Thread: Sen. DeMint: Union Card Check Bill Being Fast-tracked

PLEASE OPPOSE THE "EMPLOYEE FREE CHOICE ACT OF 2009" (CARD CHECK)

By telephone calls, conservative Sen. Jim DeMint (R-SC) is helping mobilize national opposition to the "Employee Free Choice Act of 2009" in conjunction with the National Right to Work Committee. This legislation (also called the "Card Check Bill") would eliminate secret ballots for individual workers in union organization drives. According to Sen. DeMint's call today, this bill now has been "fast-tracked", and a vote may come up at any time. DeMint says that the ultimate goal is to repeal all "right to work" legislation currently in effect in individual states. He requests that you contact your Representative and Senators in opposition. Please go to the website of the National Right to Work Committee for background information:

National Right to Work Committee
http://www.nrtwc.org/

Legislative Links to the "Employee Free Choice Act of 2009":

U.S. House Bill - H.R. 1409
http://www.opencongress.org/bill/111-h1409/show

U.S. Senate Bill - S 560
http://www.opencongress.org/bill/111-s560/show

Telephone Contact List, U.S. Senate:
http://www.nrtwc.org/pdfs/senate_directory.pdf

Florida is a "Right To Work State" and employers misuse the law and work people 9 - 10 days straight without paying overtime. I hear complaints from exhausted workers all the time so I am not sure it is a good law.

USPatriot wrote:

"Florida is a "Right To Work State" and employers misuse the law and work people 9 - 10 days straight without paying overtime. I hear complaints from exhausted workers all the time so I am not sure it is a good law."

That's a good point. The information is given for those who want to read about and act on this legislation. The main point here seems to be preventing the elimination of the secret ballot for employees who may not want to join unions. Hopefully it could be possible to maintain secret union ballots while also contesting the "right to work" state legislation, keeping these as 2 separate issues.

I agree Union Ballots should remain secret and it is too bad they put these 2 totally different issues in the same Bill.

The unions are in bed with obama.

That's a good point. The information is given for those who want to read about and act on this legislation. The main point here seems to be preventing the elimination of the secret ballot for employees who may not want to join unions. Hopefully it could be possible to maintain secret union ballots while also contesting the "right to work" state legislation, keeping these as 2 separate issues.

The secret ballot is only part of the issue. The bill also requires binding arbitration, with the US Govt as arbitrator, if a union and a company cannot resolve contract issues/labor disputes within a specified period of time (90 days I believe). This is another power grab by the communists who are running our country to insert the government into private business affairs. We are not talking about ending strikes that adversely affect our national interest, such as President Truman intervening in the railroad strike in 1949/1950, or when President Reagan intervened in the Air Traffic Controller strike. This applies to ALL companies and ALL labor disputes.

As for Right to Work states, I live in one. If you look at where foreign car companies are building new plants and hiring, it is in the Right to Work states. Right to Work states attract businesses who do not wish to deal with unions and their added costs. Still, if workers wish to organize a union, they have that right. They just cannot force other workers in the same company to join.

US labor laws protect US workers from employer abuse, such as unpaid overtime, unjustified layoffs, unsafe working conditions, etc. Workers need to know and understand their rights, and they need to know where to file complaints if they believe their rights have been violated.

Probably the largest area of worker abuse lies with employers who are using illegal immigrant labor on a large scale. Since the workers are illegal, unethical employers can use that to intimidate workers to accept lower wages, poor workplace conditions, etc.

The SEIU also represents ILLEGAL ALIENS in this country. When in fact it is against the law for them to work in the USA when they are not on a visa.

Wow, what a week for immigration reform!

Thursday, Senator Chuck Schumer chaired a Judiciary subcommittee hearing on immigration reform, "Can We Do It and How?" And his answer was 'Yes we can.' He knows it'll be hard work but he and the witnesses - including our own executive VP Eliseo Medina - agreed that there is great reason for hope. President Obama wants to get this job done, and even the freshman, newly-appointed senator from my home state of Colorado, Michael Bennet, has been traveling around our state talking about the need for comprehensive immigration reform now.

This Friday, May 1st, I joined SEIU Local 32BJ, SEIU members and thousands of immigration advocates from around the country to march from Malcolm X Park to the White House.


What a crowd! The immigration reform rallies I have been to in the past have usually been 'family' events marked by enthusiasm and passion--and this one was no different. What I saw was a group of workers standing up and standing together for better treatment. People who know that the labor they provide carries more value than they are receiving for it, and are raising their voices to call for real reforms now.

Why we as citizens don't do this more often, I don't know. I do know that putting a floor under the most vulnerable workers in this country will help maintain a standard of living for all of us. And this year's May Day theme emphasizing America's immigrant history - immigrant roots, immigrant rights -- couldn't have been more on target.

After getting fired up with a big crowd like the one in DC on Friday, I feel ready for the work it'll take to get this job done and finally pass smart, pragmatic immigration reform that supports all workers. !Si se puede!

http://www.seiu.org/2009/05/what-a-week ... reform.php

4thHorseman wrote:
"
The secret ballot is only part of the issue. The bill also requires binding arbitration, with the US Govt as arbitrator, if a union and a company cannot resolve contract issues/labor disputes within a specified period of time (90 days I believe). This is another power grab by the communists who are running our country to insert the government into private business affairs. We are not talking about ending strikes that adversely affect our national interest, such as President Truman intervening in the railroad strike in 1949/1950, or when President Reagan intervened in the Air Traffic Controller strike. This applies to ALL companies and ALL labor disputes."

Reply:
I stand corrected, and the above seems a even more serious reason to consider opposing this legislation. However, as to your other points about worker's rights, I think it may be unrealistic to expect someone who may be working 10 hours a day and trying to participate with family matters, too, to find the time to educate themselves on their rights. And, if they do, how are they act on these if they're being violated? Perhaps if you contact an appropriate government official and that agency intervenes, you may be subject to losing your job?

If you vote, that vote should be anonymous, just like our elections. To overturn that would be beastly--want a union, Jim? You are fired so Jose can take your place.
In FL, I ended up working a bunch of hours in a week (47 instead of the alloted 35) and while they did pay me for overtime, the bosses basically told me never, ever to report more hours than I was entitled to. They kept me at 35 hours, so they would not have to contribute to my 401(k) or pay for health insurance. Six years later, I told them to shove it.

Here is how they get away with working people 9 - 10 days in a row in FL.They make sure the 10 days is 5 in one week and 5 in the next week even though they are consecutive.

In states that do not have "Right to Work" you get paid overtime for ALL HRS. you work over 40 hrs. IF they are consecutive days with NO break in between.

So you see employers are abusing the Right to Work laws.It should be called the "Right to Abuse Employees" law.

And YES it is Legal but moraly dispicable.