How do we dispel the myth that EFCA “does away wit the secret ballot?”

Especially since the “secret ballot” hasn’t been all that secret or the management folks would not have been able to fire folks pushing for unions in the first place.

This is Brett Gibson from the Govt Affairs Department at the AFL-CIO. I’ll be your tour guide today.

The simplest way to dispel the myth that EFCA does away with the secret ballot is to tell the truth–the business community is lying.

The truth is that the Employee Free Choice Act simply gives workers, not their bosses, the choice in how to form a union. If they choose to form a union by majority sign up (aka card check) that is how it would be done. If they choose to do it by secret ballot, then that would be the way they’d do it. It’s up to workers.

As an American Rights at Work ad on the issue has said–that is the secret Big Business doesn’t want you to know.

Thanks for coming this afternoon. What is your take on the actions by CITI bank in lowering the Walmart rating as a result of this bill and their conference call citing the perceived effects of EFCA.

Thanks to all of you who have fought, and continue to fight, for EFCA.

I think the final vote has to be more than a marginal victory, Congress has to be pressured to make this a landslide victory for the good side.

Let us know how we can help.

How will this effect “right to work” states such as Texas? I live in Texas and would be happy to help open our slave shops here if the passage of this law will help us.

Heh. “Right to Work”. One of the more odious puke-style uses of language to lie about republican objectives.

I want more push back in the media on this. Yes lining up the votes is important but we are getting killed in the media. We need our people out there to push back against the lies!

Get some Media attention Obama giving a prime time speech and press interviews would be a good start.

Many republicans have been beating up the UAW as the cause for the problems that are facing the Automobile industry. Forcing the manufacturers to provide health insurance has become their latest indictment. In their convoluted logic this then translates into an indictment of all unions. Do you have a position on health care and are you advocating single payer.

Hey foothillsmike. Let me make a few comments before I get specifically to the CITI/Wal Mart dynamic.

Last week when Pres. Obama addressed the AFL-CIO and mentioned the Employee Free Choice Act, some corporate cronies remarked that the stock market dropped b/c he’d simply mentioned the bill.

If that’s their logic, I guess when EFCA (which the Chamber of Commerce refers to as the Armageddon bill which needs to have a stake driven through its heart) was introduced, the stock market must have really tanked! But nope, the day EFCA was introduced, the stock market had its best day in 6 months. So ha!

As to Citi, the conspiracy theorist in me says that Citi actually lowered Wal-Mart’s rating to manufacture stock market/Wall Street furor over EFCA. Since the stock market didn’t tank the day the bill was introduced (boy, they must have hated that their dire predictions didn’t come true), they tried to create a false business emergency to create a sense of doom and gloom.

Of course I’m hoping the EFCA passes, but it’s not enough. I’m a member of CSEA and it didn’t stop my employer from upping (considerably) my contribution to my health insurance. In reality, this meant no raise and my net income could potentially go down every year. Therefore, equally important is single-payer health insurance. If the cost of health insurance were removed from the equation, EFCA might not be so scary to small businesses.

Brett,

Welcome to the Lake !

but we firmly believe every senator who voted for cloture in 2007 is still on board.

that would include the esteemed Senators representing WalMartistan, Lincoln and Pryor ???

It’s funny that the corporate CEOs and Wall Street gamblers who created this collapsing economy are now trying to blame middle class workers, the backbone of America, for making a living wage (like wrongly blaming the UAW).

It wasn’t the workers who caused this economic collapse, it was greedy CEOs.

Though blaming middle class and working class Americans for the economy’s plunge doesn’t seem to be working too well for the CEOs or their allies in Congress, now does it. The public sees right through that.

I can’t comment on healthcare, as it’s not my issue.

Instead of focusing on the substantive issues involved—like, say, how working people in unions are more likely to have health care, pensions, and family-sustaining wages than those who do not have unions—

There is a reverse to this argument that the GOP might understand those Full and Part time workers without Unions are more likely to need Public Housing, Welfare, Food banks etc.
In Other words You the American Tax Payer pay so that Wall Mart does not have to pay.
The American Tax Payer is dazzled by Cheap Prices but does not realize why his taxes keep going up!

Brett,
Don’t know if yo saw this but Jane had a post earlier today on the CITI analyst who downgraded WalMart and her participation in the Chamber of Commerce anti-EFCA conference call.

Hey Solai. While I don’t handle healthcare, I know that we have a whole team of people working very hard to make it more affordable.

