Secret Ballot Watch

A recent MediaNews Group editorial that appeared in California’s Contra Costa Times praised Sen. Dianne Feinstein for her reluctance to support the Employee Free Choice Act, whose card check provision is a “slap in the face to democratic principles.”

The newspaper chain makes an effective case against legislation to do away with secret ballot unionizing elections. Its arguments echo the concerns of Republicans who have proposed an alternative to EFCA that would permanently guarantee all workers access to a secret ballot in workplace organizing elections. As the editorial notes:

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“Secret ballot elections are not mandated now. However, employers can, and usually do, require them. Under card check, employers no longer would be able to demand an election, which means they are likely to be rare. 

“Without an election, union organizers would be able to persuade workers, one by one, to sign a card. Once 50 percent plus one worker in a business or division of a business signed, the union would automatically be recognized. 

“It is upsetting that legislation to eliminate one of the fundamental rights of American workers, a secure secret-ballot vote, has gained so much strength. … 

“The privacy of the voting booth is the one place where no worker needs to feel intimidated by employers or union organizers.” 

Editorial, “Feinstein Right To Back Away From Bad Labor Bill,” Contra Costa Times (Calif.), 10.20.09 

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Republicans have argued for years that the only way to truly ensure workers are free from intimidation or public pressure when voting on whether to form a union is to guarantee access to a secret ballot election.

That’s where the Secret Ballot Protection Act comes in. Introduced earlier this year, the bill assures workers that no one – not union organizers, not co-workers or management – will know how they voted.

The editorial noted that Feinstein, D-Calif., is often a “reliable supporter” of unions, so her wariness to back a proposal so heavily favored by Big Labor speaks volumes.

There are many & many reasons why EFCA should not pass, but this editorial does raise a good point: If a “reliable supporter” such as Feinstein is not backing it, why should anybody else? Especially when a commonsense alternative exists to protect workers’ rights – rather than denying them.

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