'Occupy The Super Bowl' Will Protest Indiana's Right-To-Work Law

"Occupy Wall Street" is heading to the Super Bowl.

Labor groups are teaming up with the Occupy movement for a series of high-profile protests in Indianapolis, where Super Bowl XLVI will take place this Sunday. The demonstrations are centered on Indiana's new right-to-work law, which critics say will hamstring unions and leave the state's workers in a vulnerable position.

The Indiana chapter of the AFL-CIO, one of the largest union federations in the country, will be passing out literature at and around Lucas Oil Stadium, the site of Sunday's game, according to ThinkProgress. The hotel workers' union UNITE HERE will stage a demonstration on Friday, and local Occupy activists are said to be planning a protest of their own -- an extension of the rabble-rousing that took place this past weekend, when union members and Occupy demonstrators joined forces for several marches and rallies around Indianapolis.

Indiana's new law, which makes it impossible for employers to require their workers to join a union or pay membership dues, is only the latest in a string of recent setbacks for American labor. Union membership has fallen off dramatically since the 1980s, and 2009 and 2010 saw especially steep declines in participation. (In what some analysts say is likely not a coincidence, paychecks for most Americans have barely grown since the 1980s.)

Over the past year, conservative politicians from Wisconsin to Arizona have proposed or passed laws that aim to reduce the power of organized labor, and Republicans at the federal level have been voicing steadily louder opposition to the National Labor Relations Board, claiming that the agency advocates for union members in a way that harms the interests of the business community.

Labor advocates say that Indiana's right-to-work law, which Governor Mitch Daniels signed on Wednesday, will erode the political and financial strength of unions in that state. Supporters of the law say it will attract more companies to Indiana and kick-start job growth. Indiana is the 23rd state with a right-to-work law on the books, and the first in the Rust Belt, the central-northeastern part of the country historically associated with heavy industry.

This weekend's protests are part of what right-to-work opponents call an ongoing campaign to get the law repealed. They also represent a continuation of the alliance between organized labor and the Occupy movement, groups that share an interest in preserving working- and middle-class power. The visibility of Occupy protesters has dropped somewhat in recent months, with more and more cities taking measures to dispel long-term encampments, though the movement is still conspicuously active in New York, D.C., Miami, Oakland and other places.

 

Comments

[Martha Fair]

07:47 PM on 02/12/2012

I just love the fact that the RepubliBillys are out in full force. Keep up the good work OWS. The fact that they feel threatened is a good sign. They all feel compelled to post about how insignificant the OWS is now. This shows you have had a very good impact on them and they are all running scared. Look how they are trying to talk down unions. Unions are gaining their strength back and this is why there is a huge conservative initiative to bust them. They know that if they win "Right to Work for Nothing" laws they can make the workers poor, desperate and willing to work for nothing like all the states they already control. Bottom feeder states which are uneducated and the poorest in the country. This is the legacy of the Republican Party in the US.

REPUBLICANS - KEEPING THEM POOR AND STUPID SINCE 1981

[rightorwrongihaveavoice]

07:19 PM on 02/10/2012

In rebuttal to dcbarton.

Unions don't force people to pay union dues.

All workers oppose “right to work" laws as it is not in their best interest, those that don’t would appear to be under informed. These “right to work" laws are backed by corporations in order to lower wages and standard of living for workers.

It amazes me those who claim to be working poor, working class and middle class continue to champion for the upper 1% and in essence championing against their own best interest.

The poor, working and middle class have lousy lobbyists, unlike the wealthy who have the best that money can buy.

[TexasTreader]

08:32 AM on 02/12/2012

Thou shalt not covet...

Unions no longer have the moral high ground. They PUBLISH a socialist agenda and hide their organized criminal roots. For some of us, that's 2 strikes too many.

[rightorwrongihaveavoice]

10:39 AM on 02/12/2012

Corporations, executives and the wealthy upper 1% can claim the moral high ground? I don't see the connection.

They ship our good paying jobs over to communist China in the name of unsustainable executive bonuses, they are have well publicized criminal activity, especially the banksters. They subvert governments to the detriment of the poor, working poor, working class and upper 1%. Not sure where the connection to moral is in these actions or how they can be percieved as correct or worth championing for.

It amazes me that those who claim to be working poor, working class and middle class champion for the upper 1% and in essence championing against their own best interest.

The poor, working and middle class have lousy lobbyists, unlike the wealthy who have the best that money can buy.

