Full Transcript for Mark Mix — Should a Union Take a Cut of the Money You Get to Care for Your Own Family?

00:02:22.240 I decertified, or I and my co-workers decertified one of the unions. 00:02:22.479 --> 00:02:24.159 I kind of despise unions. 00:02:24.319 --> 00:02:30.879 But if somebody wants to be associated with or represented by a union, I think they have a right under federal law. 00:02:31.039 --> 00:02:39.280 They may even have a constitutional argument saying I have a right of freedom of association and freedom of representation and freedom of speech. 00:02:39.439 --> 00:02:43.360 So if you want to speak or have your union speak on your behalf, you can do that. 00:02:43.520 --> 00:02:48.800 But these people, 200,000 providers, they didn't choose this union, did they? 00:02:49.520 --> 00:02:50.080 Not at all. 00:02:50.240 --> 00:02:56.240 In fact, the the bottom line is this is that the union has now petitioned the National Labor Relations Board to have an election. 00:02:56.479 --> 00:03:01.840 And Lars, the way this election works, let's say that 200,000 is the number of providers. 00:03:02.080 --> 00:03:14.400 And let's say, let's say uh a thousand of them go vote, and five hundred and one vote for the union, all 200,000 are now in the union and subject to forced union dues. 00:03:14.560 --> 00:03:27.520 This is that exclusive monopoly bargaining privilege that unions have gotten going back to the 1930s for private sector workers and a relatively new phenomenon, 1970s and up till now, for public sector employees. 00:03:27.680 --> 00:03:35.840 But either way, when you give the union the ability to compel workers to pay dues as a condition of working, that's exactly what this is. 00:03:35.919 --> 00:03:59.280 It's just a redo and the SCIU, the Service Employees International Union, looking for a new source of dues revenue without the consent or without the vote of people that are quote unquote now union members because the employer, which is working hand in glove with the union to get them into the union and is really the sole source of what really is, Lars, just a payroll service. 00:03:59.439 --> 00:04:04.960 So imagine ADP making the argument because they produce the payroll for your radio station and for your paycheck. 00:04:05.280 --> 00:04:12.479 They say all of a sudden we've agreed with the union that we're your employer because we're in the payroll processing business, and therefore you have to pay union dues. 00:04:12.719 --> 00:04:29.600 That's what the scheme is all about, and it's outrageous, and it comes with a Medicaid fraud overlay on it that the Department of Justice is actually investigating this particular organization, this public partnership, LLC, from actually what is looks like a pretty significant fraud case. 00:04:29.759 --> 00:04:36.160 And Lord Lord know uh Lord knows Lars, there's a lot of fraud going on in these government programs, including Medicare and Medicaid. 00:04:36.639 --> 00:04:45.920 And Mark, one of the things I could suggest, I I'm not that crazy about making new uh structures because of the union, because I'd rather have them out of public employment altogether. 00:04:46.079 --> 00:05:04.319 But having said that, if they're going to do this kind of thing, I've seen this done with votes on things like tax levies throughout America at the local level, where they'll say the school district not only has to get a majority of the voters to approve of a levy, but they have to have at least 50 percent of the voters turn out. 00:05:04.480 --> 00:05:17.759 Now, if you had that kind of requirement on the union to say, you want to represent 200,000 people, then if you're gonna have a uh a union election, then you've got to get at least 100,000 plus one to show up and vote. 00:05:17.920 --> 00:05:20.000 And then you have to get 50 percent of that. 00:05:20.240 --> 00:05:23.199 Even still, you're only getting 25 percent of the total. 00:05:23.360 --> 00:05:37.519 But at least it's better than 200,000 members and a thousand or two thousand cast to vote, and a tiny, tiny fraction of all the members actually say yes, and they end up obligating the other 199,000 people, right? 00:05:37.920 --> 00:05:44.639 Well, Lars, you're an innovative guy and you have lots of great ideas, but that's already the case when you're trying to get rid of a union, believe it or not. 00:05:45.120 --> 00:05:46.000 Yeah, you've got to have a lot of people. 