Shadowbosses: Government Unions Control America and Rob Taxpayers Blind

by Mallory Factor, Elizabeth Factor (Primary Contributor)

The labor union movement is now firmly entrenched in American government--federal, state, and local--and is hell-bent on expanding its sway over the nation's political and economic life. This densely researched, compellingly argued book exposes how public-sector unions and their leaders--the "shadowbosses" of the title--are destroying the rule of law, stealing elections, degrading government services, paralyzing public education, and pushing the United States into a grim future of insolvency and decline. Authors Mallory and Elizabeth Factor disturbingly reveal the unions' plan to exert control over Social Security and disability recipients, veterans, and every other group that receives government money. A chilling exposé, SHADOWBOSSES is also a call to citizen action against those who really hold the power in America today.

Genres: Politics, Nonfiction, Education, History, Economics

336 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2012

Reviews

[Manny · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is a very well written book. Although it is a bit partisan, you can read it and make your own conclusions as to the the benefits or hindrance of public sector unions. This book is controversial in the sense that it covers a subject that is considered a third rail by many folks in this country. I know I will get flack for my comments but will try to be as non-partisan as is possible.

Mr. Factor takes on the idea of public sector unions and the harm they have done and are in-line to do. I once read somewhere, a quote that was credited to, strangly enough, FDR that said something like, Unions are a monopoly on the worker and the company. I will start by saying that in NO WAY, am I accusing the true workers that are union members.

In this book, Mr. Factor exposes the differences between private sector and and public sector unions. The private sector unions are somewhat, if that is possible, less pernicious than that of the public sector. The reasons given in this book will shock you as to the crony-ism involved in public sector unions. A politician looking to get elected, is funded by hard cash (Donations directly to the campaign) and soft cash (the phone banks, get out the vote efforts etc). Then once the politician is in a position of power, the unions go in to either redo exiting contracts or unionise new sectors of government and even non-government workers. If the politician decides after he/she is elected to do the right thing, the union will turn on them and get them out of office by supporting the challenger.

Although I try not to trash Obama and try to give him the benefit of the doubt (although most of time, I end up with egg on my face), I will say that the unhealthy relationship between Obama and the labor unions is scary.

The book compares and contrasts the Union states and the non-union states and their financial statuses of the respective states. The pernicious "check off" provisions and forced union membership is egregious. In some states, the unions working with bought politicians managed to unionise the home care people of that states without even allowing them to choose if they even wanted a union. One day, they received a letter in the mail saying that from this day forward, they [the care givers] would need to pay the unions the dues. In other states, you are discriminated upon and your first amendment right of freedom of association (not implicit in the constitution but is implied and was upheld by the supreme court) is trampled on by forcing you to belong to a Union as a requirement for your employment. Some states allowed for a substitute teacher that only taught one day in school to receive a full teachers pension.

In addition to that, the book covers the practice of "spiking" where the worker will be afforded massive amounts of overtime during the last three years of their employment. Since the pension is calculated using the last three years of work, the worker's pensions end up costing millions more.

I have been against unions since day one. They never made sense to me even as a young electrician helper when I was urged to join a union. I really don't get it. However, with that being said, I know some folks understand it and support it. For a private company or a publicly traded company that wants to have unions or allow unions that is fine with me because at the end of the day, they are beholden to the board, investors and shareholders. If the CEO makes a bad contract with the unions and makes the company lose money, he/she will be held responsible likewise, if the company makes bad choices with the unions, they could face bankruptcy. With the government though, its a bit different. The "CEO" do not really care where the money comes from, since the cities cannot really go bankrupt, this forces them to continue to give in to the union's demands or face risks to the public (e.g. Police, Fire striking while no one is available or rather willing to do anything).

Anyone who can, in their minds except the unions bosses to have the monopolistic powers they do while criticising the corporations of the same is at best disingenuous. The books is a good book and truthfully, I recommend you read it even if you are a union supporter. I know that my views on the subject may taint the review, but I tried to read the book with an open mind.

