The following news about Senator Collins and the Employee Free Choice Act and deceptive advertising being run in Maine are forwarded for your information from
Jack McKay, President
Eastern Maine Labor Council
Sen. Collins uses same talking points and backs up lies of Union Busting group "Union Facts"
EMLC in front page business section article below
It is outrageous that Senator Collins’s office issued a written statement using the exact same deceptive language as the Center for Union Facts (the recent anti union ads blanketing Maine) in misrepresenting the Employee Free Choice Act. Collins is showing her true colors and she's either choosing to so grossly mislead the Maine people on such an important piece of legislation or simply doesn’t understand it and uses the spin of Richard Berman’s anti-union front group.
Senator Collins owes the Maine people an explanation on her misrepresentation of this important piece of legislation. She must also denounce the sleazy, deceitful ads of all the Berman front groups that are getting involved in Maine (Center for Union Facts, Employee Freedom Action Committee, etc.)
The Center for Union Facts misrepresents the Employee Free Choice act to equate it with electing people to office. Their ad depicting classroom elections for school officers is deceptive as it states that this is exactly what unions want to do with the Employee Free Choice Act. The Employee Free Choice act is about forming unions, not about how to elect union officers. Unions in America elect officers by way of healthy democratic processes. No-one is advocating to change that. The question is: what is the best process to form a union in the first place. It is important to note that no – one voted on whether or not we should have a Maine legislature or a U.S. Congress, our votes are to elect the representatives. This is a very, very different process.
In response to the EMLC press conference on Thursday, the Washington D.C. based Center for Union Facts’ managing director J. Justin Wilson told WLBZ:
"In organizing elections people go and have a vote, just like election day
in Maine," Wilson explained. "They want to switch to a system where a union
organizer approaches you at your house and say sign this contract and they
don't even show you the fine print." (italics added)
Senator Collins is against the legislation, Felicia Knight, Collins' Deputy
Campaign Manager issued a written statement addressing the ads.
"Senator Collins' campaign has nothing to do with these ads, which are
currently airing in several media markets around the country. On the issue,
Senator Collins strongly believes that all workers are entitled to their
long-standing right to a secret ballot. It is ironic that a public servant,
elected by a secret ballot, would vote to deny union employees the same
right." (Italics added)
Brewer: Union head slams ads
By
Eric Russell
Saturday, June 07, 2008 - Bangor Daily News
BREWER, Maine — Local union representatives are hitting back at a national nonprofit agency that has been running targeted television advertisements, including some in Maine markets, slamming labor practices.
Jack McKay, president of the Eastern Maine Labor Council, said the Center for Union Facts of Washington, D.C., claims to support workers’ rights but "everything they do undermines workers."
"The biggest thing, I think, is that these ads are deceitful and they misrepresent what unions are asking for," McKay said Friday of the ads, which ran on local NBC, ABC and CBS affiliates in recent weeks but have since stopped. "Truthfully, they know what we want and they are deliberately misrepresenting that."
One of the ads in question portrays children voting in a class election and then depicts union bosses hijacking the process.
The ad campaign is centered on the Employee Free Choice Act, a piece of legislation that has been supported by the U.S. House but has yet to make it through the Senate. Union supporters and many Democrats are in favor of the bill, but Republicans have generally opposed it.
The Center for Union Facts claims the Employee Free Choice Act would strip workers of their right to vote privately when forming a union.
McKay said unions have always conducted their elections in the open and will continue to do so.
The reason the ads have flooded the Maine market is because of the contested Senate race between Sen. Susan Collins and U.S. Rep. Tom Allen, who have differing views on the Employee Free Choice Act.
McKay said the ads are particularly outrageous because the Center for Union Facts is little more than a nonprofit arm of Berman Associates, a powerful Washington lobbying firm. McKay said its founder, Richard Berman, has represented interests of the tobacco and fast food industries.
Center for Union Facts managing director J. Justin Wilson issued the following statement regarding the group’s advertising campaign in Maine:
"Union bosses are the ones with a long history of corruption, deception, and mismanagement. Given that, we think Mainers should be especially concerned with their deceitful attempt to eliminate workers’ fundamental right to a private-ballot election when unionizing."
