NFIB Applauds Signing of Bill to Stop Union Violence

NEWS RELEASE
CONTACT: Suzanne Stoltenberg 717-232-8582 x1 [email protected]

Small Business Applauds New Law Closing Loophole that Protected Bullies
Union members should not be exempt from criminal laws

HARRISBURG (November 5, 2015) – The National Association of Independent Business (NFIB) is grateful to Gov. Tom Wolf for signing HB 874 today, which ends an exemption for union members involved in a labor dispute from stalking, harassment and deadly threat laws. We applaud the hard work of Rep. Ron Marsico, Senator Scott Wagner and Senate Majority Leader Jake Corman spearheading its passage through the General Assembly.

"No one should be exempt from criminal law under any circumstance! Our small-business members with open shops have been harassed and stalked for years, especially in the Philadelphia area," said Kevin Shivers, Executive Director of NFIB Pennsylvania. "This exemption may have led to a belief by some union leaders that they had a free pass to commit even more serious crimes."

Recently, a number of members of Ironworkers Local 401 in Philadelphia were convicted or pleaded guilty to racketeering charges for a pattern of criminal behavior against companies that weren’t using union labor. One of the victims in the case is a small-business owner and member of NFIB who was building a Quaker Meeting House in Philadelphia. His worksite was vandalized, steel beams were cut with a torch and his crane was set on fire.

"It’s just wrong that union members have been harassing even the families of open shop company owners. Their children have been videotaped at the bus stop or at their sporting events. It’s disgusting to learn the pregnant wife of a company owner has been spit upon outside her home on a daily basis," said Shivers.

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NFIB is the nation’s leading small business association, with offices in Washington, D.C. and all 50 state capitals. Founded in 1943 as a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization, NFIB gives small and independent business owners a voice in shaping the public policy issues that affect their business. NFIB’s powerful network of grassroots activists sends their views directly to state and federal lawmakers through our unique member-only ballot, thus playing a critical role in supporting America’s free enterprise system. NFIB’s mission is to promote and protect the right of our members to own, operate and grow their businesses. More information is available online at www.NFIB.com/newsroom.