[Malin Friess · Rating 3 out of 5]

I practice as a dentist for the VA in New Mexico. I am a federal worker but I did not join the Union (despite them giving out pizza and a fresh fifty dollar bill to anyone who would join during our first week of orientation). The facts about Unions cited by Mallory Factor are interesting:

1/3 of federal workers are unionized
2/3 teachers are unionized
Federal workers earn 30-40 percent more in salary and benefits (not true in dentistry) than private workers
Federal workers earn up to 10 weeks paid vacation per year akin to working a four day work week (that is nearly true for me if you count annual leave, sick leave, and holidays)

Union CEO's cash in..(Dennis Van Roekel president of the National Education Association makes 400 k)

Teacher quality is the leading driver of student achievement. Perhaps the number one way to improve student achievement would be to fire the bottom 5-10% of teachers. Its nearly impossible to fire bad teachers. Unin bosses like Randi Weingarten (NYC) won't let it happen (he is said to defend a dead body in the classroom. That's his job." Sad for our kids. It can take 2-5 years in New York to fire a teacher (even teachers with history of sexual harassment, corporal punishment). Do you remember how the talented Michelle Rhee (chancellor of the Washington DC schools) was run out of town after she threatened to end Tenure? When Bobby Jindahl advocated for vouchers for kids to get into better schools and out of bad public schools, the Union said how could parents know what to do? Offensive..Jindahl rightly suggested..that poor parents can't figure out what is best for their own children. Is it any wonder homeschooling has increased 74% to 2 million kids in the past decade?

We spend 10 k per year on school per elementary child. How come private schools can do it better for less?

Government pensions are destroying State's finances. A 49 yo retiree in NJ paid 124 k into his pension for health care and was slated to receive 3.8 million out Gov. Chris Christie noted.


The Tide is turning. Politicians like Wisconsin governor scott Walker and NJ governor Chris Christie took on the Union's and won: making the moral argument that it is not fair for our kids to have to pay off this future debt. Unionization rates in the public sector are dropping just slightly.

Ignoring common sense. A volunteer was working as a school crossing guard because as a retiree he liked protecting and talking with the children. Once the Union caught news of this they insited that he be replaced by a $12.75 cent union paying crossing guard.

3 stars..not a particularly entertaining book. But educational. Maybe better as a reference book. I enjoyed the chapter on schools (I think things have changed since I attended great public schools in Logan Utah). I didn't enjoy the chapers about ACORN.

I suppose I am biased as I am not the "little guy." I know that some of my supervisors have their hands tied by the Union when employees do not show up to work, claim disability, etc. Ultimately it hurts the Veteran's who get less care or students who get an inferior education or our citizens who get a compromised police force.

[Naomi · Rating 5 out of 5]

I can tell the reader of this review that the FAR left and union leadership are going to HATE this book so watch for reviews, such as one that is already on Goodreads, that PAN this book or simply hide under a rock and give it one star. The author is bringing information on a topic that is critical for the American public to understand, as it effects every nook and cranny of Americans lives. Told in concise, well documented and researched points, as well as easy to grasp concepts, this book will leave readers with mouths open. For the unions and the government bots that support them...It will be like cockroaches scattering when light is shined upon them.

Need insight into the psyche of unions:

Some of the greatest lines of the book:

"When school children start paying union dues, that's when I will represent the interests of school children." Albert Shanker, American Federation of Teachers

"Steve Jobs reportedly told President Obama shortly before his death that until the teachers unions can be broken,there is almost no hope for educational reform."

"The key to union wealth and power is FORCED dues contract provisions, which are permitted in twenty seven states and practiced in, at least, 22 states" Is your state one of them that bows down and kisses the asses of union thugs leaving the politicians and union leadership richer on the backs of American workers and taxpayers?!?!

" The ultimate check on the growth of the public sector unionism is municipal insolvency" Eileen Norcross (sound like issues hitting cities and states in the US?)

[Gautham Guganesh · Rating 5 out of 5]

As someone from another country, it's quite surprising to see such notorious unions in America. The author has presented everything for us to see objectively and to draw our own conclusions.

[Joseph Serwach · Rating 5 out of 5]

Bring up labor unions and we tend to think of the kind of union I voted to join in 1990: a voluntary guild of workers at a private company. We had an open shop so both management and guild members made cases to me and I joined on the first day I was eligible to do do, ultimately becoming a committeeman for our local.

Such unions work in a free market, Mallory Factor notes, because of the free market: both the workers and the employers recognize they need to compete in a global market, providing checks and balances on each other.

However, Factor also points out something most Americans don't recognize: today the majority of union workers are government workers who have no competition to worry about. Government, after all, is a monopoly as are many union shops.

We think of collective bargaining as a bargaining contest with labor on one side and management on the other (I've been in such sessions).

But Factor notes that in the government sector the room is very different: often, you have labor representing the workers facing managers whose bosses were elected by unions, meaning unions control both sides of the bargaining sessions. And the only people not represented in these sessions? The voters.

