Connecticut Town Ordered to Pay for Union Workers’ Coffee

MrVicchio said:

Class warfare at it's best. You make that claim, but that's because you aren't making the decisions. It's easy to SAY you'd cut your own salary to keep from laying off people, but that's naive populism speaking.

THE INVESTORS want the cuts, to keep their money safe. Because those workers/portion of the company are not profitable.

(yes I know this kinda went off target a bit but I had to defend against the silly commentary of Tashah calling my statement acidic.)

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Yes, this thread is a great example of class warfare. How dare those uppity union members dare to get coffee! They need to learn there place!

PeteEU said:

Aww... they got coffee...

The bankers got hundreds of billions in tax payer money for screwing over the tax payer... and still get billions in bonuses despite not even remotely paying back the bail-outs they got...

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What does that have to do with the issue of the thread? Not a damn thing.
A town being forced to buy coffee for their employees and the bailouts for companies are two separate issues.

A bit of fake rage to deflect attention away from the bigger scandal that no one on the right dare talk about?

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You do not think I was pissed about the bailouts?
http://www.debatepolitics.com/archi...ailout-investment-banks-2.html#post1057742283

Political Wrinkles - View Single Post - How Many Support The Bailout?

Redress said:

SO, with CB the teachers agree to concessions, but CB is the problem. Something there does not connect...

The reality is this has little to do with problems with unions, and everything to do with unions tend to represent and support democrats. So in the simplistic word of many conservatives, they are the enemy.

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The Union agreed in hopes of winning the PR war, "SEE SEE WE COMPROMISED!!" but they still want the big ace in the hole, CB.

You really think this has to do with Dem Vs. Rep.? Nope, and that's why you, and your idealogical side are losing this battle, finally. The Wisconsin Teachers are GOING to lose their CB powers, and future generations will thank them for it.

Redress said:

Yes, this thread is a great example of class warfare. How dare those uppity union members dare to get coffee! They need to learn there place!

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That's all you got, parrot. Few if any pay you any mind anymore. The conversation had moved beyond the topic of coffee, do try to keep up.

So tired of these propaganda pieces. It's typical to take one little thing and explode it into the reasons why unions must be destroyed. Partisan hacks from both sides have been doing this for as long as I have memory.

jamesrage said:

Its crap like this why people are starting to despise unions. The only thing an employer owes an employee is wages for the work they do and compensation for any on the job injury or job related injury.



Connecticut Town Ordered to Pay for Union Workers

A Connecticut town must provide their union workers free coffee and milk, according to a ruling from the State Board of Labor Relations.

The board also ordered town leaders to reinstate “Dress Down Fridays” for the union clerical and custodial workers.

The dispute involved the town of Orange and the local chapter of the United Public Service Employees Union.

The board determined the town retaliated against the union members for comments they made at a finance meeting in 2009.

The day after that meeting, First Selectman James Zeloi eliminated the free coffee and milk and the following day ended “Dress Down Friday.” Zeoli told The New Haven Register that he pulled the plug on the coffee to save money and stopped casual Fridays because some employees were abusing the privilege.

“It shows you how crazy state government has become,” Connecticut Republican Party Chairman Chris Healy told Fox News Radio. “You’d almost laugh at it, if it wasn’t so serious in tone.

This is just another black eye on state government.”

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jamesrage said:

Its crap like this why people are starting to despise unions. The only thing an employer owes an employee is wages for the work they do and compensation for any on the job injury or job related injury.



Connecticut Town Ordered to Pay for Union Workers

A Connecticut town must provide their union workers free coffee and milk, according to a ruling from the State Board of Labor Relations.

The board also ordered town leaders to reinstate “Dress Down Fridays” for the union clerical and custodial workers.

The dispute involved the town of Orange and the local chapter of the United Public Service Employees Union.

The board determined the town retaliated against the union members for comments they made at a finance meeting in 2009.

The day after that meeting, First Selectman James Zeloi eliminated the free coffee and milk and the following day ended “Dress Down Friday.” Zeoli told The New Haven Register that he pulled the plug on the coffee to save money and stopped casual Fridays because some employees were abusing the privilege.

“It shows you how crazy state government has become,” Connecticut Republican Party Chairman Chris Healy told Fox News Radio. “You’d almost laugh at it, if it wasn’t so serious in tone.

