Alito's Rulings Slam Workers at Every Turn
November 4, 2005
From family and medical leave rights to fair wages and job safety, the
stakes for workers and unions are enormous as the Senate takes up
President Bush's nomination of ultraconservative Judge Samuel Alito for
the U.S. Supreme Court.
Alito, whom Bush chose after conservative leaders brutalized original
nominee Harriet Miers for not being far right enough, has a long history
on the Third Circuit Court of Appeals for ruling in favor of government
and corporations against individuals.
"On issues of equality, workers' rights and the power of our elected
representatives in Congress to improve Americans' lives, Judge Samuel
Alito has repeatedly put basic rights at risk," AFL-CIO President John
Sweeney said.
In an FMLA case in 2000, a three-judge panel that included Alito
unanimously ruled that workers couldn't sue their employers if they were
denied leave under the federal Family and Medical Leave Act. The decision
was overturned by a Supreme Court majority that included Justice Sandra
Day O'Connor, whose seat Alito is hoping to fill. In the case of a female
hotel worker who was demoted after lodging sexual harassment charges,
Alito's court reversed a lower-court decision that favored management. Of
12 judges, Alito was the lone dissenter, saying there should be a greater
burden on workers who make such claims. The majority said that Title VII
of the 1964 Civil Rights Act, on which the case was based, "would be
eviscerated if our analysis were to halt where (Alito's) dissent
suggests."
Here are thumbnails of some other troubling anti-worker decisions, as
compiled by lawyer and labor activist Nathan Newman, writing on the
Talking Points Memo website.
*** In RNS Services v. Secretary of Labor, the court rejected the claim
of a mining services company that it wasn't subject to worker safety laws
under the Federal Mine Safety and Health Act. Dissenting, Alito voted to
exempt the facility from the safety regulations.
*** In Reich v. Gateway Press, the court majority found that a newspaper
chain had violated federal minimum wage and overtime laws. Alito sought
to interpret the law in a way that would have excluded the newspaper
workers from the law's protections.
*** In an assault on the rights of government employees, Alito voted in
the minority in Homar v. Gilbert, saying that governments do not violate
due process rights of employees when they suspend them without a hearing
and without pay. He rejected the majority's view in favor of at least a
minimal hearing, declaring that a mere accusation justified loss of pay
and employment.
*** In Caterpillar v. UAW and Local 786, the Third Circuit upheld a
system in which the company and union negotiated for union stewards to
process grievances over violations of the contract, a relatively common
practice that had been in place for over 18 years. In the wake of a
strike, the company challenged the legality of the system - even though
it had originally agreed to it - and tried to have it overturned by the
courts. The Third Circuit rejected the company's argument. But again in
dissent, Alito stood with the company.
*** In Luden's Inc. v. Local Union No. 6 of the Bakery, Confectionery &
Tobacco Union, the majority held that the employer's duty to arbitrate a
disagreement over work conditions survived the contract termination
through an implied contract agreement between the parties, but Alito
ruled against the union.
http://cwa-union.org/news/WhatsNew.asp?ID=759
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