ABC vehemently opposed the misnamed Employee Free Choice Act of 2009 (H.R. 1409/S. 560), or “card check” legislation, introduced March 10 by Sen. Ted Kennedy (D-Mass.) in the U.S. Senate and Rep. George Miller (D-Calif.) in the U.S. House of Representatives. The legislation would take away a worker’s fundamental American right to a secret-ballot election when deciding whether to join a union.
Under the “card check” process, employees would be forced to indicate their choice of whether to join a union by signing a card in front of their co-workers, employers and union organizers, opening the door to coercion and intimidation and depriving them of the freedom to make an honest, private decision. In addition, the bill would subject businesses to binding interest arbitration, where government appointed arbitrators would establish a two-year contract setting all work rules for that business without giving the company’s employees or owner an opportunity to approve or appeal the decision. No date has been set for a vote on this bill in either the House or the Senate.
Jerry Gorski, 2009 ABC national chairman and president of Gorski Engineering, Inc., Collegeville, Pa., appeared March 11 on the Fox News Channel program “America’s Newsroom” to discuss the negative impact the Employee Free Choice Act will have on business owners and workers.
“It’s a tough credit market and money is tight,” Gorski said. “Businesses and private owners need credit. But there is still work happening and we’re fortunate enough to be able to…keep our employees working – have flexible people who are willing to do multiple jobs and keep our workforce in place. This kind of legislation changes all of that.”
According to a new study released last week by noted economist Dr. Anne Layne-Farrar, the Employee Free Choice Act would negatively impact the landscape of the U.S. economy, increasing unemployment and stifling job growth for all Americans. The study, An Empirical Assessment of the Employee Free Choice Act: The Economic Implications, found that passage of this bill would lead to the loss of 600,000 jobs within a year. Job losses directly attributed to the passage of the “card check” legislation would be equal to the entire population of Boston or 75 percent of San Francisco.
“Particularly at a time of economic uncertainty, Congress should not enact measures that threaten our economic competitiveness,” ABC noted in a letter sent to members of Congress March 11. “Furthermore, this legislation would have a particularly devastating impact on small employers who are the primary source for new jobs in our economy.”
To view the full study and to get more information on the Employee Free Choice Act, visit
www.TheTruthAboutEFCA.com.