Catholic Bishops announce support for organized labor
BY PAUL TUCKER
THEUNIONNEWSSWB@AOL.COM
REGION, July 1st- On June 22nd the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, the Catholic Health Association, the American Federation of Labor and the Congress of Industrial Organizations (AFL-CIO) and several national labor unions, including the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME), the American Federation of Teachers (AFT) and the Service Employees International Union (SEIU) unions, jointly participated in a conference call to announce a landmark set of guilding principles on respecting the rights of workers in the Catholic Health Care system.
The principles, set out in the “Respecting the Just Rights of Workers: Guidance and Options for Catholic Health Care and Unions,” are the result of a 10 year dialogue among the groups aimed at finding common ground on the rights of workers to choose whether to form a union.
According to the groups, the new Guidance and Options document will serve as recommendations for nearly 600,000 workers in almost 600 Catholic hospitals nationwide.
Michael Milz, President of the Scranton Diocese Association of Catholic Teachers (SDACT) Union, which represented many of the teachers employed by the Diocese of Scranton until August 2007, believes the new guildlines reaffirms Scranton Bishop Joseph Martino has violated the principles of Catholic teachings toward organized labor.
The union represented nine of ten high schools and seventeen of the fourty-two grade schools of the Scranton Diocese until Bishop Martino restructured the system in 2007. The new system eliminated the small school boards and created four regional boards, which oversees the schools. The Scranton Diocese of Catholic Teachers Union previously had contracts with each Board of Pastors that represented each school. Bishop Martino implemented a “Employee Relations Program,” and busted the union. Bishop Martino would not recognize SDACT as the teachers bargaining representative and refused to negotiate for a new contract agreement when the previous pact expired in August 2007.
He cited the Pennsylvania Labor Relations Act (PLRAct), had no jurisdition over the Diocese therefore, he could simply ignore the desire of the teachers to be represented by the union.
The SDACT has won multiple arbitration victories for the failure of the Diocese of Scranton to pay wages owed to former union members under the terms and conditions of the previous contract agreements.
The new guidlines cover seven principles for employers when workers seek a union which includes:
• Respect;
• Access to information;
• Truthful communication;
• Pressure free environment;
• Expeditions process;
• Honoring employee decisions; and
• Meaningful enforcement of these principles.
Mr. Milz stated because of their willingness to engage in dialogue, the bishops and the leaders of Catholic health care displayed real courage and leadership and have set an example for all to follow. That coupled with the fact that Pope Benedict XVI recently noted that Catholic social teaching are strongly supportive of workers’ freedom to form unions, will Bishop Martino continue to act in the rogue fashion he has so far chosen.
