Having already won Colorado Governor Bill Ritter's November 2007 executive order allowing exclusive union representation in state government, the table is set for organized labor to push for full-fledged and permanent bargaining legislation by next year. Many of those who would be purported to benefit from such legislation might have a different idea, however. On an iVoices podcast, I talk with state employee Dave Ohmart about his developing plan to provide representation for state employees without the costly union middleman services of Colorado WINS: Dave says he's open to input to refine and improve his plan. You can contact him by leaving a comment at the Colorado LOSES website. … [Read more...]
Search Results for: Ritter union executive order
Senate Bill 180: Another Big Labor Veto Dilemma for Vulnerable Bill Ritter
Two years ago Governor Bill Ritter came right out of the gate and ran smack into a tough veto choice that caused friction with his Big Labor supporters. Ritter made up for the nixing of House Bill 1072 later in 2007 with an executive order giving union organizers a gold-plated invitation into Colorado state government. Now, to some extent, history is replaying itself. As the Denver Post's John Ingold reports, the choice Bill Ritter is confronted with now is whether to sign or veto the bad policy that is Senate Bill 180. The bogus argument used for SB 180 -- which narrowly passed the Democrat-controlled legislature -- is that firefighters need greater union bargaining rights to ensure they get needed safety equipment. … [Read more...]
Legislation to Unionize Colorado State Government: Coming 2010 Battle?
Via the Right to Work blog comes news that the new Republican Governor of Arizona Jan Brewer has repealed her predecessor's executive order granting union powers to state workers. This scenario (and others like it before - witness Missouri and Indiana as examples) is precisely why the Colorado WINS labor coalition will not rest satisfied with Bill Ritter's November 2007 executive order that introduced collective bargaining to our state government. Odds are strong that the political winds will favor Big Labor pushing a broad piece of government employee collective bargaining legislation in 2010. The question is whether the Democrats in charge at the State Capitol by then will have backed off the cliff's edge, and from governing away their … [Read more...]
Dress Down: Bill Ritter’s Big Idea
Let it never be said that Governor Bill Ritter is not a man of big ideas:In a recent letter to state employees in the state publication Stateline, Ritter talks about the hard economic times and thanks employees for their hard work. He then applauds a stress-reducing move by the Department for Health Care Policy and Financing to extend “‘dress down Fridays’ to every day of the week.†Senator Ted Harvey wondered whether it might be an April Fools Day joke. I'm wondering if it was an idea hatched as the result of his executive order authorizing collective bargaining -- er, employee partnerships. Whatever it is, somehow methinks this wasn't the dressing down being cited by our governor. Five days a week of that would make most … [Read more...]
Ask Colorado LOSES Why the Union Card-Check Bill is Such a Bad Idea
Do you still need more reason to understand why union bosses are so keen on taking away the secret ballot from workplace elections? On the Colorado LOSES website, state employee Dave Ohmart gives an account of his experience trying to attend the Colorado WINS union's rally / lobbying event at the State Capitol on Wednesday:Ryan Webber, a union organizer, immediately came to me and asked, “You’re not going to say anything, are you Dave? I’ll have to toss you out of here if you do.†Another security-type person came over and stood behind me. Ryan then asked, “You’re not going to write more lies about me, are you Dave?†(Don’t think I ever have!) I assured him I was not there to make a scene. Governor Ritter spoke … [Read more...]
It’s Official: Colorado Government 100% Unionized, Thanks to Bill Ritter
It's not often I break news on this site, but just remember it was reported here first: As of today, the entirety of Colorado state government is officially unionized. Previously, the "Colorado WINS" union coalition won the right to represent six of eight occupational groups in state government - despite being outvoted by the "don't give a crap" coalition. While political junkies in Colorado await the results of candidate primary campaigns, results from mail-in ballot elections for the final two occupational groups of Colorado state government were counted and tabulated today. Via an email from the state labor department, here are the results (which should be posted here shortly):Financial Services Group: Colorado WINS was successful in … [Read more...]
Reasonable Solution Needed in Denver Post Lawsuit against Bill Ritter
So the Denver Post is suing Gov. Bill Ritter for access to his personal cell phone records? While I'm a strong proponent of transparency in government, it would seem this is slightly over the line. Over at The Colorado Index, a watcher writes "in defense of Bill Ritter." The typically conservative blogger is no big fan of either the Governor or the Post. A watcher especially has problems with the way the latter has responded to his quest for legal ethics reform. So what should be done? I agree with Rocky Mountain Right's assessment:Ritter should disclose any calls he made related to state business in accordance with the law even if they were on a private phone, but he should also not have to disclose every time he called his wife or … [Read more...]
Pushy Union Rep Making Himself at Home on Colorado State Property
Regular readers of this blog and followers of the Colorado political scene generally are aware of Gov. Bill Ritter's executive order that has given union leaders the keys to state government. Already the "Colorado WINS" labor union coalition has ridden the popularity of the "don't give a crap" mentality to become the "exclusive representative" for a majority of state workers. Right now, two elections are pending that would unionize the remaining 9,500 Colorado state employees. Disturbed by the "don't give a crap" mentality and wanting his fellow public servants to judge the union's promises for themselves, state employee Dave Ohmart has started the tongue-in-cheek group "Colorado Loses." He has a regular e-mail list of interested state … [Read more...]
Pollster Floyd Ciruli Rehashes Reasons for Bill Ritter’s Sinking Popularity
In today's Rocky Mountain News, Colorado Democrat pollster Floyd Ciruli takes a cold, analytical look at Gov. Bill Ritter's approval ratings -- boiled down, the picture isn't pretty for the potential one-term governor:Surprisingly, new Democratic Gov. Bill Ritter may be in trouble. When compared with his Montana counterpart, Gov. Brian Schweitzer, in recent Rasmussen polls, Ritter's job rating lags behind Schweitzer by 19 points. Only 45 percent of Colorado voters gave Ritter an excellent or good job rating, whereas 64 percent of Montanans rated Schweitzer as doing an excellent or good job. Floyd Ciruli cites a litany of reasons for Bill Ritter's sagging popularity, reasons that have been regular themes of this and other local new media … [Read more...]
“Don’t give a crap” WINS Bill Ritter’s State Employee Union Elections
Gov. Bill Ritter's November 2007 executive order at last has successfully completed the loop in unionizing state government in a very un-democratic fashion. Today's Denver Post reports:At least 22,500 secretaries, prison guards and other state employees will soon fall under a union contract following a vote tallied Wednesday, though the majority of eligible workers didn't cast a ballot.... About 6,900 state workers from a pool of 22,500 who were eligible participated in the election, which gave them a choice between Colorado WINS [editorial comment: "Big Labor WINS, Colorado LOSES"] or no union representation. Of those, 5,481 supported the union. That's right. Fewer than one-quarter of eligible state employees voted to be unionized. … [Read more...]
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