Editorial | The Grand Rapids Press
Anti-democratic union-backed proposal in Congress would end secret ballots for organizing workers.
Union leaders, concerned about their diminishing ranks, are pushing for a new federal law that would give them unfair advantage in recruiting members. The bill, misnamed the Employee Free Choice Act, is stalled in the Senate and, thank goodness, will not likely come up again this election year.
That’s the right fate for it. The proposed law would do away with employee secret ballots in union organizing drives, a fundamental anti-democratic step for a supposedly democratic country. However, this year’s legislative delay likely will not be the last word, especially since union leader have made the bill a top priority. Illinois Sen. Barack Obama, the soon-to-be Democratic presidential nominee, is a co-sponsor the legislation. Arizona Sen. John McCain, the presumptive Republican presidential nominee opposes it.
Right now, when 30 percent of employees in a workplace sign cards approving of a union, the law requires and election by secret ballot, if the employer demands it. Generally, privacy is preserved. The election is overseen by the National Labor Relations Board.
Under the proposed revision to the law, a union could form when a majority of works sing a card check-off. Secret ballots for union organization would become a quaint bit of history.
The secret ballot is a hallowed tradition in other contexts. Voters in November will be able to enter a polling booth, pull a curtain and make their decisions without fear or influence. That basic freedom from harassment is the reason ballot secrecy is so fiercely protected at all levels of government.
Opposition for the proposed law came largely form Republicans; support has come mostly from Democrats. The bill passed the House last year but was opposed by Republican Reps. Vernon Ehlers of Grand Rapids, Peter Hoekstra of Holland, David Camp of Midland and Fred Upton of St. Joseph. Supporters in the Senate included Sens. Carl Levin, D-Detroit, and Debbie Stabenow, D-Lansing. But their backing was not enough to produce the 60 votes needed to move the measure foreword.
Union membership has fallen dramatically in the last 30 years. In 1980, 20 percent of workers were unionized. Today, only 12 percent belong to unions. Take away government employees, and the number of unionized workers is just over 7 percent.
Union leaders believe the current system is stacked against them claiming that employers intimidate workers during membership drives. If that is true, Congress should look for more proportional remedies. This bill swings things much too far in the wrong direction, opening the door to harassment and intimidation of workers by union organizers. Even long-time labor supporters such as form presidential candidate George McGovern, recognize the dangers inherent in this plan.
Writing in the Wall Street Journal, Mr. McGovern decried the Employee Free Choice Act as running “counter to ideals that were once at the core of the labor movement. Instead of providing a voice for the unheard, EFCA risks silencing those who would speak.”
That would be a travesty, one members of the next Congress - and the next president - should soundly reject.
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