http://www.examiner.com/x-5697-Grassroots-Politics-Examiner~y2009m7d26-Atlantic-City-casino-workers-vote-for-union-in-2007-no-Employee-Free-Choice-Act-no-contractJuly 26, 1:55 PM
While politicians in Washington continue to bow to the interests of union busters by watering down the right to organize, workers continue to stand up for that right. Atlantic City is the latest battleground and example of the need for the Employee Free Choice Act as dealers and technicians who voted to join the UAW in 2007 face off against companies who refuse to bargain in good faith. The battle was taken to the streets yesterday providing an opportunity for this writer to get a first hand look. As I sat across the street a precise staging of union busting tactics was on display.
Earlier in the day I found myself reliving my days as a union leader in the Transportation Security Administration where a Security Manager, who should be on the lookout and on the ready for security breaches, raced breathlessly from the TSA Operations Center to break up a small gathering of workers engaged in a private conversation about their union, the American Federation of Government Employees. Yesterday I spoke with workers at Caesars, Bally's, Tropicana, and Trump Plaza while smoking outside on break. On each occasion security arrived asking if I needed any assistance; in other words conversation over. It was a sign of things to come as clearly these giants of the gaming industry, like many of the titans of industry are terrified of workers who organize.
Later that evening while awaiting my ride home, I sat across the street from a Caesars casino that was clearly under siege by management, law enforcement and private security union busters. For those unfamiliar with union busting and the tactics used by companies under the current “soft on crime” labor framework this scenario provides a lesson in the reality faced by workers trying to exercise their right to organize.
Workers and their supporters planned to enhance their public relations efforts by handing out leaflets to consumers advising them that their dollars spent in Caesars funded union busting. The roads around Atlantic City are lined with billboards with the message “Atlantic City workers deserve a fair deal.” While workers were peacefully demonstrating, the company was demonstrating to turn passersby against them.
Many of the tactics common to union busters were on display yesterday. First, call the police and ask for assistance handling traffic. Law enforcement officers are in an impossible position and at times may appear to be supporting the union busters, the message management is trying to send, in fact, officers belong to a union themselves and realize they are prop pieces for management but must do their duty professionally and with courtesy. The presence of police officers and a “prisoner transport vehicle” created the illusion of possible violence and sending the message that the workers are troublemakers trying to spoil the festive atmosphere.
The second tactic is surveillance, illegal under current labor law but very difficult to prove giving it a benefit far outweighing any penalty to be faced years down the road. A private security officer videotaped me taking notes and basically served as a warning to any demonstrators that a record will be made of their disloyalty to the company’s profit margin. This is also a useful tool as union busters typically hire “civilians’ to taunt demonstrators in hopes of sparking a reaction. As former union buster Marty Levitt described in his book “Confessions of a Union Buster” they look for men with wedding rings then hurl insults about their wives; any button that will touch off a confrontation serves their purpose.
FULL story at link.
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