Highlights: Nebraska, really??, OH House to vote on SB 5; IN GOP downplay concessions while DEMS celebrate; MI Teachers might face more strict anti-strike legislation; WI judge halts anti-union bill, again…; outcry in New Hampshire over budget and layoffs; MN passes education overhaul; Alabama workers speak out on paycheck legislation; Florida moves to deregulate while compensation compromise moves forward in Montana; Full Scrooge Alert at http://dailyscroogealert.blogspot.com/

Nebraska

Anti-union mood moves to Nebraska's modest unions
The Seattle Times
State workers also contribute 21 percent to the cost of their health insurance premiums, compared with an average of 6 percent in Wisconsin, said Abel. Because Nebraska is a right-to-work state, unions cannot collect dues from workers who decline to

Ohio

Ohio House to vote on collective bargaining limits - The Indiana ...
COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) — An Ohio bill that would limit collective bargaining rights for 350000 public workers was poised for a vote before the

Unions vow repeal as bargaining bill nears passage

Even before the GOP-controlled House takes its final vote today, labor leaders and Democrats are gearing up to repeal the bill that dramatically limits the collective bargaining rights for 360,000 public workers.

Controversial Ohio collective bargaining bill heads toward final approval
Plain Dealer
"I think we're moving closer and closer to a right-to-work state where we eliminate everybody's right to join a union." Democrats also objected to a new provision regarding death benefits to survivors of police officers. They questioned how benefits

Indiana

Bosma: Democrats Embellishing "Victories"
93.1 WIBC Indianapolis
But the public collective bargaining bill is "very much alive and well." Bosma did say right-to-work is officially dead and Senate leaders had agreed to that awhile ago. Bosma also called the Democrats' march into the statehouse Mmonday afternoon a

Walkout winners, losers
Fort Wayne Journal Gazette
Proposals to expand charter schools, to limit teacher collective bargaining, to ban gay marriage, to expand gun rights and to set new limits on abortion rights are all still moving ahead. The walkout did indeed cause a time crunch

Minneosta

State GOP passes sweeping education overhaul
Minneapolis Star Tribune
Among the bill's most contentious policy provisions are multiple sections limiting collective bargaining rights for teachers. The bill would prohibit teachers from striking, restrict when they can negotiate contracts and repeal a penalty on school

Heavy equipment operators advocate for jobs
Workday Minnesota
Here in Minnesota, we have a Governor who will stand up for workers and help the middle class. ... Dayton said at the rally, “the right to work for nothin'

Michigan

MI: Group seeks labor e-mails by Michigan professors
A conservative research group in Michigan has issued a far-reaching public records request to the labor studies departments at three public universities in the state, seeking any e-mails involving the Wisconsin labor turmoil.

Tougher teacher no-strike law pushed

Michigan's school boards and administrators hope that proposed harsher penalties against striking teachers -- including revoking teaching licenses -- will take work stoppages off the table for good.

Price stickers to end; Union predicts hundreds of layoffs

One of the staples of the shopping experience in Michigan -- the individual price sticker -- will be consigned to the dustbin of history Sept. 1 when a new law signed Tuesday by Gov. Rick Snyder ends the state's item-pricing mandate.

Poll -- Snyder's approval rating slips

Gov. Rick Snyder's popularity has fallen, but a plurality of voters still approve of both him and his budget, according to a poll released today.

Wisconsin

Again...Wisconsin judge halts state from moving forward on law stripping collective bargaining right www.washingtonpost.com

Gov. Scott Walker’s administration insists a new law eliminating most collective bargaining rights for state employees has gone into effect.

Pennsylvania

Unions, not school districts, called on to collect dues
Danville News
“Unions do, very often, influence school board elections,” said Julian Stolz, executive director of Pennsylvania Right to Work. “A school board of directors

Corbett seeking a price for state liquor stores

Gov. Tom Corbett's administration took a preliminary step toward privatizing the sale of wine and spirits in Pennsylvania Tuesday, as an outside consultant began an analysis of the 620 state-owned and operated liquor stores.

New Hampshire

Right to Work is designed to hurt all wage earners

Original Article at http://www.seacoastonline.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20110330/OPINION/103300358/-1/NEWSMAP
Seacoastonline.com
If the Right to Work bill is so good for workers, why are corporations, the super wealthy and New Hampshire Republicans promoting it? Rep. Will Smith's letter to the editor, ("Right to Work bill would benefit workers in NH" Portsmouth Herald

House budget sees hundreds of layoffs

The state budget proposed by the state House could leave twice as many New Hampshire workers jobless as those who would be laid off under the governor's spending plan for the next two years.

Rally to denounce budget cuts

Organizers of a rally say they expect thousands of people to gather at the State House tomorrow to ask the Senate to reject a state budget under consideration by the House.

In this reckless climate, we can't afford to wait
Concord Monitor
Right-to-work, a misleading name for a policy that undermines the rights of workers to organize and collectively bargain for decent wages and benefits, passed the House already. New Hampshire has never been a right-to-work state; under Democrats and

Alabama

Alabama state workers join teachers in contesting ban on payroll deductions

Like the firefighters, the 17,000 members of the Alabama State Employees Association have jumped into the ongoing legal battle between public school teachers and Alabama's Republican lawmakers.

Alabama courts announce layoffs

The state judicial system plans to lay off 150 employees including juvenile probation officers, staffs for judges, law clerks and bailiffs, and could cut more if the system does not receive more money than Gov. Robert Bentley recommended for the coming year.

Montana

Work compensation compromise moves forward

The House is giving its blessing to a deal between Gov. Brian Schweitzer and Democrats to cut workers' compensation insurance rates universally seen as among the most expensive in the country

Florida

Deregulation bill would cost Florida $6 million in lost revenue, 100 jobs

As lawmakers seek to close a budget gap and eliminate "job-killing regulations," a vast deregulation bill would free auto repair shops from providing customers with written estimates that break down the cost of parts and labor. It would halt inspections of businesses that sell ice, and stop state reports on how charities use their contributions.

Maine

Greg Kesich: Labor mural controversy too tempting to ignore
Press Herald
We have received more letters to the editor about the mural, which affects only two-dimensional images of workers, than we have about right-to-work legislation, which would hurt real-live union members and their families. And the over-the-top award