Not to be outdone by the briefing books recently produced by the Alliance for Worker Freedom and the House Republican Leader, the AFL-CIO points to a new report by the Center for American Progress, which criticizes the Office of Labor Management Standards (OMLS).  According to the AFL-CIO: 

"A new report shows how the Bush administration has “shoveled significantly more tax dollars” into the Labor Department office charged with monitoring union finances. At the same time, Bush loaded the office with political extremists who are carrying out a Newt Gingrich/Grover Norquist strategy to destroy unions."

OLMS is responsible for administering the Labor Managment Reporting and Disclosure Act, which includes:

• A Bill of Rights for union members;
• Requirements for reporting and disclosure of financial information and administrative practices by labor unions;
• Requirements for reporting and disclosure by employers, labor relations consultants, union officers and employees, and surety companies, when they engage in certain activities;
• Rules for establishing and maintaining trusteeships;
• Standards for conducting fair elections of union officers; and
• Safeguards for protecting union funds and assets.

Regular readers of WorkplaceHorizons.com will recall that Congressional democrats appear to have been successful in cutting OLMS funding for 2008.