Public Union Democracy
Teachers’ Unions Influence and the Politics of Education
Get ready for a riveting episode of Disunion: The Government Union Report! Host David Osborne is joined by The Daily Signal Investigative Columnist and WIBC radio host Tony Kennett for…
Read More: Teachers’ Unions Influence and the Politics of EducationCompulsory public unions threaten individual worker rights and cost taxpayers billions. Reforms to the Pennsylvania Public Employee Relations Act are needed to restore and protect workers’ rights. No one—including government employees—should be blocked from leaving a union. To increase government integrity and accountability, policies should be adopted that ensure all special interests groups, including government unions, interact with the state government on a level playing field.
Public Union Democracy
Goliath, Drunk on Power—and On the Move!
What does a Middle Eastern battlefield from biblical times have to do with where you buy your booze? Actually, quite a lot. At the Commonwealth Foundation, we call the government…
Media
Read More: Goliath, Drunk on Power—and On the Move!Public Union Democracy
Unsinkable: The True Story of Pennsylvania’s Sinking Pension System
The politics of pensions encourage lawmakers to "grant lavish benefts in good yearsand [decide] not to pay in bad years - precisely what created the current crisis."…
Poll
Read More: Unsinkable: The True Story of Pennsylvania’s Sinking Pension SystemEducation
New Bills Constitute Attack on Cyber Schools
Pennsylvania House Majority Leader Mike Turzai (R-Allegheny) and a trio of legislators today unveiled a package of bills aimed at reducing cyber school growth and limiting the popular schools’…
Media
Read More: New Bills Constitute Attack on Cyber SchoolsPublic Union Democracy
Union Politics Hinder Prosperity
Businessman Jerry Shenk argues in today’s Harrisburg Patriot-News that tough economic realities forced lawmakers to reexamine union privileges in their traditional strongholds of Michigan, Wisconsin and Indiana—and that Pennsylvania…
Media
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Lottery Agreement Better Than Union Guesstimate
AFSCME’s counter proposal to the Pennsylvania Lottery private management agreement (PMA) provides no guaranteed revenue for senior services, no new jobs and no protections for taxpayers if profits fall…
Media
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Union Attacks Won’t Improve Lottery
AFSCME Council 13, the union representing state lottery employees, released its “Alternatives” to a lottery private management agreement. However, their document doesn’t represent a serious counter-proposal that would…
Media
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Protecting Seniors and Taxpayers from the Lottery Cliff
From the greatest generation to the latest generation, our senior citizens have sacrificed to make Pennsylvania safe and prosperous. Our seniors deserve world-class care and assurance that their growing needs…
Memo
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Government Union Cronies Collude Against Seniors
Here’s a letter to the editor I wrote identifying the connections between special interest groups who oppose a lottery contract, and their motives for undermining a deal that would generate…
Media
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Private Lottery Management FAQ
To protect seniors from future service cuts, the Corbett administration is seeking a private management agreement (PMA) to ensure Lottery profits will meet seniors' needs. Lottery services company Camelot submitted…
Fact Sheet
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The Grinch Who Would Steal Seniors’ Christmas
A faux-grassroots group funded by government unions is protesting a proposed contract for a private company to manage the Pennsylvania Lottery. The deal would guarantee a minimum of…
Media
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Government Unions Tighten Squeeze
Following the passage of Right to Work in Michigan, pundits are wondering about the prospects of similar reform here in Pennsylvania. The Philadelphia Inquirer correctly notes Right…
Media
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Are You a Freeloader?
Yesterday, Jon Delano of KDKA Pittsburgh asked the question: Could Pennsylvania be next for right-to-work legislation? As you know from the lessons learned from Michigan’s recent passage…
Media
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More Wolverine Lessons
Friday, Charles commented on Michigan nearing passage of Right to Work, in line to become the 24th state where workers aren’t forced to pay fees to a union…
Media
Read More: More Wolverine LessonsPublic Union Democracy
Distilleries Despot Delivers Tinctures Tantrum
Desperately seeking to hold on to a shred of credibility and hope lawmakers aren’t watching the Pennsylvania Liquor Control Board majestically implode under “Vinogate,” United Food and Commercial Workers…
Media
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New York? Fuhgeddaboudit. Lansing!
As I write this, most of Pennsylvania’s political glitterati has its mind on New York City, where the annual Pennsylvania Society gathering is underway. But my mind is on…
Media
Read More: New York? Fuhgeddaboudit. Lansing!Education
Why We Launched Free to Teach
We’ve had several conversations over the last year with public school educators. One thing has stood out: Teachers don’t feel like they have a genuine voice on educational and professional…
Media
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Stones to Take on Goliath
My friend Jon Caldara of our sister think-tank in Colorado eloquently and humorously offers an important lesson from the election—the results stem not from a short-term campaign, but from…
Media
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Election Lesson: Bring Wisconsin to Pennsylvania
The Wall Street Journal today writes about “Big Labor’s Losses” in Tuesday’s election. This may seem hard for many Pennsylvanians to fathom, given the role government union bosses…
Media
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Election Day: 5 Things to Remember
1. The election results won’t slay Goliath. The special interests who feed off of tax dollars—government union bosses, trial lawyers, extreme greens, crony capitalists that rely on corporate welfare,…
Media
Read More: Election Day: 5 Things to RememberPublic Union Democracy
What Mitt Is Missing
Union bosses always profess to care most about the rights of members. But a careful reading of a feverish sermon in the left-of-center magazine In These Times reveals that their…
Media
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Pa. Teachers Unions Among America’s Most Powerful
Pennsylvania’s teachers unions rank fourth among all U.S. states in their strength and influence, according to a report released this week from the Fordham Institute. We trail only Hawaii,…
Media
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