Re: "Pro-union group should call itself what it is," (Editorial, Sept.
10):
I was troubled to see that the Glendale News-Press attacked the Better
Business Alliance, of which the California Nurses Assn. is a part, along
with the Sierra Club, the Congress of California Seniors, the California
Public Interest Research Group and many other labor unions. We are proud
of our role in the alliance and do not feel that its name is misleading.
Rather, the name attempts to chart a new course in California, one
that invites our elected representatives to work with us to make
California businesses better for working families and the environment we
live in. Better business bills will be the new standard in the statehouse
for politicians who should care at least as much about protecting our
workplace, environment and rights as protecting big business' rights. The
scorecard separates the pro-business politicians from the better business
politicians, the business Democrats from the better business Democrats.
It will also make certain that crucial public interest votes cast in the
shadow of the electricity crisis are not forgotten.
Every vote on the Better Business Report Card, which rated the votes
of every state legislator on key better business bills, was fair game.
Legislators were warned in advance of our intention to grade them on
these bills. They were even given a private midterm grade in the summer
to let them know how they were doing.
Some corporations, with the support of some politicians, have for
decades engaged in merciless bad business practices, sacrificing the
safety and welfare of workers, consumers and citizens in their blind
pursuit of profit. Better business is about making certain that
businesses that adhere to a higher standard are rewarded and not punished
by the market. A reasonable person would recognize that such protections
create a better business environment.
The public interest groups in the Better Business Alliance refuse to
cede to big business lobbies the notion that they will define what is
appropriate business practice. That is a public matter. This should be a
principle your newspaper endorses.
KAY McVAY
President
California Nurses Assn.
