Saturday, July 3, 2010

Arizona Court Says Secret Ballot Measure Unconstitutional


by James Parks, Jul 2, 2010

Opponents of the Employee Free Choice Act were dealt a blow June 30 when an Arizona state court judge struck down as unconstitutional a proposed state constitutional amendment that sought to restrict how workers can vote in union representation elections.

Maricopa County Superior Court Judge Robert Oberbillig granted an injunction sought by Food and Commercial Workers (UFCW) Local 99 to prevent Proposition 108 from appearing on the ballot in November. The proposition, which was backed by the anti-union group Save our Secret Ballot (SOS Ballot), would have required secret ballots in all union elections and elections for public office. Employee Free Choice Act opponents wrongly claim the legislation would take away the right to a secret ballot election for union representation. In fact, the act would give workers—not employers—the option to choose whether to vote on union representation by signing union authorization cards

Alliance for Retired Americans - Friday Alert, July 2, 2010


Alliance Executive Director Testifies in Front of the Fiscal Commission

On Wednesday, Alliance Executive Director Edward F. Coyle testified in front of the president’s Fiscal Commission, which is charged with addressing the nation’s national debt. Coyle conveyed to the committee’s board members that retirees are deeply disturbed by the talk coming out of the Commission of cutting Social Security benefits and raising the retirement age. House Minority Leader John Boehner (R-OH) had said earlier this week that if the Republicans were to win control of the U.S. House, the party would try to raise the Social Security retirement age to 70 as part of a fiscal reform plan. “John Boehner’s call to raise the Social Security retirement age to 70 is not only deeply hurtful and insensitive to workers, but also reflects a dangerously flawed misunderstanding of how Social Security is financed and operates,” Coyle told the Commission. In response to critics who blame Social Security for America’s budget deficit, Coyle challenged them to find a federal program that functions as efficiently as Social Security. Coyle proposed raising the payroll tax cap for the wealthiest Americans in order to further strengthen Social Security’s financial structure.