Obama Aids Labor With Policy Shifts, Key Appointments

http://www.investors.com/NewsAndAnalysis/Article.aspx?id=476927

By SEAN HIGGINS, INVESTOR'S BUSINESS DAILYPosted 07:23 PM ET

After decades of decline, Big Labor now has reason to be optimistic about the future: It has fast friends in the White House.

California officials recently learned just what that meant when they tried to trim the pay of state health workers. A top union got the administration to tell California to back down.

The debt-ridden state had sought to trim $74 million from its budget by reducing its contribution to home health workers' pay from $12.10 an hour to $10.10.

The Obama administration subsequently told them in an April 15 conference call that if the wages were cut it could endanger $6.8 billion in federal stimulus funds.
President Barack Obama speaks Thursday during a town hall meeting in Rio Rancho, New Mexico.


President Barack Obama speaks Thursday during a town hall meeting in Rio Rancho, New Mexico. "Even if you're not a member of a union, you owe something to unions," said Obama, in response to a question about the Employee Free Choice Act. He acknowledged that supporters don't yet have enough votes to pass the bill -- which makes labor organizing easier -- but he repeated his support for the measure. AP View Enlarged Image


Also on the call were the Service Employees International Union's associate general counsel and two California union officials, one a lobbyist.

The SEIU had lobbied the administration to step in. Many of the workers are SEIU members.

The Obama-Labor Union

"We found what the Californians were doing was in violation of the law," SEIU President Andy Stern told IBD on Thursday. "We were asked by the administration to join a conference call to explain our legal position on this."

FULL story at link.

:sarcasm:

thread. Truly fucking pathetic so many don't appreciate one damn thing this guy does.

Who is that? Prez Obama or OmahaSteve?

Haven't you heard, Prez Obama is just like bush:silly:

more awesome than the Lieberman moment last summer, imo.