It's buried under a bunch of stuff about the Dean campaign, but CBS eventually gets to the story:
Statistics do not show a decrease in labor law enforcement since President Bush took office. The Occupational Health and Safety Administration says in fiscal 2003 it cited more than 83,700 employers, an 8 percent increase over the previous year. The National Labor Relations Board issued 543 decisions in fiscal 2003, compared to 398 in fiscal 2000.
But under Mr. Bush, labor has lost battles over overtime rules and collective bargaining rights for employees of the Department of Homeland Security.
By executive orders, Mr. Bush revoked a Clinton-era order requiring federal agencies to form labor-management partnership councils, barred agencies from requiring contractors to enter agreements with unions and omitted several federal law enforcement departments from a labor-management relations program.
The president also required all government contractors to post a notice at job sites stating that, "employees cannot be required to join a union or maintain membership in a union in order to retain their jobs." He imposed 30-day cooling off periods to prevent strikes by mechanics at Northwest and United Airlines. And the Labor Department has demanded new, more detailed financial reporting from unions.
Some see the president's first four years as a preview to an all-out assault on unions if wins a second term in office. That makes the stakes in this election very high.
"For labor it really is a matter of life and death," Rogers said. "Because these people are serious."
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