(via AFSCMEIowa Blog)

DES MOINES – Today, AFSCME Iowa Council 61 filed a prohibited practice complaint (PPC) with the Iowa Public Employment Relations Board (PERB). The complaint was filed against Governor Branstad in response to his recent actions regarding state employee health insurance.

“Iowa law is clear. Health insurance plans and health insurance open enrollment for contract employees are topics covered under collective bargaining. It is a prohibited practice to make unilateral changes outside of the collective bargaining process which is outlined in Iowa law,” said AFSCME Iowa Council 61 President Danny Homan.

Governor Branstad knew that these actions were inappropriate, yet he chose to carry them out anyway. When Governor Branstad vetoed the Government Efficiency Bill (Senate File 2338) earlier this year, he admitted that health insurance matters belonged at the bargaining table. In his veto letter, Governor Branstad said that “employee benefits should be properly bargained rather than codified into law through legislation.”

“Under the Iowa Constitution, Governor Branstad is required to ‘take care that the laws are faithfully executed.’ It is highly disturbing that the Governor has chosen to flagrantly disregard Iowa’s collective bargaining laws. This continues his pattern of putting his own political vendettas ahead of his duty to follow the law. In 2011, he abused his item veto power by vetoing legislative instructions and then trying to keep the associated money; now he is choosing to bully public employees by violating Iowa’s collective bargaining laws,” added Homan.

Photo credit: AFSCME Polk County

Delegates to the 40th International Convention of the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees, AFL-CIO (AFSCME), today elected Lee A. Saunders to be president and Laura Reyes to be secretary-treasurer of the union representing 1.6 million public service workers.

Lee A. Saunders received 683,628 votes to 582,358 for Danny Donohue. In the race for secretary-treasurer, the union’s second highest ranking officer, Laura Reyes received 661,413 votes to 603,624 for Alice Goff. The election was administered by the American Arbitration Association.

“Both Laura and I are committed to our members and cherish this union,” said AFSCME President Elect Lee A. Saunders. “We had a vigorous and energetic campaign, but now the union will pull together to win victories for working families and our members all across this great country. We know that Wall Street and their allies are engaged in an all-out assault against our members and the services we provide. They know that AFSCME stands in the way of their efforts to destroy the middle class. We are united in our commitment to stand up for the men and women who care for America’s children, nurse the sick, plow our streets, collect the household trash and guard our prisons. Our members are a cross-section of America, not some elite group as our opponents try to claim. We are energized and ready for the battles ahead.”

This week all the major American labor organizations are offically endorsing the re-election of President Obama. In this interesting (while it lasts) conversation with the President of Local 1180 Communication Workers of America Arthur Chelitos and "In These Times" labor journalist Mike Elk, the issue of whether Big Labor is endorsing the President too soon, given his hit or miss track record on protecting the rights of American workers.

Across the United States, it appears that the right-wing attacks on mainstream values are being defeated by an outpouring of the new, more progressive "Silent Majority."

While most analysts are focusing on the numbers giving a "horse race" commentary on who is winning and losing with these results, the deeper message seems to be that Americans are neither as conservative nor as anti-worker as Republicans and political commentators told us.