Is it for Governor? Nope. How about Congressman? Not this time. OK, Secretary of State? Wrong again. Hmmm, maybe Senator? Wait, he already  lost that one. Dog catcher? It’s kind of his style, but a hired position. Give up? Fine, it’s a UNION election!

That’s right!  After almost a year and a half of blocking by Matt, Kris Hansen and their loyal stooge attorney, Derek Oestreicher, the workers at the State Auditor’s office will finally get to decide if they want a union to back them up or continue to be used and abused by Rosendale and his party appointees. The MPEA, now part of Montana’s mega union, the Montana Federation of Public Employees, filed paperwork to hold a union election way back in October of 2017. According to emails received with a bevy of documents attached, the Rosendale team has spent a lot of time and even more money to shut down this uprising.

You’d probably have to be an attorney to understand half of this stuff, but in a nutshell the MPEA said a group of these workers should be in the union and believe it or not Rosendale wanted everyone at the Auditor’s in the union. He must have figured he had the votes, or could coerce the votes, to take away their seat at the table. After sifting through all the legalese and union speak it looks like the governing board that decides such things for public employees ordered an election in October of last year, that would be an election that is just now happening. What was the hold up? Hansen and Oestreicher asked the district court for a temporary restraining order on Black Friday claiming they would suffer ‘irreparable harm’ if workers got to vote. Huh? Haven’t workers and employers been working this very thing out for decades and in some cases, centuries?

It also looks like Rosendale, the self proclaimed fiscal conservative, has spent almost $100,000 in just two years to battle with his own employees. Grievances, wage claims, harassment claims, settlement payments and who knows what else. It’s no wonder folks aren’t happy there, at least the ones who’ve showed the fortitude to stick it out rather than seek greener grass elsewhere. Of course

not everyone at the Auditor’s office is unhappy. Hansen has managed to hire her own kind to replace employees who have either quit or been fired. And then there’s her living situation in which she’s shacked up with one of her paralegals from the office. Nothing inappropriate here, move along.

To say the least, all is not well at the Auditor’s office and workers could use some help.  Despite all the promises from management, they won’t get it in house.  Voting yes for a union and then starting on the long battle to negotiate a contract will be nothing less than a long haul given Rosendale and Hansen’s hatred towards anything that does not represent what they want.  This administration is not concerned with good government and is instead focused on back scratching, ideology and in Matt’s case, which office he can get elected to next and exit stage right from the Auditor’s office.  And who’s left to mop up all the damage?  Those same workers who were there the day after November 8, 2016. 

So to the workers at the Auditor’s office, mark ‘YES’ on that ballot and take back your worth and your work!

 

TGTJ

‘Maybe all men got one big soul ever’body’s a part of.’