Letters to the Editor: Another Friend of Business
Texas Journal:</br></br>I am writing concerning your Nov. 16 article "Cashing In: Victory by Bush Has Business Dusting Off Its Wish List."</br></br>You state that Texas employers say that I, as chairman of the Texas Employment Commission, have "made it harder to prove that a fired employee doesn't deserve unemployment benefits," and, that under my leadership, employers are "losing more contested unemployment-claims hearings."</br></br>Since I wasn't offered the opportunity to disprove, refute, or respond to these statements prior to their publication, please allow me this opportunity to do so.</br></br>Texas Employment Commission's board of commissioners comprises three commissioners: One commissioner represents labor; one commissioner represents employers; and the chairman represents the general public. Much as a judge in a judicial court, the chairman's job is to impartially apply the employment laws and precedents to every unemployment-benefits case that comes before the commission. And, just like in a court of law, one party wins while the other loses. Necessarily, I must "favor" either the worker or the employer.