Public Employees Under Attack - Again

Our union has been notified that a FOIA (Freedom of Information Act) request was recently made to obtain information about employees at OHSU. As a public institution, certain personnel records have to be publicly available for transparency’s sake.

FOIA requests are a helpful tool for us as a union, for journalists, and can be important for community activism. But in our experience this particular type of request usually means that The Freedom Foundation (or whatever they’re calling themselves this week) is back.

Like clockwork, this group of supposedly concerned citizens who just happen to get money from the Koch brothers show up when we have a contract campaign or are otherwise showing up in the news. They know our union has a lot of power to make things better for workers in Oregon and Washington and they hate the thought of that.

They send anti-union propaganda via email, text, and sometimes mail when they know that we’re in bargaining to undercut your ability to negotiate the kind of contract that you deserve. You can tell how empty their convictions are because they only show up every few years. If they actually believed in anything, they’d never leave us alone. That would require something resembling a work ethic, so there’s no chance of that.

The Freedom Foundation tries to sell the idea that “the union” is some outdated service you don’t need to pay into, which fundamentally misunderstands that we are our union. Our union’s mission is whatever we as its members make it. Our union’s political work is to serve our members, which is how we get important wins like the Safe Staffing law that we pushed so hard for. That work makes our coworkers and patients all over Oregon safer.

Remember that people who come together to fight for things with love and solidarity are always going to be able to outlast those who gather over their petty little grievances. Standing next to your fellow workers will always give you more energy than someone who sits at home, stewing over how someone else is living their lives. There is nothing more pathetic than someone who defines themselves by how much they hate someone else.

In these uncertain times, it’s perfectly reasonable to be worried that they have more nefarious plans this time around. Please let our union know whenever you hear from these absolute losers by contacting our Member Services Center, especially if they contact you in a way that feels like harassment. If they escalate their tactics, we’ll escalate ours.

Below is a flyer that was put together the last time they decided to bother us that gives instructions on how to remove yourselves from their contact lists. The best course of action is to ignore these sad little barnacles, but if you find it cathartic to respond just be sure you follow state and federal law regarding what you can and can not send in the mail.

How to Deal with Freedom Foundation Spam Email
The one-two punch against SPAM
If an anti-worker group like the Freedom Foundation sends you an email without your permission, they are likely violating their email provider’s terms of service, and maybe even the law. Follow these two steps to report the SPAM to authorities.
1. FORWARD THE EMAIL
Send to these three addresses, all in one email:
support@vervemail.com - The “Freedom” Foundation’s email provider
spam@uce.gov – The Federal Trade Commission
help@oregonconsumer.gov – Oregon State Attorney General
Write: “The Freedom Foundation/Opt Out Today sent me this SPAM at work without my permission. Please ask them to stop sending emails to me.”
2. MARK THE EMAIL AS ‘SPAM’ OR ‘JUNK’ In most cases, this automatically sends a warning message to their email provider.

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