From the Washington Post: Congress appears ready to head off on summer vacation without resolving a funding stalemate that has resulted in the furlough of 4,000 Federal Aviation Administration employees and layoffs for about 70,000 airport construction workers.
The workers — including about 1,000 FAA employees in the Washington region — faced the prospect of going without a paycheck until after Labor Day. The agency also would lose an estimated $1.2 billion in ticket-tax revenue....
The deadlock is over a ruling by the National Mediation Board that favored union efforts to organize airlines.
Republicans want to reverse an NMB rule that union-organizing elections should be decided by a simple majority of those who vote. They want to revert to a decades-old rule that stipulates that in airline elections, eligible voters who don’t cast a ballot be counted as voting “no.”
“This is not some little issue,” said Sen. Orrin G. Hatch (R-Utah), denouncing a “runway National Mediation Board.”
“They are running ramshackle over labor law in this country,” Hatch said, “so they can give the unions a decided advantage that should not be given in any circumstances in a union election.”
Hatch blocked a Democrat effort to extend FAA funding until September.
As usual, the House did their job, but senators like Harry Reid decided to play some politics and hold up the House bill.
The House this year passed a long-term FAA reauthorization bill that would negate the NMB ruling. With the majority of senators content with the NMB ruling, their long-term bill did not address the issue.
With congressional staff members trying to resolve that and other differences before a formal conference committee was convened, House Transportation Committee Chairman John L. Mica (R-Fla.) sought to spur resolution by including a controversial provision in a stop-gap extension passed last month.
Although the provision had nothing to do with labor law, it raised the ire of senators and their refusal to approve the encumbered bill led to the partial shutdown of the FAA.
The provocative provision would have cut air-service subsidies to airports in the home states of Senate Majority Leader Harry M. Reid and Senate Finance Committee Chairman Max Baucus (D-Mont.).
http://www.washingtonpost.com/local/congress-urged-to-tackle-faa-funding-bill-before-recess/2011/08/01/gIQAcvJIoI_story.html
If there is one person to blame in this fiasco, it is Crybaby Harry Reid, who won't even allow a vote on the issue. He knows he would lose and lose big time.
The workers — including about 1,000 FAA employees in the Washington region — faced the prospect of going without a paycheck until after Labor Day. The agency also would lose an estimated $1.2 billion in ticket-tax revenue....
The deadlock is over a ruling by the National Mediation Board that favored union efforts to organize airlines.
Republicans want to reverse an NMB rule that union-organizing elections should be decided by a simple majority of those who vote. They want to revert to a decades-old rule that stipulates that in airline elections, eligible voters who don’t cast a ballot be counted as voting “no.”
“This is not some little issue,” said Sen. Orrin G. Hatch (R-Utah), denouncing a “runway National Mediation Board.”
“They are running ramshackle over labor law in this country,” Hatch said, “so they can give the unions a decided advantage that should not be given in any circumstances in a union election.”
Hatch blocked a Democrat effort to extend FAA funding until September.
As usual, the House did their job, but senators like Harry Reid decided to play some politics and hold up the House bill.
The House this year passed a long-term FAA reauthorization bill that would negate the NMB ruling. With the majority of senators content with the NMB ruling, their long-term bill did not address the issue.
With congressional staff members trying to resolve that and other differences before a formal conference committee was convened, House Transportation Committee Chairman John L. Mica (R-Fla.) sought to spur resolution by including a controversial provision in a stop-gap extension passed last month.
Although the provision had nothing to do with labor law, it raised the ire of senators and their refusal to approve the encumbered bill led to the partial shutdown of the FAA.
The provocative provision would have cut air-service subsidies to airports in the home states of Senate Majority Leader Harry M. Reid and Senate Finance Committee Chairman Max Baucus (D-Mont.).
http://www.washingtonpost.com/local/congress-urged-to-tackle-faa-funding-bill-before-recess/2011/08/01/gIQAcvJIoI_story.html
If there is one person to blame in this fiasco, it is Crybaby Harry Reid, who won't even allow a vote on the issue. He knows he would lose and lose big time.
So, once again Crybaby Reid has personally laid off thousands of workers all in the name of politics. How many workers has Harry personally laid off now? It has to be approaching around 15,000 people, at least. Wow, Crybaby Harry you are a one person wrecking crew and you are messing with people's families and their livelihood. What a pathetic person you are.
Actually, the sticking point is that the House GOP inserted language changing the way union votes are counted. Right now "yes" votes are a yes, and "no" votes are a no, and people who don't vote aren't counted. The GOP is insisting that this 3rd category be considered "no" votes.
ReplyDeleteActually, the non voters were always counted as no votes until the NLRB, I think, changed it this year or last.
ReplyDeleteUp until then,a non vote was counted no.
And only yesterday did Reid change his mind about the subsidies to smaller airports- too little too late.
The rural airports are chump change ($14 million). It was just a way to poke Reid in the eye.
ReplyDeleteThe substantial issue has always been the fact that in a bill to continue FAA funding the House GOP inserted a provision overriding the NLRB. In point of fact this is purely about Delta, the only non-union airline.
And promptly after inserting the language to override the NLRB, the House adjourned for the summer break.