WASHINGTON Six U.S. senators with links to labor have agreed to ax the controversial card-check provision from the Employee Free Choice Act, according to a story Friday in The New York Times.
Senators, including Tom Harkin, D-Iowa, who had introduced the latest version of the bill, are agreeing to drop the provision to ensure a filibuster-proof 60 votes, the Times said.
In its place, the measure would make union elections take place sooner and give employers less time to campaign against unionization.
Scott Vinson, vice president of the National Council of Chain Restaurants, said that news of card check's possible removal has been circulating for months and that the concession by the senators is not necessarily something to celebrate.
"It was well known that Sen. Harkin for some time had been talking with other senators and union leaders about repackaging the card check bill in a way that could get 60 votes," he said. "But simply jettisoning the card check provision in favor of 'quickie elections' that short-circuit the deliberative process, while keeping the binding arbitration language, which many Democratic senators still oppose, doesn't get them to 60 votes."
Vinson added that lawmakers right now are focusing their attention on health care reform, which will likely keep them from further tackling the Employee Free Choice Act at this time.
David French, vice president of Government Relations for the International Franchise Association, called the senators' decision to drop the card check provision "a positive step," but added: "The bill still includes many other equally bad ideas like mandatory binding arbitration that will prove to be just as bad for employees and small businesses as card check. We urge Congress to continue listening to the concerns of the small business community and just say no to passage of the Employee Free Choice Act."
"The Times story confirms what we've known for some time," said Brendan Flanagan, the National Restaurant Association's director of government relations. "Labor's allies in the Senate still don't have the necessary votes, and simply dropping the card-check provision will not alleviate the concerns of senators in both parties. A bill that weakens federal protections in union elections and mandates binding arbitration would be harmful to the industry, and the NRA will continue educating lawmakers about this very flawed legislation."
The NRA is conducting a targeted member fly-in Wednesday, July 22, for senators in the key states of Louisiana, Maine, North Carolina, Pennsylvania and Virginia.
The foodservice industry and other business groups had actively opposed the measure, which would give workers the ability to form a union through either card check or an election by secret ballot. Foes of the provision claim the proposed law would subject employees to coercion by union organizers and make it difficult for business owners to respond to an organizing campaign.
Under the current law, employees vote for or against unionization through a private ballot process that is overseen by the National Labor Relations Board. If the card-check provision were passed, employers would have to recognize a union if a majority of workers signed cards stating that they wanted to unionize.
Contact Paul Frumkin at [email protected]