00:05:47.839 --> 00:05:48.959 So believe me. 00:05:49.120 --> 00:05:56.720 And they argued against us and they said we have a right to bring back former employees of the company who get to vote in the decertification vote. 00:05:56.800 --> 00:05:57.839 Did you know that? 00:05:58.319 --> 00:05:58.959 Yeah, we did. 00:05:59.040 --> 00:06:03.680 We're fighting a case like that right now on behalf of nurses up in Michigan at a big hospital. 00:06:03.839 --> 00:06:07.279 Uh workers went out on strike for over a year at that point. 00:06:07.439 --> 00:06:11.839 Then the the employer was hired nurses to actually continue to take care of patients. 00:06:12.000 --> 00:06:31.680 And the union, the Teamsters Union, Sean O'Brien, who represents these quote unquote represents these workers out, these nurses out in in Grand Blanc, Michigan, came in and and lobbied and said, we got to get the striking workers who have been out for a year plus, we got to get them back in the unit so they can protect us against a decertification vote. 00:06:31.839 --> 00:06:35.600 We're literally at the second petition that we filed helped those nurses file. 00:06:35.759 --> 00:06:39.199 I think eighty percent of the nurses currently on the job said they wanted to decertify the union. 00:06:39.279 --> 00:06:48.959 But when they put in the employees that had been out on strike for over a year, obviously the numbers don't work mathematically for a dessert, to your point, Lars. 00:06:49.199 --> 00:06:49.920 It's outrageous. 00:06:50.240 --> 00:06:50.560 It is. 00:06:50.720 --> 00:06:56.079 Well, and in fact, in my case, this goes back probably three decades at least, maybe three and a half. 00:06:56.240 --> 00:07:00.160 And I remember at the time saying, why are they letting those people vote? 00:07:00.319 --> 00:07:03.360 They left the company voluntarily years ago. 00:07:03.600 --> 00:07:08.480 And they said, Well, if they left within the last ten years or whatever, they have a right to come back and vote. 00:07:08.639 --> 00:07:20.319 I said, Why would a former employee have the right to come back and decide whether or not I or my co-workers who still work at the radio station are going to be represented by the union or not? 00:07:20.560 --> 00:07:23.279 And they said, Because that's what the union rules say. 00:07:24.639 --> 00:07:30.480 And that's what the federal law says when it says it's really easy to get in the union, but it's virtually impossible to get out. 00:07:30.639 --> 00:07:34.319 And that's what this is all about here in New York is this new revenue stream. 00:07:34.399 --> 00:07:44.560 And and Lars, imagine if the if annual union dues are$1,000 a year, for example, which is not out of the question for lots of union quote unquote dues paying members. 00:07:44.720 --> 00:07:53.920 Um, this is a huge revenue stream and probably one of the biggest organizing successes in the union movement in literally decades, if not ever. 00:07:54.160 --> 00:08:05.360 When you think about them cutting a secret deal with this quote unquote public partnership LLC, which is the single representative and kind of financial intermediary in this case, cutting a secret deal with them. 00:08:05.519 --> 00:08:07.120 And now the employees have no voice. 00:08:07.199 --> 00:08:20.000 And that's why we have filed uh with uh or an employee, a person that provides help that you put the lead in, is got us to represent her in this case because the union and the employer, quote unquote, are on the same side. 00:08:20.319 --> 00:08:20.959 Exactly right. 00:08:21.120 --> 00:08:22.000 That is Mark Mix. 00:08:22.240 --> 00:08:26.079 Mark is the president of the National Right to Work Legal Defense Foundation. 00:08:26.240 --> 00:08:28.560 Mark, it's always a pleasure to have you on the program. 00:08:28.800 --> 00:08:30.639 Glad to get your calls at 866. 00:08:30.879 --> 00:08:31.439 Hey Lars. 00:08:31.680 --> 00:08:35.279 That's eight six six four three nine five two seven seven. 00:08:35.440 --> 00:08:38.639 Send your emails to talk at larzlarsen.com. 00:08:38.799 --> 00:08:41.200 And by the way, check me out on Instagram. 00:08:41.279 --> 00:08:43.279 You'll find I've got a face for radio.