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Flap’s Links and Comments for May 20th on 11:37

May 20, 2011 /

These are my links for May 20th from 11:37 to 11:38:

  • Union ‘card-check’ bill for farmworkers could put Jerry Brown in tough spot – In 1975, about five months into his first go-round as governor, Jerry Brown signed the Agricultural Labor Relations Act, which for the first time in U.S. history established for farmworkers in any state a right to form a union.

    Now, about five months into his second go-round, it appears Brown will face a second historic decision regarding farmworkers: whether to give them the ability, unprecedented in the private sector, to certify a union without the need for an election.

    After an Assembly vote earlier this week, both houses of the Legislature have now passed a bill that would allow agricultural workers to unionize if a majority of them sign cards attesting to their desire to do so. Under current law — including the National Labor Relations Act, which governs all other industries — a petition signed by a majority of workers triggers a secret-ballot election on whether to certify a union, supervised by government labor boards.

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    Read it all

    E-verify for farm workers and then mechanize the fields. Think it will ever happen?

  • Michael Steele in talks to join MSNBC – Former Republican National Committee (RNC) Chairman Michael Steele is in negotiations with MSNBC to be a political analyst, according to sources.

    Steele would be a prominent Republican voice on a network known for its liberal television hosts. If the deal goes through, he would join the cable network in time to offer commentary on the 2012 elections.

    Steele was ousted as head of the Republican Party in its January election. He signed on as a monthly columnist at The Root, an African-American news site owned by The Washington Post, earlier this month.

    The former chairman has been a cable TV presence on several networks since leaving the RNC. The New York Post reported in January that Steele was in talks with Fox News and CNN about possible gigs.

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    Guess he won't take Beck's spot on Fox.