This afternoon, Ramsey Court Judge Dale Lindman issued a temporary restraining order in response to the lawsuit filed by the corporate conservative think tank, the Freedom Foundation of Minnesota, and Republican legislators.
SEIU Local 284 released the following statement from Executive Director Carol Nieters:
“Minnesota’s family child care providers have been asking for a voice in St. Paul since 2005. Now, on the eve of their opportunity to choose a representative for meetings to support vital and threatened state programs, conservative corporate interests from the Freedom Foundation of Minnesota and their lapdogs in the Minnesota state legislature have succeeded in throwing a wrench into the wheels of democracy.
“This sham lawsuit and their entire campaign of misinformation is just another example of the vicious attacks on working families by national corporate interests and the politicians who do their bidding. From Ohio to Wisconsin and New Hampshire to Minnesota, the story is the same: they will stop at nothing to deny working people the right to form a union for a voice in our democracy.
“Minnesota’s family child care providers, and the children they care for, deserve better than to have their voices muted by corporate zealots like the Freedom Foundation of Minnesota. We are disappointed that Judge Lindman did not take this opportunity to stop this lawsuit in its tracks.”
For an entire report on the child care crisis in Minnesota, click here.
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