Another Argument Against Card Check
Friday, August 14th, 2009 by AdminThere are plenty of things not to like about the Employee Free Choice Act, but by far the most visible problem is its provision to replace secret-ballot workplace elections with “card check.” Labor lawyer Jake Fulcher writes today in the Evansville Courier and Press:
If, after recognition, the union and company could not come to an agreement within 90 days, either party could refer the matter to the Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service (FMCS). If the FMCS could not resolve the dispute after thirty days, the matter would be referred to an arbitrator who would then decide the terms of the contract between the parties. That contract would be in effect for up to two years.
We would not see as much support for, and opposition to, EFCA had it maintained the status quo on the secret ballot election. The problem with relying on authorization cards as an employee’s vote in favor of unionization is that the NLRB has long recognized authorization cards are signed for a variety of reasons other than an employee genuinely wanting union representation, including under duress, coercion and threats.
