You Can Take Mike Elk out of the Union, but You Can’t Take the Union out of Mike Elk

Can union activists be unbiased labor reporters?

Columbia Professor Ari Paul thinks so.

In a lengthy defense of Mike Elk, a union supporter controversially hired by POLITICO to cover labor and employment, Paul argues that there is no conflict of interest in such an arrangement:

The Center for Worker Freedom (CWF) was featured by The Daily Caller on January 29, 2015 for our press release offering to save POLITICO from Mike Elk’s drive for union infiltration. The Daily Caller’s Betsy Rothstein writes:

“The Center for Worker Freedom is “concerned” with labor reporter Mike Elk‘s plans to unionize Politico. So they’re offering the suburban Virginia public outreach to educate employees on why not to be taken in by the cause that Elk plotted from the time he was hired last October.”

Unionization Drive Threatens DC’s Top Political News Source

For Immediate Release:

January 29, 2015

When news broke this week that labor and employment “reporter” Mike Elk was spearheading an organizing drive to unionize POLITICO, Washington DC’s top source for political news and Elk’s employer, the Center for Worker Freedom (CWF) became very concerned.

The Center for Worker Freedom (CWF) was credited in Al Jazeera America on January 16, 2015 for its enduring support of the Gerawan farmworkers in Fresno, California, who have been disenfranchised at the hands of public officials. 

The farmworkers voted to decertify the United Farm Workers (UFW) from their workplace in November 2013, but California’s Agricultural Labor Relations Board (ALRB) refuses to acknowledge the votes. 

Silvia Lopez’s Open Letter to Governor Brown

Silvia Lopez, veteran of Fresno-based Gerawan Farming and leader of anti-union movement, wrote an open letter to Governor Jerry Brown in the FlashReport on January 21, 2015.  In her letter, Silvia encourages Governor Brown to help the Gerawan farmworkers secure their civil liberties by asking his Agricultural Labor Relations Board (ALRB) to acknowledge the farmworkers’ votes to decertify the United Farm Workers (UFW) from their workplace:

Unions Escape Minimum Wage They Chain to Employers   

Minimum wage laws sound fair.  But are they? 

Minimum wage hikes increase labor costs for employers leading to fewer opportunities for workers: Employers faced with increased labor costs may not be able to hire as many workers as they need, hurting productivity and growth.

Nurses’ Union Acts Out, Walks Out

California hospitals, like hospitals everywhere, are facing a stronger than usual flu season.  Unfortunately, thanks to the National Nurses United (NNU), flu season is not the only battle they are waging.  The NNU has been using last year’s Ebola scare to justify strikes and work stoppages when nurses are needed most.  CWF’s Matt Patterson explained the union’s strategy in The Sacramento Bee: