Rep. McNulty: Union Comes to Collect

New Propaganda Puts Spotlight on Union Demands for Higher Pay and Benefits

State Rep. Frank McNulty, R-Highlands Ranch, today issued a sharp rebuke to a new missive issued by Colorado WINS, the union that bargains for Colorado state employees.

“We are in the midst of a recession and facing a massive state budget shortfall and the union is blind to it as they continue to push their Chicago-style politics,” McNulty said. “As a former civil servant myself, I know that our state employees take pride in what they do for our state, and while union bosses are busy whining and issuing politicized reports, Colorado’s state employees are going above and beyond to serve their fellow Coloradans, and I thank them for that. The real issue here is that Gov. Ritter set the stage for increased labor tensions when he granted union bosses access to state government.”

McNulty is referring to an executive order signed by Gov. Bill Ritter that granted unions access to state government employees. Touted by Ritter as an efficiency measure, Republicans at the time warned that the move would eventually result in increased costs to Colorado taxpayers.

“Colorado taxpayers are already paying the bill for increased bureaucracy in the form of higher fees and taxes and car registration fees,” McNulty said. “Now we can thank our governor for an impending union-taxpayer showdown that threatens to hurt state employees and put state services at risk.”

According to a report in the Denver Business Journal, last June, Colorado state employee union officials went before the Joint Budget Committee asking the committee members to boost wages and benefits for state employees by eliminating important economic development measures the state offers.

“It has been my experience that Colorado state employees will do whatever it takes to get the job done,” McNulty said. “Unfortunately, union bosses have placed them in a bad situation.”