Just remember, a lot of big companies abandoned Hilary Clinton on the healthcare issue back in the 90s. We probably would have had more affordable healthcare, and they’d be a lot better of, if they hadn’t jumped ship.

Hey, I agree with you but was just using that as a way to describe the state of affairs in this wonderful third world country called Texas.

Yes, I saw that about the Citi anti-EFCA phone call. You’d think they’d have learned after the Home Depot call the other week, but you know how it goes.

It’s amazing these collapsed companies who are on life support only after groveling for billions of taxpayer dollars are now out there trying to make sure middle class workers don’t get a fair shake at the workplace(not to mention these workers are the taxpayers who funded the bailout for these reckless companies). Then again, I don’t think these Wall Street gamblers have a reputation for having high moral character.

Lower non Union jobs do not have Health Care now what is the number 1 cause of bankruptcy in this country Medical Emergencies.
Why are the Banks in trouble Why is the Government giving the banks money?
Too many bankruptcies to many people not paying the Banks their Mortgage.
WallMart heck all the non union shops pay their employees more how many mortgages get paid?
Do not give me that people who work at Wallmart could never afford to buy a home bull.
Wallmart is a guy’s second job, a mom’s job because of the flexible hours.
Its the job people count on to afford the extras in life…and in this economy its the fall back job the job you take because you were just laid off and can’t get another job.
It is the job you have to try and keep your home.
If you want to save the banks raise wages.

Welcome, Brett. Thanks for being here today.

Do you have any thoughts on how the growing income disparity has led to our current economic crisis? It seems like our leaders should be happy about restoring a process that allows workers to organize for living wages, without having to resort to government intervention.

It’s time they stop working as a protection racket for corporations who would never submit to the kind of controls that are being asked of union organizers.

I have gotten the impression over the years that folks at places like CITI and the CoC do not perceive workers as humans.

And they appear to have a big disconnect about who and how the “consumer” is that is supposed to be able to purchase the products they market.

Here’s a handy little list of why the current process for unionizing robs workers of their free choice:

Company Decides how workers will form their union
Company Delays and denies workers’ free choice
Company Fires one in five union activists
Company Forces workers into meetings with supervisors
Company Uses work time to intimidate workers
Company Threatens to close if workers unionize
Company Delays contract negotiations
Company Treats penalties as a cost of doing business

Brett if you click on the reply tab at the lower right of the remark it will put up a bar showing what you are replying to

If you are worried about jobs leaving the country don’t. For if we try and compete with Mexico on wages we get Mexico’s problems.
Just how many people killed this year in drug violence, how many police?
police chiefs, Solders?
Crime pays more than Mexico pays its workers. In any society where crime factoring in prison on the job accidents etc pays more than a working man gets doing an honest job,..well then its that society which is guilty of the Crime.

Company Fires one in five union activists

Welcome, Brett. Many years ago I was fired from the University of Texas Law School while attempting to organize clerical workers at UT. It was a rude awakening.

Aw, I kinda like Texas…never thought of it as third-worldish. Maybe a little provincial, though. And y’all could produce better presidents.

Just checked the AFLCIO link… no Arkansas senators or congressmen are listed as sponsors at this point in time.

Wondering if anyone has links to the last cloture vote?

Jane, happy to be here and thanks for your tireless efforts on the Employee Free Choice Act.

Over the past few decades, while worker productivity has greatly increased, wages have unfortunately flat-lined.

It is somewhat confounding that the corporate CEOs and the Chamber work so hard to make sure US workers aren’t getting a fair share of the pie.

There definitely is a huge disconnect between their thinking and reality. It seems many Wall Streeters/CEOs are still of the mindset that this huge recession (depression) we’re experiencing is just a minor blip, and they’ll be back to gambling on risky mortgage interests and stocks again soon. They just don’t get it. While they were getting paid like Masters of the Universe, all they were doing was building a house of cards.

But I think the American public does get it–that these people were just a bunch of swindlers, and that’s why you do see growing alarm and outrage at the disparity between CEO pay and average worker pay.

I don’t really understand why the business community fights so hard against fair wages (a lot of it is selfishness). The more workers make, the more they have to spend, and the better off the economy is. It’s not like middle class Americans are asking for golden parachutes–they simply want the right to bargain collectively for better pay, healthcare and retirment.

It’s fundamentally about fairness…but Wall Street doesn’t do fairness I guess.