McKay said his first instinct was to ignore the ads, but he wants the public to have both sides.
"It was important for us to come out and denounce these ads because they received so much air time," he said. "And I’m sure we haven’t seen the last of them."
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Update on Union Facts- otherwise known as Richard Berman's deceitful, sleazy front group
Too harsh? Besides misrepresenting and attacking unions, this is a guy who advises pregnant women to eat above FDA approved amounts of fish with mercury! (http://www.villagevoice.com/people/0603,hunter,71775,24.html)
Incredibly, this group still claims to support worker rights during last night's news. No shame whatsoever.
It's clear their angle is to attack our leadership and cause divisions within our labor movement. You can see from Channel 2s coverage below that Sen. Susan Collins apes their language. Collins, without ever talking to any worker involved in an organizing campaign, opposes the Employee Free Choice Act, because she wants to protect workers.
On the media front. We got great press coverage. You can watch the local news detailed below. I want to thank Brent Hall who did a great job putting visuals behind Dan, Calvin and myself that spoke to worker rights, jobs with justice and the like. Calvin got great coverage on channel 7, but I can't find that on the web. Channel 2 had a nice shot of our mural which has writtten large and in red "Work place Democracy, through Solidarity". Another way to beat back Berman's lies.
The news:
http://www.wabi.tv/content/4091/Watch_TV5_News/ For the morning news version its about 8 minutes into the show.
http://www.wlbz2.com/news/local/default.aspx
Labor Officials Denounce Union Attack Ads
(NEWS CENTER) -- An organization
called The Center For Union Facts has launched a nationwide television ad
campaign attacking labor unions and supporting workers rights. Those ads
recently ran on stations here in Maine, including NEWS CENTER.
Full Story
June 6, 2008
Political ads that have hit Maine are causing a stir...
Union members around eastern Maine are taking issue with a pair of commercials produced by the Center for Union Facts.
Jack McKay is the president of the Eastern Maine Labor Council, a federation of 35 unions with more than six thousand members.
He finds the ads deceitful and negative.
"One of the things that really bothered us about this ad is the lies and misinformation." McKay told TV5 on Thursday. "The other thing is the patronizing attitude. This is a group funded by big business out of state who's pretending to speak for workers; they're not workers, that's so arrogant."
The Washington D.C. based Center for Union Facts released a statement to WABI, from their managing director J. Justin Wilson.
It reads:
"Union bosses are the ones with a long history of corruption, deception and mismanagement. Given that, we think Mainers should be especially concerned with their deceitful attempt to eliminate worker's fundamental right to private ballot election while unionizing."
The two ads have aired on WABI TV.
Their paid advertising schedule ended on Monday, June 2nd.
Labor Officials Denounce Union Attack Ads
WLBZ-2 NBC - Bangor/WCSH-6 NBC - Bangor
http://www.wlbz2.com/news/local/article.aspx?storyid=88784
Web Editor: Scott Sassone, Reporter
Created: 6/5/2008 6:23:27 PM
Updated: 6/5/2008 7:27:58 PM
(NEWS CENTER) -- An organization called The Center For Union Facts has
launched a nationwide television ad campaign attacking labor unions and
supporting workers rights. Those ads recently ran on stations here in Maine,
including NEWS CENTER.
The ads depict workers talking about how unions take away their rights and
bully people into joining unions.
J. Justin Wilson spoke to NEWS CENTER from his Washington D.C. office on
Thursday.
"We think people should be able to have a free and clear choice as to
whether to join a union," Wilson told NEWS CENTER. "If they want to quit the
union they should be able to do that."
Wilson, the center's Managing Director, says the campaign is aimed at the
"Employee Free Choice Act". Wilson says if the bill is enacted by Congress,
it will strip workers of their right to a private vote when forming a union.
"In organizing elections people go and have a vote, just like election day
in Maine," Wilson explained. "They want to switch to a system where a union
organizer approaches you at your house and say sign this contract and they
don't even show you the fine print."
The Center For Union Rights is a Washington D.C. Based 501-c non-profit
organization.
While the center is warning people of deception and corruption on the part
of unions, local labor leaders are fighting back.
