Labor's "Friends" In Congress

Democrats Drop Key Part of Bill That Would Help Unions to Organize

Harry Kelber

July 19, 2009

A half dozen U.S. Senators, normally friends of labor, eliminated a "card-check" provision in proposed legislation that would require an employer to recognize a union as soon as a majority of workers signed cards saying they wanted a union. Unions insisted they needed the law, Employee Free Choice Act (EFCA), with its card-check clause, in order to "level the playing field," where powerful employers were intimidating workers from joining unions.

For at least the past two years, unions have poured millions of dollars and legions of staff workers in an all-out public relations campaign to achieve passage of EFCA, especially the card-check clause, without which the unions say they can´t organize and grow. In fact, for the past two years. AFL-CIO major organizing campaigns have been at a virtual standstill, waiting for the outcome of congressional action.

One of the "compromises" suggested by leading Democrats called for a Labor Board election about ten days after the actual filing. Supporters of this idea said it would give employers less time to indoctrinate their workers against unions. But the reality is that employers make their anti-union prejudices known to their workers the minute they hire them. Actually, it puts pressure on union organizers by reducing the time they can conduct their campaigns.

Despite the bad news, AFL-CIO President John Sweeney remains highly optimistic. Without referring directly to the removal of card check from the bill, he commented: "Despite speculative news reports today [July 18], momentum for real labor law reform is still going strong, and we can still be optimistic that a bill will be signed this year."

Sweeney, and SIEU chief Andy Stern both claim there will be a vote on "majority sign-up" (what the corpoRats call "card check"), either on an amendment or on the finished bill.

Good luck widdat, fellas. You're just as fucked as the rest of but you gotta keep up appearances.

Oh, yeah. These shitwhistle "patriots" are fucking with veterans, too:

Without the “card-check” or “majority sign-up” provision, it’s unlikely the bill will achieve its goal of reversing the decline of unions, though there are other important reforms in the legislation.