Factor shows compellingly, how unions have found the most success in the government sector where they can build a monopoly that only now is becoming evident as states and municipalities tetter on the edge of bankruptcy after decades of piling up contracts that are unsustainable.

He quotes a U.S. Labor official saying most people think of the labor movement as a wing of the Democratic Party, when in fact, the Democratic Party is often a wing of the labor movement, the main source of funding for elections and Democratic officials. He further shows how just about a third of union budgets go to the representative work we expect and assume unions focus on. Two-third of their budgets are focused on political activities.

Consider the debate over Obamacare: early on, unions receiving better benefits than would be possible under a government plan were exempted. Meanwhile, unions have found a way to represent health workers receiving government funding like "home health care workers'' (often families taking care of a disabled child in their own home). Such plans were rejected by courts and voters in Michigan but remain on the books in other states.

Factor's book explains many of the root issues in numerous political debates at both the national and state level.

[David Griffiths · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the scarriest book I have ever read. It should be required reading for all Americans that do not believe in the "Right-to-Work." It reads like a crime story. Millions of Americans are forced to pay union dues that are then used by unions to support the Democratic Party. The Democratic Party then Provides all-out support for unions. It gives the democrats a huge advantage.

An example: One of the Presidents stated agenda items is to provide federal money to increase the number of teachers throughout the land. The teacher's unions want this because more teaches means more dues and more power. The unions also want less students per class so that schools will have to hire more teachers. We as tax payers would have to pay for these extra teachers whether they are needed or not.

Our history shows that unions have done a lot of good in the past, but the unions of today are power hungry political machines that have taken the power to tax away from congress and given it to themselves.

[Audrey · Rating 4 out of 5]

If you need higher blood pressure, here you go!

The writing style is very conversational and easy to read quickly. If you don't have time to read the whole thing, you can read the intro and conclusion and the handy summary at the end of each chapter. It's very skimmable that way.

This book exposes the cronyism of government employee unions. These are not the unions that fought for safe working conditions and things like that -- these are giant unions that use members' dues to elect, er, buy politicians, who then reward the union bosses with money and political favor in a vicious cycle that leaves the actual union members and taxpayers on the hook in a classic case of taxation without representation.

It's heavily critical of SEIU, AFL-CIO, the NEA and several others for their bullying, corruption, and thuggery. Citations, references, and witnesses back up the claims. This was published around 2012. It's pretty clear now why legislators are fighting things like Uber and school choice programs and pretty much anything that involves free will.

[Waven · Rating 3 out of 5]

I have to admit, I was disappointed when I first saw a Fox News personality’s blurb across the top of the book’s cover. But though it is quite partisan, this book still offers a substantial (and sometimes provocative) look at labor unions, past and present. (I found it especially interesting in light of the Chicago teacher's strike in September.) Questionable references are present but not frequent enough to undermine the basic points covered in the writing. There is also a lot of repetition – a good editor could likely halve its length – but perhaps it was used as a tool to help drive home the arguments being made. I would read views from the opposition and further research the topic before taking a stance on it, but all in all I found this a worthwhile and interesting read.

[Jim · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a scary book and very enlightening. It reads like an organized crime novel but it is terrifyingly true, and it's happening now. "Government employee unions and politicians have been working on growing our government for decades. The growth of our government may be in the unions' interest, but it endangers us as a nation."
This is a chilling and well documented expose on how these government employee unions threaten workers' freedoms, free and fair elections, our children's educations, and our American way of life.

[Paul Whitten · Rating 5 out of 5]

Shadowbosses is a wonderfully written book that reads like a crime novel. The crazy thing is that it is all true! It tells how government unions have manipulated our government and used dues from its members to control elections as well as politicians themselves. Mallory Factor did a great job with this book and it deserved to be on the New York Times Bestseller!
http://www.shadowbosses.com/
http://malloryfactor.com/

[Elizabeth · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is the only book I have seen critical of government unions. The information is frightening and, in my experience with unions in a non-forced union state, very true. It is not the most interesting read and probably a little confusing for those who have no experience in this area, but it is very, very informative, and all taxpayers should know about this.

[Gary Jannarone · Rating 5 out of 5]

Sometimes I regret taking my head out of the sand. This is not a happy book. The corruption of the union leadership is astounding and frightening. The billions of dollars siphoned from the arteries of the taxpayers and transfused to corrupt politicians is incredible. Makes "Big Oil" and Wall Street seem like amateurs.

[Cinnamon · Rating 2 out of 5]

It was a decent book for a required reading source.