Big Labor vs. the Boy Scouts
November 28th, 2009 Posted in Charity, Labor, Lobbying, VoluntarismYou’ve got to love organized labor. Unions arose during the messy process of industrialization. They struggled to improve the lot of working people at a time of dramatic economic change and persistent poverty.
Today unions seem to spend most of their time enriching themselves. Rather than asking for better pay for a good job performed, labor leaders attempt to put their competitors out of work. Including the Boy Scouts!
The Boy Scouts’ motto is: Be prepared. Who knew it meant preparing to defend themselves against purple-shirted union thuggery over community service? Kids, pay attention. This is a teachable moment for all of you on power, politics and Big Labor’s culture of corruption.
Last week at a city council meeting in Allentown, Pa., a top official of the local Service Employees International Union chapter ranted about 17-year-old Scout Kevin Anderson’s park cleanup work. Anderson devoted some 200 hours to the job in order to earn an Eagle Scout badge. He picked up trash and helped clear a 1,000-foot walking path with fellow members of Boy Scouts Troop 301 of Center Valley.
But SEIU’s Nick Balzano gave them hell instead of thanks.
Balzano disparaged altruistic efforts in city parks and asserted that “there is (sic) to be no volunteers” since his union members were laid off. He then issued a witch hunt threat: “We’ll also be looking into the Cub Scout or Boy Scout who did the trails. We may file another grievance on that.” Citing union rules, he gave the Allentown city council, the Boy Scouts and all potential volunteers an iron-fisted ultimatum: “None of them can pick up a hoe. They can’t pick up a shovel. They can’t plant a flower. They can’t clear a bicycle path. They can’t do anything. Our people do that.”
Perhaps it comes as no surprise that the labor leadership wants to make road kill of kids seeking to serve their communities. But how about the labor membership?