Jack McKay, the President of the Eastern Maine Labor Council, says the
center is nothing but a front organization for lobbyists who are pro-big
business and anti-union interests. McKay says the organization is run by
Richard Berman, a notorious lobbyist for the Alcohol, tobacco, and fast food
industries.
"What the ads play on is a sense that, 'I'm not gonna win, I should keep my
head down and I can't make a difference, because somebody out there is going
to beat me down," McKay said. "That's exactly the problem unions see."
McKay says Maine has been targeted because of the expected Senate race
between Representative Tom Allen (D-Maine) and Senator Susan Collins
(R-Maine).
They are on opposite sides of a bill in Congress called "the Employee Free
Choice Act".
Mckay says the legislation would ensure workers' right to form a union, and
give them the power to bargain with their employers.
Senator Collins is against the legislation, Felicia Knight, Collins' Deputy
Campaign Manager issued a written statement addressing the ads.
"Senator Collins' campaign has nothing to do with these ads, which are
currently airing in several media markets around the country. On the issue,
Senator Collins strongly believes that all workers are entitled to their
long-standing right to a secret ballot. It is ironic that a public servant,
elected by a secret ballot, would vote to deny union employees the same
right."
Representative Allen's Communications Director, Carol Andrews also addressed
the advertising campaign.
"It certainly would not be surprising that groups who are anti-worker and
anti-middle class would want to diminish Tom Allen's support of working
people and would favor his opponent, who voted against the Employee Free
Choice Act."
"Tom Allen is a proud supporter of the Employee Free Choice Act and our
labor unions because he understands that our middle class is seeing an
erosion of health insurance coverage, pension benefits and job security.
Unions help level the playing field in these areas because they negotiate
through collective bargaining."
Union Facts Calls EMLC!
Watch tonight for media coverage on EMLC press conference
and recent media on Solidarity Scholarships
About 10 minutes ago Justin, the press agent for "Union Facts", called and wanted to get our media materials from this morning's press conference. I said I would send it as long as they told the truth. He said sure. So I asked where they got the major portion of their funding. He wouldn't tell us, so nothing gets sent to them! He threatened us with their attorney's if we did anything libelous. It is my firm opinion that they are deceitful, misleading and sleazy. I then changed the topic to one about his conscience, soul, whether or not he went to church, whehter or not he hurt children and elderly on a regular basis and for how much money and similiar things. He didn't like that topic, but he couldn't answer. If you want to ask him yourself about what good he does in the world, or tell want you think about the ad, give 'em a call at 202-463-7100.
All three networks (ABC, NBC, CBS) were here and we should get good press coverage. Especially from channel 2 who has felt the heat from lots of calls and Duane Lugdon (thanks Duane). WKIT will do a phone interview soon. If anyone can tape these shows, please do so and let me know! Dan Lawson, elected leader of USW 1188 and Calvin Murphy, elected leader of IBEW 1253 both did a great job of speaking and I want to thank them for their time and energy for this cause.
Please see below for information about Richard Berman and the sleazy things he does.
Solidarity Scholarship Media coverage: Last Friday we had great coverage on our Solidarity Scholarship program. (applications accepted up to June 10th). I want to thank Calvin Murphy, IBEW 1253 and Emery Deabay, USW 1188 for the great job in speaking at the press conference. All the networks gave good (ABC,CBS, NBC), featured stories on the project. Also, Cumulus covered it repeatedly (4 stations)See attached for coverage in the BDN and from the channel 2 website. (see attached)
Truth on Berman as the sleaziest union buster/ person going: some highlights:
Mercury in Fish? Baloney! Lobbyist tells pregnant women to eat more tuna
01/10/2006 The Village Voice
http://www.villagevoice.com/people/0603,hunter,71775,24.html
Lifting the veil on Richard Berman 3/11/2008 American Rights at Work
Got a nasty fight? Here's your man. 7/31/2006 USA Today
http://www.usatoday.com/money/companies/2006-07-31-lobbyist-usat_x.htm
Teachers: Watch out, Berman is coming! 11/3/2007 Las Vegas Sun http://www.lasvegassun.com/news/2007/nov/03/teachers-watch-out-berman-is-coming/
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Jack McKay, President
Eastern Maine Labor Council
20 Ivers Street
Brewer, ME 04412
www.gbaclc.org
207-989-4141