Indiana Republicans are some of the nations worst

The Indiana House of Representatives has taken House Bill 575 which is the bill authored by State Senator, Ed Charbonneau and which takes away the ability of teachers to bargain for working conditions and has included taking away the rights of every school employee to bargain a contract including those who work in kitchens and cafeterias and busses.

Boy, I'll tell you what, these Republicans in Indiana are sure doing a job on working men and women.

During the last campaign for my state senator, I was assured that Ed Charbonneau was a fair person when it came to workers. Well, I've met him and spoken to him and he is indeed a personable guy but the idea that he is fair to workers is just down right false.

Shame, shame on the whole lot of them.

How the World Really Turns

Proponents of taking bargaining rights away from Hoosier teachers for everything except wages and wage related benefits site some of the most idiotic reasons. They complain that contracts in some schools down in Crawford County and East Chicago require a certain temperature for classrooms. Well, duh.....at some point in those schools history, some lame brained administrator thought he's save energy by keep the thermostats set at 50 degrees. Either that, or because of his cold heart, he insisted the temperatures be set at 90 degrees.

Another contract requires that the teachers' lounge be attractive, comfortable and spacious. Why? Because years ago some wild eyed, hippie principal on LSD insisted the lounge walls be painted black. Either that, or he wouldn't allow the stinking walls to be painted even though the plaster was falling off the ceiling.

Other contracts say that if teachers will be layed off, teachers with equal seniority break the tie by using their birth dates in Indianapolis, a blind draw in Munster and a roll of a die in East Allen County. Well, big whoop, that's exactly how it's done in many industries, including the Northern Indiana Public Service Company.

Another contract requires that a classroom carpet be cleaned efficiently. This was insisted on by the teachers because their principal was a pig. Either that, or he was too cheap to purchase a working vacuum cleaner.

Another thing Daniels and his cohorts are trying to do is take away a teachers experience when evaluating them. Well, I'll tell you how teachers in Indiana will be evaluated if all of this anti-worker legislation is passed. The teacher that plays bridge with the principles wife, or goes to church with the superintendant, or talks bad about another teacher, or is good at acting to be a good teacher is the teacher that will get a good evaluation. Simple as that. That's human nature and that's the way the world turns. It's a crock I tell you, a crock. And Daniels and the Republicans know it.

Democrats in the Indiana House are true heroes in doing everything they can to prevent these terrible pieces of legislation from being passed. And the Republicans that authored the bills in question, well, I just can't say here about what I think of them.

Democrats Return, but the Republicans are Still Here

Although the Democrat members of the Indiana House are returning, look for the Republicans to continue their attack on Hoosier working families.

Never before in my memory have Republicans been so blatant in their attempt to hurt the middle class. They sure have made it clear as a bell who they're working for.

I know that the Democrats were able to negotiate some positive changes to what the Republicans were trying to do, but they could only do so much.

I sure hope the eyes of Hoosiers have been opened through all of this.

I hope everyone realizes that Republicans are no longer real Republicans but are instead mean spirited, intolerant and in the pockets of the Indiana Chamber of Commerce, the National Right to Work Committee and their rich pals.

Absolutely shameful what they are trying to do.

I know that some are calling this a victory for Indiana workers, but I think to have such rubber stamp politicians licking the boots of some National Right to Work Committee is down right shameful and the guy who authored the "take away bargaining rights for working conditions" for teachers (State Senator, Ed Charbonneau) is on the very bottom of a very nasty pile.

Indiana Senator Ed Charbonneau is Bad for Indiana

Whether to allow teachers in Indiana to continue to be able to bargain for working conditions seems to me to be a no brainer. Indiana Republicans seem to have a very poor understanding of what a union even is.

Items that appear in local union contracts which on the surface might seem strange or unusual to most people, have no doubt been placed there for a very good reason at some time in the history of that community of workers.

Anyone who has ever done any work for any entity knows full well that in every group of management there usually can be found at least one wild eyed, crazy acting, member that has no regard for the safety or an understanding of the human behavior of workers causing workers to be harassed, threatened or miserable. School administrators are no different. Some of them are really good and some are simple minded, hard headed egotistical nincompoops.

I can imagine some crazed administrator insisting that the temperature in classrooms be set higher or lower than that which is most conducive to learning. I can imagine how disruptive and miserable a work day could be for a teacher if an administer had a Captain Queeg complex.

Without agreed upon rules between teachers and administration officials, only bad things can be the result and the children who are trying to learn would be the most affected.

Why Republicans in Indiana are so afraid of allowing teachers this basic right to negotiate working conditions cannot be understood by me.

My own Indiana State Senator, Ed Charbonneau, in Indiana’s District 5, not only voted for this lousy assault on teachers but has the distinction of being one that authored or sponsored the darned thing.

Mr. Charbonneau knows better. He knows what a union is.

Governor Daniels and Indiana Senator Ed Charbonneau Anti-Union

Indianapolis Rally Against Anti-Union Legislators

USW Slams Walker's Assault on Democracy

(Pittsburgh) – This statement was released this morning by the United Steelworkers (USW) on actions taken last evening by Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker and Republican Senators.