Last Congress (2007), every Democratic Senator voted for cloture on the Employee Free Choice Act (Sen. Tim Johnson did not vote due to medical reasons). They were joined by Sen. Specter.

Brett,

I’m a university professor in a College of Business Administration. I am entirely in favor of EFCA, but we’re being clobbered by the “secret ballots are good” meme. Worse, explaining that EFCA gives workers a choice doesn’t seem to penetrate.

How the following as a compromise:

Keep a secret ballot, however, the election must be held under NRLB supervision within 5 working days of certification, on a neutral site. Details on observers can be worked out.

Will a quick election hamstring anti-union efforts by management sufficiently?

Why are there fewer co-sponsors than in the last Congress? Well, one reason is that the Chamber of Commerce promises to spend $200 million attacking supporters of the bill.

Then hit the Chambers of Commerce now before the vote pick the biggest members who are the weakest financially. Obama owns a few banks now I believe even has some managment say in Bank of America and Citi who keep lobbying against us on this.
First Fire the CEO’s for lobbying against us on this, the executive bonuses they gave out, the cool parties, the millions to redecorate their offices.
Just tell Obama this will make him go up in the polls.
Second Start freezing or just being late with loan approval for Chamber of Commerce members who have financial trouble.
Third Get the banks to stop lobbying against us on this!

Isn’t Specter about to be primaried by two conservatives? Seems like the potential for getting routed from his seat could change his vote.

as Brett pointed out in the post, any one can co sponsor a bill . . .

both of ‘em voted for cloture in 07 – I want to know if both are on board voting for the Bill

There definitely is a huge disconnect between their thinking and reality. It seems many Wall Streeters/CEOs are still of the mindset that this huge recession (depression) we’re experiencing is just a minor blip, and they’ll be back to gambling on risky mortgage interests and stocks again soon. They just don’t get it.

True the banking crisis is based on real estate people are not paying their loans and banks cannot sell the homes for anything close to what they made the loans for.
A collapsed real estate market takes years to recover we will be lucky if it recovers by the end of Obama’s first term.

Currently, corporations have all the power to demand an election, not the workers. But the “elections” CEOs are trying to protect are more like third world sham elections than anything we have in America.

Imagine if Members of Congress could act like corporations and:

• Force voters to attend their campaign rallies.

• Fire, intimidate and harrass their opponent’s supporters or deny them raises.

• Prevent their opponent from campaigning in the daytime.

• And, if an opponent wins the election fairly, delay that person from taking office
for months or years.

If this type of election doesn’t sound free, fair and democratic, that’s because it isn’t. Corporations have a captive audience and hold all the power.

currently Front Paged over at Big Orange

the Mighty Kos himself – Labor is currently negotiating with Specter on his support of this Bill in exchange for their support for him over Toomey – possibly negotiating with Murkowski/AK as well

As an infrequent poster here at the FDL, I have been following the various threads on EFCA, and thus, my thanks to all whom have participated over the course of these past several weeks.

And the good news is that the Chicano Veterans Organization, announced yesterday of their public support for EFCA. Their Policy Board Statement can be found on the “generic info” page at their web site.

As such, quiet progress is being achieved for coalescing the public support that will encourage Congress to pass this legislation later this year.

And for those among us but who are unfamiliar with the politics that resides within the Spanish-speaking community, the CVO is an ‘influencer’ of some note.

Jaango

Jane upstairs with David Cay Johnston Talking Economic Accountability

ysd,

Specter is fixing to take it in a painful place in the primary regardless of what he does. Voting against EFCA isn’t going to help in the primary race, because there is too much other water over the dam. Some analysts think his only hope of keeping his Senate seat is to change parties and caucus with the Democrats.

BTW, I’m glad you enjoyed the chili recipe. I saw the comment a while back.

I’d like to hear this analogy go mainstream–it really clarifies what EFCA is trying to prevent.

watch EFCA Advocate Jonathan Tasini take on and hold his own with 3 different klowns over at CNBC on this issue

The last part sounds like Coleman v. Franken for the Minnesota Senate seat…

Texas Governor Rick Perry held a Press Conference today at a luxury “hardware store” , a place selling a specialty line of utensils, this place actually carries a line of cake servers and cutters called, no kidding, “Let Them Eat Cake!”

We have been subjected to comments such as this one from Bill Hammond, the head of the Texas Association of Businesses, he of Delay/TRMPAC money laundering scandal notoriety. Hammond compares the unemployment money from Washington to an overture from a drug dealer.

