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Archive for Guest Columns

Guest column: Don’t expect anything from the pols

Saturday, August, 14, 2010 Steve Vairma Guest Columns No comments

The track record of the Democratic members of the Colorado congressional delegation—including the two U.S. senators—on labor issues is, at best, only fair.  The Republican record is worse.

And those records probably won’t get any better for a long while.

To get anything done for working men and women, it is necessary that our elected representatives have the interest of those workers at heart.  They must feel the pain of every unemployed, underemployed, underpaid and underappreciated man and woman in the workforce.  They must be committed and they must have empathy.

It is in their best interest and it is in the best interest of the country when the world’s most productive workforce is working, making a livable wage, a wage that allows them to purchase a few nonessential commodities occasionally while enjoying a relatively high standard of living.  Such workers pay their share in taxes, which helps to control the federal deficit and balance state budgets.  If they make good money, they spend good money, keeping both the government and the business community prosperous.

Unfortunately, millions of the best jobs available to working class American have disappeared over the past 20 years.  These were manufacturing jobs.  Most of them were exported to foreign countries where wages are much lower—a condition favorable to employers concerned only with the bottom line.

In the past decade the manufacturing sector of the nation’s workforce has declined from more than 17 million workers to about 11.5 million.  In the 1950s, manufacturing accounted for 50 percent of U.S. jobs.  By the 1970s it had dropped to 25 percent and it is now less than 10 percent.  Former President George Bush supported, even cheered, those corporations that shipped American jobs overseas.  Can anybody figure how that was good for America?

Voters are rightfully scornful of incumbent U.S. senators and representatives who have shown little ability or inclination to solve the nation’s economic problems, of which one of the biggest is the erosion of the U.S. manufacturing base. Independent polls show that the loss of manufacturing jobs rates as a key concern of the electorate.

I would be surprised if a single member of Colorado’s congressional delegation has a plan to resurrect the country’s manufacturing base, which has to be done if the economy is to recover. From what we have observed, none of them is fully committed to helping working men and women. When confronted with labor issues, they procrastinate, wring their hands, gnash their teeth, make excuses and generally do nothing.

I recently heard an anecdote about a meeting years ago between then President Franklin D. Roosevelt and A. Philip Randolph, the great black civil rights and labor leader.  Randolph, who was the founder and president of the Sleeping Car Porters Union, came to the White House to make certain demands on the president.  Roosevelt’s response was “make me do it,” which Randolph did later did by forcing the president’s hand through effective planning and public opinion.

That’s what we must do with present-day politicians, “make them do it,” make them fix the economy.

Guest column: I support Andrew Romanoff

Tuesday, June, 29, 2010 President Bill Clinton Guest Columns No comments

I first met Andrew Romanoff in 1992, when he was a student at the Kennedy School of Government and I was a candidate for President. Four years later, I was running for a second term, and he had just been elected to his first — as one of Colorado’s representatives on the Democratic National Committee.

I was proud to carry Colorado in 1992, but you should be even prouder of what Andrew Romanoff did to turn the state blue. He worked harder than anyone in Colorado to put Democrats in positions of power — and to use that power to benefit every single citizen.

Andrew led the effort to win a majority in the Colorado House of Representatives for the first time in 30 years, and to keep that majority for the first time in more than 40 years. He built the largest Democratic majority since John F. Kennedy was President.

Even more important, Andrew took on Colorado’s biggest challenges and made enormous progress. As the first Democratic Speaker of the House since 1976, he:

  • Put together an Economic Recovery Plan to bring good jobs to Colorado and balance the state budget.
  • Passed the largest investment in school construction in state history — a billion-dollar plan to repair, rebuild and modernize schools, especially in rural Colorado.
  • Protected Coloradans from the threats they face every day: insurers who deny their claims and refuse to honor their policies, scam artists who prey on seniors and bilk them out of their life savings, polluters who destroy the environment and expect somebody else to pay for the damages.

Andrew won. Colorado won.

In 2008, the editors of Governing Magazine honored Andrew as “Public Official of the Year.” They recognized in Andrew the same qualities that the National Conference of State Legislatures, the Council of State Governments, and more than 50 other organizations had already seen — integrity, courage, compassion. Simply put, Andrew Romanoff is one of the best legislative leaders in the United States.

Colorado is far better off today because of Andrew Romanoff’s leadership. America will be too.

As a Senator, Andrew Romanoff will continue to stand up to special interests and fight for working families. We need Andrew’s leadership in Washington — especially now, when so many Americans are losing so much. “It is not enough,” as Andrew put it at the Colorado Democratic Assembly last month, “to put a President of real talent and vision and leadership in the White House if the same qualities are not matched at the other end of Pennsylvania Avenue.”

Andrew won the state assembly by 21 points. With your help, he’ll win the primary and the general election.

Andrew brings to this race both an extraordinary record of public service and an extraordinary capacity to lead. I believe that those assets, as well as his deep commitment to Colorado, give him the best chance to hold this seat in November.

I support Andrew Romanoff, and I hope you will too. Please make a generous contribution to his campaign today (here is the site: https://donate.andrewromanoff.com/page/contribute/TV).

Sincerely,

President Bill Clinton

Guest column: Good advice but many deaf ears

Sunday, June, 13, 2010 Steve Vairma Featured News 1, Guest Columns No comments

A high-powered management law firm–which has offices in 16 states, including Arizona and Colorado—recently published an interesting article on its website that says employers sometimes can’t blame their employees for joining a union.

No kidding.

Labor Letter—written by attorneys Michael Mitchell and Matthew Simpson—is a publication of the firm of Fisher & Phillips. It might surprise Fisher & Phillips’ clients to learn that unions might agree with most everything in the piece, which summarizes five reasons that employees turn to unions for help in the workplace.

According to them, the primary reason workers join unions is that they believe the employer is treating them unfairly. “Where employees feel they have been subjected to discipline which they did not deserve, or did not expect, or that another employee got a break that they did not, union organizing may not be far off,” say Mitchell and Simpson.

“The solution here is a simple one,” they assert. “Establish clear policies and regulations and follow them. Too often employers satisfy the first step and fail to meet the second. You also need to train and update managers and supervisors on employment practices and make sure they are being implemented effectively and consistently.”

Number 2 on their list is non-competitive pay and benefits. Companies that provide fair and competitive wages are less susceptible to this argument, according to the Labor Letter article. “The bottom line in an organizing drive often comes down to wages and benefits. Unions argue consistently that representation leads to higher wages, better health care and a secure retirement. The ‘union advantage,’ they are told will put money in their pockets.”

Substandard workplace safety is the third most important factor in workers unionizing, say Mitchell and Simipson. “They expect safety training, appropriate equipment, and clear guidelines and procedures for responding to and reporting workplace accidents.” Failing to meet basic safety expectations not only leaves the company susceptible to OSHA citations, but also adds fuel to union organizing campaigns.

Respect, or lack thereof, is ranked fourth on the list of reasons workers organize. Employees don’t like to be ignored and they don’t care much for being disrespected, says Labor Letter. “Disciplining employees in front of others, assigning blame before reviewing the facts and generally playing favorites are all factors that can cause employees to feel disrespected, and turn to a union for help.”

Number five is ignoring employee complaints. “You don’t like to be ignored. Neither do your employees. When you overlook employees’ complaints and especially claims of discrimination and payroll concerns, or fail to resolve them quickly and efficiently, resentment grows.” Indeed it does.

The order of importance Mitchell and Simpson’s five reasons for worker unrest are probably debatable, but without question they all offer motivation for workers to seek union representation.

It is no secret to labor organizers why workers seek union representation. Since the colonies were established, employers have treated workers unfairly, seeking to pay the lowest wages possible, limiting benefits, operating unsafe workplaces, disrespecting workers and ignoring employee complaints.

Unfortunately, when confronted with a union organizing campaign, anti-union employers usually respond with a collective, “Who me. I’ve never done that.”

With that attitude, lawyers will be in demand to represent them, and unions will be needed to protect their workers.

Guest column: Corporate American holding all the aces

Monday, April, 19, 2010 Steve Vairma Guest Columns No comments

A lot of working men and women nowadays are wondering how and why the nation’s financial manipulators—including Wall Street bankers, stockbrokers, insurance companies, pharmaceutical manufacturers and others–seem to have an inside track to our U.S. senators and representatives.

