Daycare Unions and Reps?

[Starburst]

The next time they come to your door get a hiden video camera or a tape recorder. Try to act as nicely and as professional as possible by saying 'no thank you, I am not interested' and if they start yelling at you or saying nasty things tell them 'I am too busy running my business right now and you are interupting my work' and if they continue tell them 'I don't appriciate being harrassed', ''you are scaring the daycare children', and 'Please leave my property and take me off your list. Your union is not welcome here and if you or any other union reps come back I will consider it tresspassing and I will call the police.' If you catch them saying anything critical of you or your business you can probably take it to the local police station and tell them that a group is harassing you at your home/business.

Some unions are really janked up and can really make people act like they are more privilaged. When they had that union strike at Nob Hill at the end of last year, my local one I heard that many of them were spitting and grabbing costumers who crossed the picket line. You know what they were fighting for? Apparently because of the bad economy the company had to make some cut backs on employee spouse pension benifits after the age of 62, a cut in some health benefits, and apparently they were used to getting paid 2x more their normal wages for working on Sundays (all year; not just holidays)! Heck in this economy most people are happy to just have a job, my mom worked at Denny's for over 20 years she worked days and nights and weekends as a manager and a waitress many times for 12-16 hour shifts (always full time). She never got paid 2x her normal pay and she never had benefits! sometimes she had to work two jobs for us to get by! And yet when the strike was over they got rid of all the scabs (that were willing to work for them at less pay) they took everyone of the union brats back- even the people who spat and threw things at customers! If I was a costumer I wouldn't want to go back there knowing they are re-hiring those tyrants! (I don't shop there really because it's too expensive and there is a Safeway on the same street) The only reason I know all of this is because my mom did work as a scab during this time so she got all the insider details. I am not saying all unions are bad- but sometimes they can be because they make people think they are indisructable.

[DCMom]

Minnesota providers, if you do not want this you need to let your legislators know. I have written to all of my district legislators plus the people who are introducing the bill. Unfortunately, these meetings are always held while I am working ~ so this is all I can do without putting out 8 families.

Rather than trying to re-type all of the information, I am copying and pasting and email forwarded from our county association. All I can say is, act now. With the current make up of our state government (DFL in control of the house, senate AND governor) there is not a more perfect time for this to be passed. It nearly was implemented by executive order last time; a judge ruled that it needed to go to the legislature. Well, here we are.

In case you can't tell, I'm not for the union



Hello colleagues,

Child care unionization is now being pushed through with new legislation.

http://www.senate.leg.state.mn.us/members/member_emailform.php?mem_id=1192&ls=

This bill would allow the union to exclusively represent all providers who accept children on the subsidy program. If the union collects more than 50% of the cards, many of which they have already collected over the last seven years, they will be counted as votes and providers will be denied the right to a secret ballot election. This bill also groups licensed child care professionals with unlicensed family, friend, neighbor providers which means that they can collect enough cards using unlicensed providers to force those of us who are licensed to become unionized. If they are not able to collect 50%, they can collect 30% and then get a secret ballot election in which over half the licensed child care professionals would be excluded from voting, even if they are willing to accept families receiving child care assistance. This vote would also include unlicensed FFN providers so they could easily tip an election in the unions favor.

I am urging you today to write the authors of this bill in the senate and urge them to withdraw this legislation. It was abundantly clear the last time this was tried that providers and the public did not support this and did not want union representation. Please consider forwarding this email to all licensed providers you know. Let's show them that we don't need a union or anyone else to speak for us, we can speak for ourselves.


Pappas's email form

http://www.senate.leg.state.mn.us/members/member_emailform.php?mem_id=1046&ls

Bakk's email form

http://www.senate.leg.state.mn.us/members/member_emailform.php?mem_id=1003&ls

Haydens email address

[email protected]

Eaton's email form

http://www.senate.leg.state.mn.us/members/member_emailform.php?mem_id=1192&ls

One more thing, if you haven't already done so, please consider signing a deauthorization card. These can be used to counter a signed union card and can also be used down the road to show you were not in support of unionization which could help us in recovering dues taken from child care assistance payments.

[Willow]

DCMom - do you have information on where to get a deauthorization card?

Fantastic information, I am forwarding it on to all the providers I know!



ETA - I just went crazy emailing not only the four you listed but loads of others on the senate members list as well

We'll see if I get any sort of response from anyone :P

Going to keep tabs here....
Received an automated response from:
Senator David Hann :P

[Lucy]

They are saying here for the stars system that in order to receive a higher pay for state children it will depend on how many stars you have. Also, it may possibly be if you don't want to participate in the stars program you can't accept state children.

That's fine with me!!! I don't want to be in their stinking union, I DON'T give a hoot about the dumb stars program, and to tell the absolute truth, I really don't want to accept state paid families.

I detest all the government interference. Having health and safety rules, I get. All the other b.s. can just go away.

[Lucy]

I never understood the push to unionize - I am my own business/boss. How are they going to shorten my hours or make me more money? Essentially it's just another agency taking money out of our pockets. :confused:

That was my initial thoughts too. But they they are more of a lobby group the way I see it. They did get one thing for us in my state. They made it so my First Aid Class was free. Whoopeeee.

