Freshman U.S. Rep. Francis Rooney, R-Fla., continued his fight to reform unions last week when he introduced the Union Integrity Act which, he insists, will protect whistle blowers and crack down on corruption.
Rooney introduced the bill on Wednesday and weighed in on why he brought it out on Thursday.
“Currently, union employees who uncover and report misconduct are vulnerable to retaliation by unions,” Rooney said. “This must be changed to protect these brave whistle blowers from corrupt union bosses who threaten them or unfairly fire them. Corruption in unions is rampant; for example, high-ranking officers at the United Auto Workers (UAW) have been caught taking bribes. Without whistle blower protections, rank-and-file union employees are afraid to report these actions for fears of losing their jobs.
“The Union Integrity Act will right this wrong and protect union whistle blowers from being fired for reporting illegal behaviors, the same protections government and private business employees enjoy. This will encourage workers to report corruption and stop union abuse of employees,” Rooney added.
The bill was sent to the U.S. House Education and the Workforce Committee last week. So far, Rooney has rounded up three fellow House Republicans--U.S. Reps. Paul Gosar of Arizona, Steve King of Iowa and Pete Olson of Texas--as cosponsors. There is no version of the bill over in the U.S. Senate.
Earlier in the year, Rooney introduced the House version of the “Union Transparency and Accountability Act,” a proposal championed by U.S. Sen. John Thune, R-SD, in recent years which would add more transparency in unions’ finances by bringing back rules ended by the Obama administration.
“The rules required unions to disclose financial interests in trusts that receive more than half of their income from unions, provide details on the buying and selling of assets, and provide information on potential conflicts-of-interest,” Thune’s office noted, insisting the legislation “would ensure officers act in good faith when spending members’ dues.”
“Transparency within unions is critical to root out corruption and hold union bosses accountable,” Rooney said when he unveiled the House version back in March. “Unfortunately, the Obama administration repealed rules that increased financial transparency within unions to protect workers from misuse of their dues. I am introducing the Union Transparency and Accountability Act to reinstate rules which will require unions and their leaders to submit detailed financial disclosures to prevent fraud and embezzlement.
“Further, I am encouraged that a priority in President Trump’s FY ’19 budget proposal is holding unions accountable,” Rooney added. “The Union Transparency and Accountability Act would assist in achieving the goal of protecting union members and empowering them to hold their local unions accountable.”
Rooney’s bill was sent to the Education and the Workforce Committee where it has lingered since March.