For example, the “too big to fail” banks accepted billions of dollars in so-called “stimulus” money from our government. Then they thumbed their collective nose at the government’s suggestions they use that money to help out people who are losing their homes to foreclosures that were brought about by shady practices of the banks in the first place.

Meanwhile, the insurance and pharmaceutical companies mounted a campaign of lies and deceit against President Obama’s health care proposal, which resulted in watered-down health reform of somewhat questionable value.

The fact is that corporate America can get things done in Congress that are harmful to the nation’s middle class because it has paid for “access” to our elected representatives in Washington.

“Access” is a nice tern for “buying votes,” which is what corporate American does through the expenditure of millions of dollars in campaign contributions and lobbying fees.

In 2009, the six “too big to fail” banks—Bank of America, Citigroup, Inc., Goldman Sachs, J.P. Morgan Chase, Morgan Stanley and Wells Fargo—spent nearly $28 million on lobbying the federal government. Also in 2009, the top officers of those companies paid themselves a total of nearly $82.5 million in compensation.

The total lobbying expenditure for the entire financial sector last year was $3.5 billion. The U.S. Chamber of Commerce alone spent some $123 million for so-called “access.”

On the other hand, labor unions spent less than $10 million last year lobbying on federal issues. The unions are nonprofit; they simply don’t have the money.

The controversial ruling on campaign finance by the U.S. Supreme Court in January allows corporations to spend freely on political ads leading up to elections. The decision invalidates a part of the 2002 McCain-Feingold campaign-finance reform law that sought to limit corporate influence.

“The Supreme Court has given a green light to a new stampede of special interest money in our politics,” said President Obama. “It is a major victory for big oil, Wall Street banks, health insurance companies and the other powerful interests that marshal their power every day in Washington to drown out the voices of everyday Americans.”

Lawyers for corporate America will argue that the ruling also applies to labor unions.

That’s true, but so what?

While ruling gives unions the right to spend unlimited money, labor doesn’t don’t have unlimited money. They only represent about eight percent of the workforce.

The corporations already outspend organized labor by a 5 to one margin in campaign contributions. With this ruling, they’ll now be able to outspend us by 50 or 100 even 1,000 to one.

And now you know why corporate America continues to hold all the aces, and probably will for some time to come.

EDITOR’S NOTE: Steve Vairma is president of the Colorado Council of Teamsters.

Guest column: Rush keeps on lying

Monday, April, 19, 2010 Mike Hall Guest Columns No comments

It was Sen. Al Franken (D-Minn.) in his previous incarnation as an author and comedian who called Rush Limbaugh “A big fat liar.” Well, others can address the first part, but Limbaugh himself has again offered solid evidence about the liar part.

Last week, Limbaugh lambasted the Mine Workers (UMWA) for not protecting their members who, he claimed worked at the Upper Big Branch mine in Raleigh County, W.Va., where 29 coal miners were killed when the Massey Energy Co. mine exploded.

Of course as we all know, and has been widely reported in mainstream media–and even on Fox News–Upper Big Branch was non-union coal mine. While he never acknowledged his mistake, at least he piped down for a few days.

But yesterday, with a full bag of gas at the ready, Rush claimed he had irrefutable facts to back him up, that UMWA did certainly represent the miners at Upper Big Branch. He said the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) had ordered Massey to hire union coal miners.

There were union workers at this mine…You people, it’s been 21 years. At some point you are going to learn: If you go up against me on a challenge of fact, you are going to be wrong. It’s just that simple.

Let UMWA President Cecil Roberts throw the challenge flag on this one.

On his radio programs recently,, Rush said: “But in 2009, the [NLRB] agreed with the decision that Massey Energy rehire 85 coal miners who said they had been discriminated against because they were union members. So there were union workers there. So the United Mine Workers should have been overseeing their safety, the United Mine Workers of America.”

Wrong again, Rush. The decision you refer to was AT ANOTHER MINE! And, Massey is appealing that decision, meaning the workers who were discriminated against at the Cannelton mine (in another county from the Upper Big Branch mine) have yet to reclaim their rightful jobs as the NLRB ordered.

Those are the facts. Who’s wrong now, Rush?

While Limbaugh may have lost a few pounds, that liar part still fits quite snuggly