory for human rights was made possible by unions, including OSHA, MSHA, minimum wage, eight-hour day, laws against child labor.
We need more "agitators" pressing for human rights. For as Studs Turkel wrote about Stetson Kennedy, our local KKK-busting civil rights hero: "With half a dozen Stetson Kennedys, we can transform our society into one of truth, grace and beauty."

We need more agitators and activists -- we need more people who ask questions and aren't afraid of authority, people like my Georgetown University Professor Jan Karski (see below). People like Stetson Kennedy.

Please explain this to me, MICHAEL GOLD (or other union-busters): Ronald Reagan encouraged Solidarnosc (SOlidarity), the free democratic Polish trade union, as a means of ending Communism.

Thus, why do you hate an honest public employee union that wants for their firemen members what Samuel Gompers said every union should want (MORE)?

"Agitators?" This country was founded by "agitators" -- real men with real courage -- people like Ben Franklin, Thomas Jefferson, John Adams, Sam Adams, George Washington, James Madison and Thomas Paine.

Anyone who uses the word "agitators" as a pejorative is a closet KKK wannabee -- not to be taken seriously. If they ever read The Federalist Papers (or Thomas Paine's Common Sense) they probably wouldn't understand it.

We Americans have a right to rock the boat -- as do the firemen -- it's our boat.
It's our country.

The angry, anti-fireman's union Republicans hereabout remind me of a story about a Republican Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals Judge, Elmer Jacob Schnackenberg, who often tormented counsel for the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) at oral arguments.

Judge Schnakenberg, so the story goes, once asked NLRB attorney Peter McC. Giesey (later a USDOL ALJ), why it was that NLRB always supported the union. Giesey replied to the effect that, well, your honor, "the fundamental policy of the government is to encourage collective bargaining, and you can't have collective bargaining unless there's someone to bargain with." Get it?

From the remarks made by anti-union Republicans, including obscene one that won a "brickbat" from Folio Weekly (and which we won't quote here), you'd think at least one Commissioner was going to pop a cork because firemen had a union and wanted to negotiate.

They need their consciousness raised -- the International Association of Fire Fighters (IAFF) is a really good union, with good members, good staff and good lawyers.

We didn't see the County Administrator or Commissioners take a pay cut.

The County must bargain in good faith with the firemen's union, IAFF. County Commissioners and other officials take an oath to uphold the law.

Anything less is unAmerican.

Anything less could be costly in the long term, both in litigation and in lost productivity and public safety.

Anything less is bullying and "Boulwareism," a practice named after Lemuel Boulware, the GE exec who hired Ronald Reagan to do propaganda, and whose anti-union tactics ("take-it-or-leave-it") are now called "Boulwareism," and are per se considered an Unfair Labor Practice. NLRB v. General Electric, 418 F.2d 736 (2d Cir. 1969), 397 U.S. 965 (197).

Florida has a Public Employee Relations Commission that functions like the NLRB where Unfair Labor Practices are concerned. Perpahs PERC can help teach St. Johns County Commissioners to respect our firemen, without publicly insulting them and insulting their representatives as they try to engage in collective bargaining.

Boulwareism may violate Florida law, to wit, Florida Statute 447.309

Collective bargaining; approval or rejection.--

(1) After an employee organization has been certified pursuant to the provisions of this part, the bargaining agent for the organization and the chief executive officer of the appropriate public employer or employers, jointly, shall bargain collectively in the determination of the wages, hours, and terms and conditions of employment of the public employees within the bargaining unit. The chief executive officer or his or her representative and the bargaining agent or its representative shall meet at reasonable times and bargain in good faith. In conducting negotiations with the bargaining agent, the chief executive officer or his or her representative shall consult with, and attempt to represent the views of, the legislative body of the public employer. Any collective bargaining agreement reached by the negotiators shall be reduced to writing, and such agreement shall be signed by the chief executive officer and the bargaining agent. Any agreement signed by the chief executive officer and the bargaining agent shall not be binding on the public employer until such agreement has been ratified by the public employer and by public employees who are members of the bargaining unit, subject to the provisions of subsections (2) and (3). However, with respect to statewide bargaining units, any agreement signed by the Governor and the bargaining agent for such a unit shall not be binding until approved by the public employees who are members of the bargaining unit, subject to the provisions of subsections (2) and (3).

(2)(a) Upon execution of the collective bargaining agreement, the chief executive shall, in his or her annual budget request or by other appropriate means, request the legislative body to appropriate such amounts as shall be sufficient to fund the provisions of the collective bargaining agreement.

(b) If the state is a party to a collective bargaining agreement in which less than the requested amount is appropriated by the Legislature, the collective bargaining agreement shall be administered on the basis of the amounts appropriated by the Legislature. The failure of the Legislature to appropriate funds sufficient to fund the collective bargaining agreement shall not constitute, or be evidence of, any unfair labor practice. All collective bargaining agreements entered into by the state are subject to the appropriations powers of the Legislature, and the provisions of this section shall not conflict with the exclusive authority of the Legislature to appropriate funds.

(3) If any provision of a collective bargaining agreement is in conflict with any law, ordinance, rule, or regulation over which the chief executive officer has no amendatory power, the chief executive officer shall submit to the appropriate governmental body having amendatory power a proposed amendment to such law, ordinance, rule, or regulation. Unless and until such amendment is enacted or adopted and becomes effective, the conflicting provision of the collective bargaining agreement shall not become effective.

(4) If the agreement is not ratified by the public employer or is not approved by a majority vote of employees voting in the unit, in accordance with procedures adopted by the commission, the agreement shall be returned to the chief executive officer and the employee organization for further negotiations.

(5) Any collective bargaining agreement shall not provide for a term of existence of more than 3 years and shall contain all of the terms and conditions of employment of the employees in the bargaining unit during such term except those terms and conditions provided for in applicable merit and civil service rules and regulations.

For more information, check out http://perc.myflorida.com/pubs/Practical_Handbook.pdf