[Martha Fair]

07:18 PM on 02/12/2012

It's the Republicans that keep people poor through union busting and their so-called "Right to Work" law. The 10 poorest states in the US are all Republican controlled and MOST are already "Right to Work For Nothing" states. These same states have to be constantly subsidized because the working poor in those states are unable to even survive at the wages they are paid. The Republicans are the true parasites of the nation. The states they control have the highest food stamp total and welfare totals than any other. A vote for a Republican is a sure vote for poverty. Look it up on the US census bureau site.

[zmoonchild]

09:28 AM on 02/15/2012

The unions DO force people to pay union dues in Maryland and the District of Columbia. I had to pay over $1,000 a year to AFTRA just so I could continue to have a job.
I don't like the Unions, and I hope for the people of Indiana that it becomes a 'Right to Work' state just like where I live in Virginia.

[rightorwrongihaveavoice]

05:48 PM on 02/15/2012

It amazes me that those who claim to be working poor, working class and middle class champion for the upper 1% and in essence championin­g against their own best interest.

The poor, working and middle class have lousy lobbyists, unlike the wealthy who have the best that money can buy.

[freddyb]

11:04 AM on 02/10/2012

Why don't they protest the way their parents brought them up?

[99to1]

10:50 AM on 02/10/2012

now there is 23 right to work states ( no unions) that's 23 to 27.once they get to 50
( 50 states. No unions) we all will work for 2.50 an hour.pay attention and get involved!!

[TexasTreader]

08:34 AM on 02/12/2012

If you really are the 99%, why are unions losing ground so quickly?

[Martha Fair]

07:20 PM on 02/12/2012

Because the states that are the poorest are already Republican controlled and uneducated non-union states. They break the wages and the unions of others and then they turn them into poverty stricken enclaves and poison their minds with non-union propaganda so they can get people like you to work for them for nothing and be proud.

[karlhungus08]

05:33 PM on 02/09/2012

"Shame upon Indiana" for not forcing employees to join unions? Land of the free, huh?

[Martha Fair]

07:23 PM on 02/12/2012

Indiana...land of the dumb and getting more and more stupid everyday. This is what happens when you RepbliBillys try to home school. You build a legion of lemmings both ready and willing to take orders from your corporate bootlickers. The poorest states in the nation are all right to work states and Indiana will soon be joining their ranks.

[karlhungus08]

09:51 PM on 02/12/2012

Someone's angry, and misinformed. Citizens of right to work states actually have more spendable income than their counterparts in non right to work states, because their cost of living is lower.
But that wasn't my point. How is forcing an individual to join a labor union consistent with American principles of freedom?

[karlhungus08]

10:00 PM on 02/12/2012

But, if you want to have the pro's and con's discussion about right to work, take a look at these stats.
http://www.insideindianabusiness.com/contributors.asp?id=1189
From 1995 to 2005, right to work states had higher increases in real personal income, healthcare coverage, percentage of growth in non-farm employees, and lower poverty rates (adjusted for cost of living). Tough facts to argue against.

[soma77]

09:10 PM on 02/07/2012

Indiana now your state will spiral down. Nevada is a right to work state and it is less than a third world country. You only have to drive 4 blocks from the strip and you are in a back alley in North Korea.

[Kfrom WI]

09:39 AM on 02/07/2012

The GOP continue to divide and conquer and bring down america. They represent the greedy corporations. Government should represent the people. The people in government who have allowed the monopolies to control our government need to be voted out. Instead of unfair tax breaks to the rich lets build up america. Aftrer all it is money they made by over charging, slave labor and tax cuts from the poor and middle class.

[NY Guy]

05:52 PM on 02/06/2012

This occupy movement was relevant for about 2 weeks back in 2011.

[AskandThink]

03:47 PM on 02/06/2012

I need a new bumper sticker:

“What if they gave an ELECTION and EVERYONE came?”

[Jerry Bourbon]

01:34 PM on 02/07/2012

Then the Tea Party would win.

[AskandThink]

08:58 AM on 02/08/2012

Please pardon me.... as I LMAO!

Bring it!

[Martha Fair]

07:28 PM on 02/12/2012

the tea party is the Republican party..same exactly. There is no difference. The Koch bros used thier money to make you think there was so you could feel like you were some kind of rogue voter. LOL they sure got the bang for their buck off of people like you.

[Martha Fair]

07:28 PM on 02/12/2012

I need a new bumper sticker:

"VOTE REPUBLICAN - KICK ME!"