[Lucy]

The next time they come to your door get a hidden video camera or a tape recorder.

Hidden?? Heck.... have it in your hand where they can clearly see it, and film them from the minute you open the door. That'll intimidate 'em!!! If they ask why you are doing it, tell them that you have been harrassed by them twice, and you want proof this time if it happens again.

[Willow]

I detest all the government interference. Having health and safety rules, I get. All the other b.s. can just go away.

We were obviously separated at birth lovethis

[Lucy]

We were obviously separated at birth lovethis

::::::

[Angelsj]

So who are these people, because everyone I talk to wants nothing to do with unionization (me included), yet it just keeps going...like the energizer bunny.
Who, exactly, is pushing for it?

[Childminder]

We were forced into a union here in MI a few years ago and dues were taken from our state subsidy checks. They got us a 1% raise and the dues amounted to 1.15% of our checks so I made less after they got us the big raise.

A couple of years later they were disbanded(is that the right word?) and as far as I know there is a class action suit in Federal court that is spose to be trying to get our monies back.

I've been told that the unions, ours was the UAW(United Auto Workers), have lost so many members and strength because of the decline of the auto industry that they were doing what they could to increase members. That and they were "in bed" with politicians. All I know was that they pissed off a lot of people.

[Play Care]

That was my initial thoughts too. But they they are more of a lobby group the way I see it. They did get one thing for us in my state. They made it so my First Aid Class was free. Whoopeeee.

They did have grants avalible for the first time in years last year - I imagine everyone's dues paid for that But as for any other policy, I don't see where they helped. Our licensing period went from every 2 years to 4, but that was to allow more pop in visits...We used to be able to get a waivers for certain regs (if you had two under two and one dc parent was expecting and it was going to be a short period where you had 3 under 2 comes to mind) but then they said no more- causing in homes to lose clients who wanted to keep their kids together. It seems as if most of the things that have happened since the Union haven't been as beneficial as they would like us to believe.

[Play Care]

So who are these people, because everyone I talk to wants nothing to do with unionization (me included), yet it just keeps going...like the energizer bunny.
Who, exactly, is pushing for it?

In my area there is one in home dc provider who is on the "team" and is very union. When the union was "voted" in a few years ago some other providers who hadn't realized that they would be losing money complained. She went on the news and told them the time to have complained was before the union. Most providers are busy people and since meetings and visits are always during the work day it's a bit hard to find the time - and when I was visited they never mentioned how they would be taking money out of our pockets. Funny how that happened

I *do* think that PROVIDERS should organize and try to lobby the state agency especially when some of the regs are designed to make in home dc's more and more like centers/institutions or regs are changed based on things that happen in illegal dc's.

[Sprouts]

Unions make sense for some industries, but since most of us have our own business and make our own hours and rules, i dont see why we need a union?

I guess it could help when it comes to getting payments from government agencies or people who get paid through universal Pre-K. It does help to have a group speak on your behalf, but from the way they are doing this sounds HORRIBLE.

I am in NY and I haven't had this. Ive heard of VOICE, but dont know much about it. Anyone else from NY here?

[Blackcat31]

DCMom - do you have information on where to get a deauthorization card?

Providers who signed a card and do not wish to be automatically enrolled as a union member should request their card back.

AFCSME/Council 5
Attn: Adrienne Kern
300 Hardman Avenue South
Suite #2
So. St. Paul, MN 55075
Phone: 651-450-4990
Fax: 651-455-1311

You may email Adrienne directly to request your card back at:
[email protected]

http://childcareunioninfo.weebly.com/that-card-you-signed.html

**********************************************************

Found out last night that in order to participate in the Parent Aware stars rating program, providers MUST have atleast one family on CCAP.

and.......

although the union (if passed) will be voluntary, union dues will be taken automatically from CCAP payments so basically taking a family who is using CCAP will automatically make you part of the union.

Nice how that ties together.

Providers participating in Parent Aware will be the providers our CCR&R recommend when families call looking for child care services.

Families who choose providers who participate in Parent Aware will also receive tax incentives (?) and be eligible for scholarships to help pay for child care all through the Parent Aware program.

Participation may be voluntary and/or optional but they sure aren't making it easy to NOT participate. *sigh*

[Country Kids]

That's fine with me!!! I don't want to be in their stinking union, I DON'T give a hoot about the dumb stars program, and to tell the absolute truth, I really don't want to accept state paid families.

I detest all the government interference. Having health and safety rules, I get. All the other b.s. can just go away.

The whole thing with the STARS program on the meetings I've gone to, if you don't participate you will only receive a 1! The only way to get a 2 is to committ to the program then I think you have so long to get above that before going back to a 1.

I've already received the 1st revision on it last week. I'm curious how many revisions before summer of 2014.

My concern/question is why do all the stuff for the STARS if we are going to end up with Universal Preschool. No one here (in my area) seems concerned with it though so they want to really get the STARS program going.