The Employee Free Choice Act: The Debate Heats Up

Just What Is The Employee Free Choice Act, and Why Are So Many People Excited About It?

President Obama supports the Employee Free Choice Act (“EFCA”). Home Depot co-founder Bernard Marcus called it, “A hostile takeover of American business,” and “the betrayal of a bedrock principle of U.S. democracy,” in a Sept. 22, 2008, article in Business Week, while organized labor is pushing for its passage.

On March 10, 2009, the EFCA was reintroduced in the current Congress as House Bill H.R. 1409, and it was referred to the House Education & Labor Committee. The bill has also been reintroduced in the Senate. And now, with the possibility of it becoming law far greater than it was under George W. Bush, the EFCA has become a matter of increased debate.

A recent Google search revealed that, in the past month alone, more than 2,000 news articles have been written that at least mention the Employee Free Choice Act.

Fortunately, here at the Blawg we’ve been covering the EFCA since November 2008.

The following is a quick refresher on what the bill as currently written will do — and what it won’t do — if passed.

The Employee Free Choice Act — A Radical Change in Labor Law Affecting Collective Bargaining

If passed as currently written, the Employee Free Choice Act would result in the following changes to federal labor law:

• Virtual elimination of employees’ right to cast a secret ballot concerning union representation. Instead, the organizing union would have to be recognized if a majority of employees sign cards in favor of union representation — which would likely occur in front of other employees or union organizers, not in secret. If 30%, but less than a majority of employees signed cards, the union could still ask for a secret ballot election as before.
• Once a union is certified, the employer would have 90 days to negotiate and sign a new collective bargaining agreement with it. After 90 days, the negotiations would be sent to mediation with the Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service (FMCS) for 30 days. If the employer and union don’t reach agreement during mediation, under the EFCA the dispute would go to binding arbitration, and the resulting contract would be binding for 2 years.
• Sharply increase penalties for employers that engage in unfair labor practices by harassing or firing pro-union employees.

More Discussion Of the Employee Free Choice Act

In January, George Lenard engaged in an in-depth, online look at the Employee Free Choice Act with recruiter and blogger Jessica Lee. The two discussed the ramifications of exchanging card check elections for secret ballots, the impact of binding arbitration on contract negotiations, and more — including what compromises could be made to improve the Act. We’ve taken some time to update that post, and we will continue to keep you informed as the Employee Free Choice Act makes its way through Congress — and, almost certainly, to President Obama’s desk.

Update: Waning Senate Support Could Lead to EFCA Compromises

While the Employee Free Choice Act enjoys strong support in both the Congressional House and the White House, according to this Wall Street Journal article Senate support — including among Democrats — is softening. The article also mentions possible compromises the could help get the legislation back on track to passage.