Unions slam judge’s order delaying child care provider vote

Following a hearing Monday, Lindman issued a temporary restraining order in response to the lawsuit filed by the corporate conservative think tank, the Freedom Foundation of Minnesota, and Republican legislators. The order halts a vote among 4,300 child care providers that was scheduled to begin Wednesday.

The judge’s order means “it could be months before child care providers get to vote on whether or not they want to join a union,” Council 5 said in a statement posted on its website.

“In issuing a temporary restraining order, Judge Dale Lindman said the unionization issue should have gone through the Legislature. But taking our case to the Legislature would be futile. It’s led by the same Republican legislators whose lawsuit denies providers their right to vote and have a voice in decisions that affect their work and the families they serve.

“These are the same legislators who cut providers’ pay, who slashed quality improvement grants for child care, and who have ignored the 7,000 families waiting for child care so they can go to work. For six years, providers have been fighting for a voice in decisions that affect their profession and we will not give up fighting for Minnesota’s children and their parents.”

SEIU Local 284 released the following statement from Executive Director Carol Nieters:

“Minnesota’s family child care providers have been asking for a voice in St. Paul since 2005. Now, on the eve of their opportunity to choose a representative for meetings to support vital and threatened state programs, conservative corporate interests from the Freedom Foundation of Minnesota and their lapdogs in the Minnesota state Legislature have succeeded in throwing a wrench into the wheels of democracy.

“This sham lawsuit and their entire campaign of misinformation is just another example of the vicious attacks on working families by national corporate interests and the politicians who do their bidding. From Ohio to Wisconsin and New Hampshire to Minnesota, the story is the same: they will stop at nothing to deny working people the right to form a union for a voice in our democracy.

“Minnesota’s family child care providers, and the children they care for, deserve better than to have their voices muted by corporate zealots like the Freedom Foundation of Minnesota. We are disappointed that Judge Lindman did not take this opportunity to stop this lawsuit in its tracks.”

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