Big Labor is angry with Colorado Gov. Jared Polis, and that’s a good thing. Average Coloradans who need homes and incomes should thank the governor as special-interest brokers shout him down.

Union leaders and about 200 of their minions gathered for what a news blog called “a Jared Polis hate-fest” on the west steps of the state Capitol last week. They carried signs saying, “POLIS FAILED WORKERS” and a banner that said, “GOVERNOR POLIS TURNED HIS BACK ON US.”

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“The end of the school year report cards are going up,” said Dennis Dougherty, head of the Colorado AFL-CIO. “Jared Polis, you got an ‘F.’ But here’s the thing: there’s two more years of report cards left. You’ve got a chance to do right by Colorado workers.”

Teachers union officials were also there in full force denouncing Polis.

At issue are three House bills Polis recently vetoed to save jobs and consumers from union overreach. They are:

• House Bill 1008, which would make general contractors responsible if subcontractors fail to pay one or more employees on time. Polis vetoed the bill because it would punish the wrong parties for what the bill calls “wage theft.” It would have let offending subcontractors off the hook and increased liability for general contractors — even if they did nothing wrong — meaning higher constructions costs for consumers.

• House Bill 1307, prohibiting school districts from using federal money to hire HVAC contractors who aren’t certified by the state Department of Labor and Employment. In his veto letter, Polis said more than a dozen counties lack state-certified electrical or plumbing contractors. Unions would rather have children suffer extreme temperatures than have a nonunion entrepreneur solve their problem.

• House Bill 1260, prohibiting employers from requiring attendance at an employer-sponsored meeting that involves religious or political matters. Polis said the bill would curtail free speech and tie the hands of employers. To be certain, this bill would discourage business leaders from moving to or expanding in Colorado.

The last one, HB 1260, is comedically tragic. Unions want to quell political speech by employers, while tapping workers’ wages to fund every left-wing political agenda and candidate the union bosses choose.

Unions long ago achieved improvements for workers. Key phrase, “long ago.” Today, because of countless technological advancements and modern economic factors, markets drive up wages and deliver worker benefits that typically exceed contractual or legal mandates.

Few employers have the luxury of paying minimum wages, no matter how high they go. Starved for good workers at all levels, employers do whatever it takes to attract and retain them.

If unions were effective, teachers would earn what they deserve. They don’t. Colorado teachers, represented by the National Education Association and its state and local chapters, earn almost 40% less than other similarly educated professionals — most of whom represent themselves without paying dues to a union.

Polis has made too many concessions with unions in the past, including granting collective bargaining rights to state and local government workers. Polis owes labor unions nothing more, and they have no business excoriating him at a profanity-laced “hate-fest.”

By vetoing bills 1008, 1307 and 1260, Polis stood up to union authoritarians trying to squeeze more out of employers, employees and consumers at large. He showed loyalty to the governed, not a handful of elite movers and shakers pushing doctrinaire political outcomes that don’t help workers, employers or other consumers.

Colorado Springs Gazette Editorial Board