[itolduso]

01:38 PM on 02/06/2012

O.K. Indiana- get ready, the 'corporate locusts' will be flocking to your state, your Governor and legislature has lured them with a fatal blow to unions, they will sweeten the pot with YOUR hard-earned tax dollars- offering grants, incentives, impact-fee forgiveness, and massive tax breaks in exchange for 'promises' of good paying jobs.The thing is- the corporate-locusts NEVER keep those promises, ask Florida, where dozens of corporate boat builders ate up all the incentives and then abandoned the taxpayer financed and subsidized plants and factories for a better deal in N.C.. Ask the Catipiller workers in London, Ont. how they feel about the demands to give up their benefits and accept wage cuts of over 50% (despite productivity being up and record breaking profits), how they felt when the company simply shut down and moved out instead of negotiating with them. Understand that 'Right to Work' laws mean only that your children will be working for half of what you earned, they'll be working in unsafe, unfair, and unsecure work environments- that's what you get when you feed the locusts.

[MrStat1]

02:15 PM on 02/06/2012

That's just the way it works.

[itolduso]

02:34 PM on 02/06/2012

It doesn't HAVE to work that way. And if our 'Public Servants' were actually doing their 'duty' and working in the 'best interests of We, the People', then multinational corporate locusts would be treated like the 'harmful plague' that they are, and American businesses and individuals would again thrive through fair trade, a level playing field, and a reasonable regulatory framework that offers a better balance and protects our national interests.

[AskandThink]

03:46 PM on 02/06/2012

MrStat1,
Clearly that is the way it does NOT function.....long term!

[constitutional 1]

11:53 AM on 02/06/2012

INDIANAPOLIS | Sun Feb 5, 2012 6:13pm EST

(Reuters) - A small group of about 50 activists marched to Lucas Oil Stadium where the Super Bowl will be played later on Sunday to peacefully protest Indiana's new anti-union "right-to-work" law.

http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/02/05/us-nfl-superbowl-protest-idUSTRE8140OH20120205

[MrStat1]

02:15 PM on 02/06/2012

Well, there was a huge, massive protest rally. Obviously with 50 people the entire country is behind them!

[Martha Fair]

07:33 PM on 02/12/2012

The Republicans already control the poorest states in the nation and most are already "Right to work for nothing" states. No amount of joking or sugar coating will change that. A vote for Republicans is a vote to vote yourselves into poverty. Most RepubliCONS don't want to face that the stats don't lie. Idiots.

VOTE REPUBLICAN = KICK ME.

[Ashok Hegde]

08:50 AM on 02/06/2012

Why shouldn't a person have a right to choose whether they want to pay union dues?

[oldseadog]

09:26 AM on 02/06/2012

They do have a choice and it's don't work there. It's called a contract and the company signed it. If the company doesn't like it don't sign the contract.

[Ashok Hegde]

10:08 AM on 02/06/2012

This is also what gets us into a game of "bust the union". When management doesn't have the right to make independent contracts with a new hire, something is wrong. Next, you form other companies to handle the labor transaction. Or, you subcontract. Or, you move out of state. In some way, "bust the union" becomes inevitable. And, frankly many are ok with that. There's something fundamentally unfair about preventing a free laborer to offer his/her labor at a desired wage rate.

[Wow Unbelievable]

11:06 AM on 02/06/2012

For a party who is constantly yelling they are Pro-Choice... I'm so surprised they want to take someone's CHOICE of joining a union or not away from them.

[Ashok Hegde]

01:36 PM on 02/06/2012

No, i want the choice. But I want to make sure I have the choice to say "no", even if a Union exists. I want the same rights to a position at the firm, as well. Unions can exist, but they shouldn't block access.

[dcbarton]

12:35 AM on 02/09/2012

They aren't taking your right to join a union, they are only strengthening the rights of those who don't want to join a union to not be forced to do so. It's more politics than anything else. Democrats have figured out that union members are more likely to vote Democrat than Republican. Try reading Robert Creamer's "Stand up Straight", he spells the entire union movement clearly enough. Democrats can't control you if they can't get you into a position where your job depends on them. They need everyone in a union.

[bigjakeIII]

06:44 AM on 02/06/2012

where were they (OWS) at the superbowl??? no news no livestream, nothing.

[mrcontinental]

04:52 AM on 02/06/2012

I'm an expat and have been for a while now. Initially it was only temporary but after receiving the lowball offers of employment back stateside over the past few years I may never come back to work there because the salaries keep going down. The funny thing is that these recruiters think these are great salaries and then I tell them what I'm making now and they give up there pitch at that point. Good luck.

[Labor Party]

03:51 AM on 02/06/2012

US Chamber’s Lobbyists Hired Hackers To Sabotage Unions, Smear Chamber’s Political Opponents

http://www.commondreams.org/headline/2011/02/10-9

[Martha Fair]

07:37 PM on 02/12/2012

The poorest states are all Republican controlled and most are already "Right to Work For Nothing" states.

VOTE REPUBLICAN - KICK ME