Union speakers try to rally the troops

A Chinese company wants to build a factory in Idaho and import employees from overseas.

That’s just one of the threats facing unions as they try to preserve fair compensation for Idaho workers, according to those who spoke Tuesday to about 100 attending the Idaho State AFL-CIO Convention in Lewiston.

The Lewiston Tribune reports that one of the biggest worries is a bill introduced in the most recent legislative session that would have ended collective bargaining for state, county and municipal workers as well as school teachers, said James Kerns, president emeritus of the Idaho AFL-CIO.

The bill was never voted on. But it will surface again in 2012, Kerns said. “If they start taking away your union rights, they’re going to start taking away your civil rights. They’re going to take away every right you got.”