This is just another black eye on state government.”

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Here is the way I see it - The town should not be forced to purchase coffee for it's union employees, but they were already doing it under an existing contract, and that is the key. The town had AGREED to purchase the coffee. They were not forced to do so. A contract is enforceable by law. If the town does not like it, then they should renegotiate it in their next contract talks. However, they cannot arbitrarily take away what was already negotiated in a previous contract. That is illegal, and that is how the Labor Board ruled. As for the dress down Fridays, this is something that was not in the contract, but which by tradition had been done for quite some time.

What FOX News does NOT report is the actual motivation behind the actions of First Selectman James Zeloi, who is the one who ordered ending the free coffee and dress down Fridays. Someone disagreed with him during a public meeting, so he decided to retaliate. This story is all about the petulance of a man who went off the deep end, after someone disagreed with him in a polite way.

From the New Haven (Connecticut) Register:

The state labor board recently ruled in favor of the union that the town must provide those perks, and in its decision said Zeoli only suspended the perks after union leaders spoke out at a meeting about their concerns over excessive legal costs, and their assertion the town was dragging its feet in contract negotiations.

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But leave it to FOX News to conveniently ignore this fact, in order to promote it's own political agenda. This is just another of the many examples of why FOX News is not a real news organization at all, but a propaganda mouthpiece for the Republican Party. After all, if they were a real news organization, then they would truly report all the facts, and let us decide. That's their motto, right? Physician, heal thyself.

MrVicchio said:

The Union agreed in hopes of winning the PR war, "SEE SEE WE COMPROMISED!!" but they still want the big ace in the hole, CB.

You really think this has to do with Dem Vs. Rep.? Nope, and that's why you, and your idealogical side are losing this battle, finally. The Wisconsin Teachers are GOING to lose their CB powers, and future generations will thank them for it.

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Typical. They compromise, but it's just some ploy. The CB is so evil that they dared to compromise when they had to so they must be bad. It is that way because you say it is with zero logic or evidence to back you up. It is that way, simply because that is what you need it to be to fit into your ideological view.

MrVicchio said:

That's all you got, parrot. Few if any pay you any mind anymore. The conversation had moved beyond the topic of coffee, do try to keep up.

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Do you have anything except ad homs?

The corporate elite are buying Ferraris with the change in their couch cushions while demanding tax cuts, and conservatives are up at night having nightmares about public employees having coffee? Man, it makes one understand the French Revolution more and more. The right-wing in this country is totally, utterly, bat-**** insane.

MrVicchio said:

Of course it happens. What does that matter? Because it does happen on both sides it makes it right? ???

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OK. I agree. It's wrong on BOTH sides.

CaptainCourtesy said:

This is not specific.

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What? hahaha....It is the definition of "specific"....A direct quote from Karl Marx himself.

So specificity is not really what you want, what is it exactly that you are looking for?


j-mac

Redress said:

Typical. They compromise, but it's just some ploy. The CB is so evil that they dared to compromise when they had to so they must be bad. It is that way because you say it is with zero logic or evidence to back you up. It is that way, simply because that is what you need it to be to fit into your ideological view.

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CB is undemocratic Redress, you cannot have Collective Bargaining with the Government. It's just WRONG.

MrVicchio said:

CB is undemocratic Redress, you cannot have Collective Bargaining with the Government. It's just WRONG.

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Why? Are government workers slaves? Simply stating something does not make it true.

Redress said:

Why? Are government workers slaves? Simply stating something does not make it true.

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It is exactly true, at least for Public sector workers. If it were repubs that were the beneficiaries of Union campaign money, you'd be all over these boards typing how it was wrong.


j-mac

j-mac said:

It is exactly true, at least for Public sector workers. If it were repubs that were the beneficiaries of Union campaign money, you'd be all over these boards typing how it was wrong.


j-mac

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How do you know that? Do you know Redress?

j-mac said:

It is exactly true, at least for Public sector workers. If it were repubs that were the beneficiaries of Union campaign money, you'd be all over these boards typing how it was wrong.


j-mac

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You can then show where I have been all over the boards complaining about corporate donations to the republican party, which would be the equivalent. Good luck with that.

danarhea said:

How do you know that? Do you know Redress?

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Yeah, you're right, we can't throw any hyperbole out there what so ever unless you know the person personally....I guess that leaves you out of posting then eh?....heh, heh, just kidding.....What kind of post is that anyway?


j-mac

Redress said:

Why? Are government workers slaves? Simply stating something does not make it true.

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you're right simply stating something doens't make it so ... kinda like the asinine statement asking if government employee's are slaves

Redress said:

You can then show where I have been all over the boards complaining about corporate donations to the republican party, which would be the equivalent. Good luck with that.

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I'll give credit where credit is due, I have not seen you do that ..... but perhaps just as much of the reason you haven't, is because democrats receive just as much in corporate donations as do republicans

Redress said:

You can then show where I have been all over the boards complaining about corporate donations to the republican party, which would be the equivalent. Good luck with that.

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:roll: Yeah I'll get right on that...Look Red, I like ya, hell on some things I even have agreed in the past with you. But don't for a minute think that a response of 'Oh yeah? Go re-read every one of my postings and show me' is going to deter me. If you haven't done that in the past then I change that to a blanket "liberals"....There, is that better?


j-mac

j-mac said:

:roll: Yeah I'll get right on that...Look Red, I like ya, hell on some things I even have agreed in the past with you. But don't for a minute think that a response of 'Oh yeah? Go re-read every one of my postings and show me' is going to deter me. If you haven't done that in the past then I change that to a blanket "liberals"....There, is that better?


j-mac

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Doesn't work either, since I am a liberal.

Let me offer you a more rational reason why liberals and democrats are standing up for the teachers union. We feel we are the party of the working class of America. Teachers are part of that working class, and unions represent a fair portion of that working class. Therefore we stand up for those we are supposed to represent. See, this makes sense, and there is no conspiracy or corruption.

Jetboogieman said:

I don't like polls, and i don't use them as evidence in any argument.

But i do get a good chuckle when people love to for example continually quote Obama polls when they're going down, poll after poll about how Americans are against this or that, and then when a poll comes out that goes against something they like, it's dismissed completely and doesn't matter... :coffeepap

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They totally matter. That way I can let you know when the world agrees with me... ME ME ME ME MEEEEEEEEE!

j-mac said:

Yeah, you're right, we can't throw any hyperbole out there what so ever unless you know the person personally....I guess that leaves you out of posting then eh?....heh, heh, just kidding.....What kind of post is that anyway?


j-mac

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I think post number 81 pretty much hit the nail on the head. Don't you? :mrgreen:

Redress said:

Doesn't work either, since I am a liberal.

Let me offer you a more rational reason why liberals and democrats are standing up for the teachers union. We feel we are the party of the working class of America. Teachers are part of that working class, and unions represent a fair portion of that working class. Therefore we stand up for those we are supposed to represent. See, this makes sense, and there is no conspiracy or corruption.

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The by the same sense, the conservatives, are for less restrictive taxes on everyone, so there is no conspiracy or corruption, when we defend tax cuts ….. because according to your own assertion it is perfectly acceptable to defend something that is or may be wrong as long as it goes along with the general principles which you stand for.

The sad part is our government has taken this same stance, and because if it, is it any wonder why things are the way they are ?

The main thing that hamstrings the public sector with unions is being forced to lay off based on seniority rather than merit. That's the biggie. That's it. When unions agree to accept lay offs based upon merit, the war will be over. Unfortunately, that means that seniority teachers (and others) who would not even be able to pass the teachers' exams that the current teachers must pass, who have records of performance mediocrity and ineffectiveness, must be kept.

In California, every budget cutting effort that tried to avoid lay offs has been taken to court by the unions, and in many cases overturned by judges who have no choice because of the tightly-locked union contracts that give unions the right to force lay offs (based on seniority) rather than allow budget cutting by furloughs, wage freeze or other methods.

The contracts have draconean clauses that make it impossible to make any cuts to union costs without the union's permission. Who ratified these draconean union contracts, with California public sector employees making more than their counterparts around the country? The overwhelmingly democratic legislature that depends upon union votes and union campaign contributions to keep their cushy jobs.

This is totally backward, tail-wagging-dog fiscal strategy based upon partisian politics and greed. It's got to stop sometime. Maybe this finally is the time.