A Free Choice That Isn't

Doug Condra • President

Union leadership likely has the votes to kill the secret ballot.

The Employee Free Choice Act failed to make it through the last Congress, but if labor interests have their way, it will soon resurface. If passed, it would take away workers' fundamental rights to vote a secret ballot on whether to unionize.

The private vote would be replaced by a card check system. Union organizers would ask workers to publicly sign cards in favor of unionizing. If they convince more than half of a company's workforce to sign, the National Labor Relations Board would be required to certify the union.

So I'm Sam the Steamfitter, having a cup of coffee after work. I'm greeted by a group of guys who pitch me on why we need to organize my company. All I have to do is sign this card and my life will get better.

They don't say they know where I live and who I live with. They don't have to; I'm sure they know. And if they don't, they can find out.

Am I going to reject them, their union and their card? Not likely. In fact, there have been numerous recorded cases of union coercion, threats and violence against workers who did not support the cause.

Private ballots allow workers to express their wishes without fear of threats. But under the proposed card check system, both the union leadership and the employer will know how each worker voted. That leaves the door open for retaliation - by the union or the company.

The House of Representatives passed the EFCA in 2007, but President Bush promised a veto and it failed to pass the Senate. The power has shifted in the new Congress, and both President Barack Obama and Vice President Joe Biden support the act. Last April, Obama told the AFL-CIO: "I will make it the law of the land when I'm President of the United States..."

Biden followed with this statement to the United Mine Workers of America: "We have to expand our labor movement. The way to do that is to walk in and organize by merely signing your name to a piece of paper, just like you do when you go register to vote."

Hold on. When did registering to vote produce a final outcome? Isn't that what the secret ballot is for? Isn't the secret ballot what our constitution guarantees? Shouldn't the same principles apply to union organizing efforts?

Apparently most people - including workers - think so. A 2007 survey shows 89 percent of Americans believe workers' votes should remain private, and another poll shows 79 percent oppose card check legislation. And a survey of union workers showed 66 percent in favor of keeping the secret ballot.

Another point: President Obama says, "We're looking to create good jobs that pay well and won't be shipped overseas." But increased unionism will run up employers' costs and make it harder for them to compete in the world economy. When they can't compete, the jobs leave the country.

Who's so powerful that this legislation can become law, despite violating the public trust and its potential to drive jobs away?

Answer: Union leadership, which has funneled nearly $300 million into political campaigns since the 2000 election. Union members pay dues of between 1 percent and 2 percent of wages; more members mean more bucks for unions.

There's nothing free in the so-called "free choice" act. It's about the money.

E-mail Doug Condra at dcondra@truckinginfo.com, or write P.O. Box W, Newport Beach, CA 92658.