Public Employee Unions like AFSCME have been working overtime to organize private businesses that contract with governmental units. Businesses like home health care providers and child care providers are their number one targets. These businesses are typically small businesses with a handful of employees and would be nearly impossible to target without the help of union friendly regulations from state governments like California and Minnesota.
AFSCME in Minnesota got caught stealing from taxpayers to fund their organizing efforts in St. Paul as they were going after child care providers.
ST. PAUL, Minn. — Opponents of an effort to unionize family child-care providers have long suspected — but could never prove — that some taxpayer money designated for training was instead used for union organizing.
There now appears to be a smoking gun that supports their allegation — mandated disclosure forms, uncovered by Watchdog Minnesota Bureau, were filed with the U.S. Department of Labor.by the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees.
Two LM-2 annual financial reports filled out by AFSME Council 5 in 2011 and 2012 show $33,300 in taxpayer money from Ramsey County DHS — Department of Community Human Services — were categorized as an “organizing reimbursement” and apparently spent on organizing for a controversial child-care providers’ union.
In other words, Ramsey County paid AFSCME $33,000 to cover some “training cost” in 2011 and 2012. Just why the county would be paying to train AFSCME people is beyond us, but they did. The union then misappropriated the funds and used the “training” money to fund their organizing efforts against the private child care providers.
In the best tradition of unions, the AFSCME spokesperson was ready.
AFSCME spokesman Jennifer Munt declined to comment on the LM-2 reports or why county money designated for training and outreach purportedly went for labor organizing.
In other words, “Huh?”
It will be interesting to see if the county is able to get any real information about what’s going on here. It will be even more interesting to see if the state of Minnesota – Progressive Democrats top to bottom at the State level – or the federal government, through the US Department of Labor, will take any action.
In reality, this is just business as usual for the union, the only thing that’s unusual here is that they actually got caught with their hand in the cookie jar.
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