In a clear violation of Wisconsin’s open meeting law, Wisconsin conservative senators yesterday voted without a quorum to strip the state’s public sector workers – teachers, nurses, and librarians – of collective bargaining rights that the people of Wisconsin granted them a half century ago.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE                                                                          
March 10, 2011                                                                                                                           
CONTACT:   Wayne Ranick (412) 562-2444

United Steelworkers International President Leo W. Gerard said this attack on the rights of Wisconsin’s public sector workers is an attack on all working people. “Although Wisconsin law requires a quorum when Senators vote to spend the people’s money, these conservatives exploited a loophole to vote without a quorum on legislation to steal workers’ rights. This is not democracy,” Gerard said.

“As illustrated by the surging crowd of protesters who filled the capitol building in Wisconsin after the undemocratic sneak-vote Wednesday, workers everywhere, whether public sector or private sector, union or unrepresented, will unite to win back their rights with their feet at protests and their votes at ballot boxes,” said Gerard, who leads North America’s largest industrial union, with 850,000 members, including steelworkers, paper workers, oil workers, rubber workers and public sector workers in the U.S. and Canada.

The conservative attack on workers in Wisconsin is far from isolated, Gerard said: “This is a nation-wide campaign by billionaires and country-club conservatives, to terminate workers’ rights, giving unfettered power to corporations.” So far in Wisconsin, conservatives have granted only government workers the right to freeload – the ability to benefit from collective bargaining without paying union dues. In nine other states, from Maine to Missouri, conservatives are pushing right to freeload legislation to cripple all unions.

“All this legislation is an attack on the middle class, which blossomed in this country as a result of collective bargaining victories during the middle of the last century. Middle-class workers, whether Republican or Democrat, know they must repel this assault on their right to collectively bargain or be reduced to insecurity and poverty,” Gerard said.

Anti Worker Indiana Legislators

If people in Wisconsin think that the Republicans in their state legislature are acting improperly and against the best interests of the people who work for a living in Wisconsin, they shouldn't feel pregnant because we have Republicans in the Indiana General Assembly that are just as bad.

My own State Senator, Ed Charbonneau would fit in just fine up in Wisconsin. His willingness to take away bargaining rights from Indiana's teachers has given him that distinction.

An Open Letter to our Friends, Neighbors and State Politicians

Today, we are writing this open letter to our friends, neighbors, and state politicians. Over the past couple of weeks, democratic representatives have walked out of the State House and are taking a stand against legislation that will have long-term ramifications on Hoosier families. We applaud them for there tenacity and courage. The working families in Indiana will never forget their decision.

The common threads on the bills before them are singular – they enhance the powerful and erode the rights and privileges of working families and their children. So-called right-to-work legislation is a thinly veiled attempt to silence the voices of Indiana working people. The legislation at creating more charter schools and diverting already scarce funds out of the public school system and into pseudo-regulated private enterprise can only damage the future of education in Indiana. These things cannot be taken lightly.

We are in a unique position in time. Men and women that will probably not be here to see the results of their decision-making are determining what the future holds for our children and future generations. That is unfortunate and the stakes are high. These decisions will affect the social, economic and life building abilities of our children and grandchildren. There can be no future without access to a decent and affordable education. There can be no viable future for families without the ability to make a living wage. There can be no future for a house built on sand.

The state of working families is in the hands of the Indiana legislature. Think hard before you cast that vote against us. Deliberate long and realize that after your last election is over, Hoosiers across the state will live by these acts for better or for worse. Lastly, choose wisely the legacy you leave our children.

USW Local Union 809 President, Jeff Hooker
USW Local Union 5840  President, Russ Oberg 
USW Local Union 9550 President, Chuck Owens
USW Local Union 6805 President, Rick Richardson
USW Local Union 905 President, Tina Smythe
USW Local Union 12273  President, Frank Troyer
USW Local Union 1052 President, Nena Defeberche

The Foxx In The School House

Support Public Education

Will you join us in standing up for our kids and for public education?

The Indiana Federation of Teachers and the Indiana State Teachers Association are joining forces to hold rallies in support of public education in Indianapolis, East Chicago, and Anderson!

We'll be standing together to have our voices heard! Let's tell the General Assembly that they can't fix the education system by demonizing workers and draining funding from our schools. Please plan on attending one of these rallies to show your support for our kids, our schools and our future!

Indianapolis Rally
Tuesday, February 8th
Indiana Statehouse, South Atrium (inside the Statehouse)
200 W. Washington St.
Indianapolis, IN 46204
5 p.m. Eastern Time

Lake County Rally
Wednesday, February 9th
4725 Indianapolis Blvd.
East Chicago, IN 46312
4:30 p.m. Central Time
(Outside event - Dress warm)

Anderson Rally
Thursday, February 10th
4610 S. Madison Ave.
Anderson, IN 46013
4:30 p.m. Eastern Time
(Outside event - Dress warm)

Join us at any of these rallies to stand with our union brothers and sisters! By standing together, we can make sure our representatives fight for Indiana’s children!