“it’s like a drug dealer. The dealer gives you the first hit for free to get you hooked, and then you are addicted and are paying the consequences for a long, long time.”

Perry sounded the same “alarm”, stating:

“This is exactly how addicts get hooked on drugs.”

Ain’t no one more conservative than Governor Goodhair Rick Perry (You listening, Jindal?)!

Best of all was Republican Myra Crownover, chairwoman of the Appropriations Committee, told us:

“I do think that unemployment can change the way people think.”

The Texas Unemployment Fund’s assets, in develops, have been grossly over reported and the it is far below the legally required minimum. But we certainly wouldn’t want Texans enjoying the luxurious life of the unemployed to have a change in their thinking. Thank goodness we have Republicans to guard against slacker unemployed. Why unemployment benefits in Texas are so generous that over 60,000 Texans decided to quit workingget laid off just last Month.

In case you were wondering, Marie Antoinette actually was misquoted, she really said “Let them eat cock!”, a concept all too enthusiastically embraced by the reprobate Southern Governors. I hope every single one of their supporters gets to enjoy their short lived unemployment benefits, I’d actually prefer they refused to acept them and live on nothing, because they are all winners, hate Unions, and can just get along just fine as long the Government stays out of their lives. They have told us this for so many years, it must be true.

There’s speculation that Specter might switch parties.

That is great to hear about the CVO. We have many allied groups that support EFCA…from the Sierra Club, to Human Rights Watch. I was going to post the whole list, but it’s a bit long. Here are just the As, Bs, and Cs…you’ll get the idea:

ACORN

Alliance for Justice

Alliance for Retired Americans

American Friends Service Committee

American Library Association – Allied Professional Association

American Public Health Association

American Rights at Work

Americans for Democratic Action

Americans United for Change

A. Phillip Randolph Institute

Apollo Alliance

Asian Pacific American Labor Alliance

Black Alliance for Just Immigration

Brazillian Immigrant Center

Bread & Roses Heritage Committee

Buffalo Musicians Federation

Buffalo Police Benevolent Association

Buffalo Teachers Federation

California Church Impact

Catholics in Alliance for the Common Good

Catholic Labor Network

Catholics United

Center for American Progress

Center for America’s Future

Center for Community Change

Center for Corporate Policy

Centro Presente

Chicago Coalition of the Homeless

Church Women United

Clergy and Laity Network United for Justice

Coalition for Social Justice (Boston)

Coalition of Black Trade Unionists

Coalition of Contingent Academics Labor

Coalition of Labor Union Women

Council on American-Islamic Relations

Coalition on Human Needs

Coalition of Immokalee Workers

Consumers for Auto Reliability and Safety

Cooperative Metropolitan Ministries (Boston)

Imagine if Members of Congress could act like corporations and:

• Force voters to attend their campaign rallies. Have you seen the McCain factory visits photo ops?

• Fire, intimidate and harrass their opponent’s supporters or deny them raises. Have you seen any Real Liberals on TV before KO and Rachel notice the GOPers are never called out in the media when they lie. Liberals do not get MSM jobs until recently

• Prevent their opponent from campaigning in the daytime. Well I have seen the GOP stop an election recount in Florida.

• And, if an opponent wins the election fairly, delay that person from taking office
for months or years. Bush stopped Gore cold, stole the election from Kerry and Al Franken is still not a Senator

If this type of election doesn’t sound free, fair and democratic, that’s because it isn’t. Corporations have a captive audience and hold all the power.

Agreed

Hmmm. Didn’t think he’d seriously consider changing parties. The R’s loss is the progressive D’s aggravation.

Spread it far and wide! :)

don’t think for a moment this idjit does not know The Legist. can accept the money on behalf of Texas – courtesy a provision in Stim inserted by Congressman Clyburn (thanks!) – further proof he is simply making political hay at the expense of struggling Texas families –

I’ve been on the phone with Statesman reporter on this this afternoon and he has put in a call to Speaker Straus

Thanks all, I’ve got to run. Keep fighting the good fight.

Is the following understanding correct?

U.S. workers can now win recognition for a union if either:

– 30% of them signup for an NLRB secret-ballot election, or

– a majority of them signup for that union.

But, under current law, employers can reject unions chosen by majority signup and insist instead on NLRB elections. Under the EFCA, they could no longer do so.

he can remain a gooper and get Labor’s backing. Kos makes the argument for him switching parties and then getting Labor’s help