SEIU Retreats: I-159 Getting Pulled from Ballot

Word on the street is that I-159 will be "voluntarily" pulled tomorrow today at a press conference. I-159 is the Service Employees International Union's (SEIU) attempt to unionize home health care workers in Montana through a ballot initiative.

This is good news since many Montanans would not have gotten the full story on this initiative before they were expected to vote it up or down. Signature gathers around the state for this initiative highlighted the initiative's increased funding for home health care services, background checks and hightened training standards for home health care workers. Few pointed out that the more than half of the initiative focused on new collective bargaining laws. It's a classic stealth campaign with a hidden agenda with big dollars coming from out-of-state to fund it.

Apparently there was pressure from I-155 (Cover All Kids - SCHIP) supporters, the administration, legislators and others to pull this from the ballot. I-155 is going to cost taxpayers more, and supporters of that initiative worried too much money was being requested on ballot measures at a time when state government will likely see leaner times. According to recent news articles, Helena could be seeing red ink next session after present law adjustments are factored into the next budget. Additionally, it didn't help that groups like AARP came out against the initiative. If you can't get the support of the people who will supposedly benefit from this initiative, it can be a hard sell.

This won't be the last SEIU attempts to grow in Montana. They have had some success unionizing a variety of different workers around the country, including strippers. Still, many workers are finding out that SEIU's heavy-handed style is not the kind of representation they want.