CORY MORGAN： Strike Threats？ Bring It — Alberta Needs Right-to-Work
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Summary
Unions have been crippling Canada for years. It s time we had it out with the unions. They ve become too empowered, arrogant, and greedy thanks to decades of governments pandering to organized labor, rather than reasonably and firmly negotiating with it.
Transcript
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All right, let's start out about more domestic news for now though. Strikes. They've been
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crippling Canada for years. You know what? It's time we had it out with the unions.
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They've become too empowered, arrogant, and greedy thanks to decades of governments pandering
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to organized labor rather than reasonably and firmly negotiating with it. Canada's productivity
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has been lagging and it's reflected in the sagging GDP per capita numbers. It's also difficult to
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draw domestic investment into domestic industries when unions are rampaging unchecked. I mean,
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the list of damaging labor actions just in the last couple of years is long and ugly.
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Dock workers, rail workers, airline workers, federal civil servants, postal workers. So I see
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that worker all the time, but they don't work a hell of a lot it seems, but they've all harmed
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the Canadian economy with only the postal workers not managing to garner big settlements for their
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actions. There isn't much that can be done on the federal front. Carney's averse to taking strong
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stances in general as he tries to borrow Canada into prosperity. He hasn't the fortitude to battle
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with labor unions. Legislation brought by the Trudeau government banning replacement workers
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and federally regulated industries has tipped the power so heavily into the union hands that payouts
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come hard and heavy once a strike is threatened. In Alberta though, we can change the balance of power.
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This province could fall in the footsteps of 27 American states and embrace right-to-work
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legislation. The right to organize with a union is an important one. The right to choose not to
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participate in a union must be entrenched as well though. Closed shops, which force people to join
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a union, whether they like it or not, are an affront to the right of free association and they empower
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unions far too much. The stranglehold on some industries and the public sector in general
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has to be broken. And there's no better way to do that than allow employees to choose.
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Giving employees the choice with union membership forces unions to become competitive.
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They'll suddenly have to be accountable to their members who they take dues from and prove that
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they offer value to those employees. Members tired of seeing a chunk of their wages being taken
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from by a union to use in woke lobbying and taking political stances unrelated to their workplace
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can opt out. Regions with right-to-work legislation see economic benefits on all levels and the American
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example proves that. Over a 10-year average, states with right-to-work legislation saw a 10% private sector
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job growth, while states without it saw a 6.1% growth. Investment moves towards those states and
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industries not hamstrung by overpowered unions and are able to expand their operations. Real
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manufacturing GDP growth in the right-to-work states was 18.4%. In the non-right-to-work states,
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it was 12.7%. Ontario, with its ailing manufacturing sector, should be keeping this in mind.
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After-tax income growth in right-to-work states was 21.3% versus 16.8% in states without it. That's
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a big one. Unions like to claim raises only come through union pressure, yet in the states where
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employees have the option to directly negotiate their own compensation, the employees garner more
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money. Well, at least the competent ones do. The reason they take home more after tax is because the
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state government can operate more efficiently without being controlled by unions, so they don't
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need to tax as much. Kansas and Missouri offer a great example. They're right next to each other.
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The cost of living is similar. The median household income in Kansas, though, where there's right-to-work
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legislation, is thousands of dollars a year higher than Missouri, which is right across the river.
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The poverty rate in Kansas is 11.1%. We're really high, but it's still lowered into 13.4% in Missouri.
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The stronger economy fostered through employee empowerment with right-to-work legislation serves
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everybody. States with right-to-work legislation experience 48% fewer workdays lost due to
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strikes. Employees make more money, while citizens are chronically held hostage with strikes.
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Everybody wins, at least everybody aside from the union executives who profit on labor unrest. So in
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Alberta, Gil McGowan heads the Alberta Federation of Labor. His organization takes a little bite out of
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the wages of almost every union member in the province, and he has guaranteed spots on the
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executive of the NDP. Gil's threatening a general strike over the back-to-work legislation the UCP
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government just imposed on teachers. He wants to punish all Albertans and keep the children from the
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schools while the strike's going on. McGowan's an old-school union tug, a thug. He isn't exactly
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nuanced or cerebral, and he prefers conflict rather than negotiation. So the picture you'll see when
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my column comes out, and we've seen it many times in the Western Standard, of him getting in the face
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of one of reporters kind of demonstrates his nature. Let's indulge old Gil, though. Dare him to have over
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300,000 union members walk off the job in Alberta. Let them show the millions of Albertans who pay their
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bills just how entitled and belligerent these unions are. That sort of walkout would set the
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stage perfectly for Premier Smith to table and pass right-to-work legislation. Let those who
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want to work choose to work. All of Alberta would be better for it, and Gil will suddenly have to
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serve his members rather than blow dollars with self-serving protests. Business and investment
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will move to Alberta while entitled union types will flee. I can't think of a better outcome. If the courts
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feel the legislation isn't constitutional, well, we have the notwithstanding clause, and we've shown we're not
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afraid to use it. So bring it on, Gil. Bring it on.