Unions Take Aim at North Carolina on All Fronts:
Clear Evidence of International and National Action
Despite North Carolina’s current ranking as one of the least-unionized states in the country, it may be a serious case of “calm before the storm.” Recent actions by union organizations could result in an explosive growth of union activity in the nation, and specifically North Carolina.
Feeling emboldened, unions have launched significant efforts to increase their presence and power. Facing declining membership, in recent years unions have stepped up their efforts to expand their presence nationally and in our state. Our Chamber, in our efforts to maintain and improve North Carolina’s competitive position state-to-state, has been keeping a keen eye on recent union actions which could threaten our state’s ranking as one of the least-unionized, pro-business states in the nation.
Unions Not Giving up Fight for Secret-Ballot Elections
As part of a broad, national coalition, our Chamber fought last year to prevent passage of a federal bill that the unions call the “Employee Free Choice Act.” (It should be more appropriately labeled the “Way to Force Workers to Join Unions and Take Their Money Act.”) This bill would have taken away employees’ individual rights to a federally supervised private ballot when deciding whether to join a union.
For unions organizing elections, the legislation would replace the secret ballot with a system called “card check,” where union organizers could pressure workers publicly to sign a card stating they want to join a union. Workers who chose not to could easily be targeted and harassed by co-workers who are often union organizers and leaders under this system. Workers would never have the option of voting against union membership; therefore, millions of workers could be forced into a union through peer pressure and coercion.
Our Chamber remains dedicated to a long-term commitment to prevent this bill from passing, recognizing the enormous impact it would have on North Carolina employers. Cards are not votes; not only are the employers cut out of the process with this proposed union method aimed at increasing membership rolls, but the request to unionize doesn’t even originate with the workers under this system.
Freedom of choice for individual workers is a matter that should be at the center of labor relations policy, and a secret-ballot election should remain the only method of gauging choice. (Imagine if we were all forced to vote for the next President of our nation or Governor of our state via card check – where co-workers and colleagues are all pressuring each other to publicly mark one candidate or another in an all-out effort to gain 50-percent plus one of the collective “check offs” in the organizations where we work!)
While our Chamber reported late last year that the bill did not receive the necessary support for a U.S. Senate vote after passing the U.S. House, it is imperative that we remain vigilant in regard to union activities aimed at bringing this bill back up for a vote. Action as recent as December indicates clearly that the unions are most definitely not giving up the fight.
In December 2007, the AFL-CIO sent out a wide-spread action alert stating, “In honor of International Human Rights Day, tell your U.S. Senators to pass the Employee Free Choice Act and protect the fundamental human right to organize. The campaign to pass the Employee Free Choice Act won’t end until we have restored to U.S. workers the freedom to form unions and bargain collectively for a better life. The fight is on, and we will keep going until we win.”
This was a clear-cut message by unions: The fight is on and will continue. As unions make their message clear our Chamber will deliver our pro-employees, pro-jobs message with a united business community to prevent the passage of this harmful legislation. These cards are not a reliable signal of an individual’s true interest in joining a union and we must prevent union expansion based on coerced support among our workers and help protect their individual rights.
Expanded Union Efforts
To Remove Collective Bargaining Ban in NC
Expanding collective bargaining is imperative to the labor movement and they have made clear they are willing to go far to grow their influence in North Carolina. Our state has had a longstanding prohibition on collective bargaining by public employees (city, county and state employees), and the union movement is working hard to undermine this valuable competitiveness policy. Unions are using creative measures not only on the national level, but also internationally to remove the ban on collective bargaining by government employees in our state.
Unions Take their Efforts Internationally
- A labor union in 2006 took its efforts to reverse North Carolina’s collective bargaining ban to the International Labor Organization. UE Local 150 filed an official complaint accusing North Carolina of violating international labor law. The complaint followed a public hearing in Raleigh where state workers gathered in protest about their lack of collective bargaining rights.
- As recently as December, the NC Public Services Workers Union filed a complaint with the Mexican Labor Ministry. The complaint asserted that North Carolina’s collective bargaining ban was in violation of the North American Free Trade Agreement claiming that labor conditions are being violated.
Unions use Covert Tactics in Congress
- A national police union recently lobbied Congress to creatively insert a collective bargaining amendment into an unrelated Farm Bill. The amendment would have established minimum federal standards for state collective bargaining laws for public safety officers. Among these standards was notably the right of public safety officers to join a union.
This bill had the potential for serious implications in states where policy prohibits public-sector employees from collectively bargaining and striking. If the federal government passed minimum federal standards for collective bargaining for public safety workers, then are public safety workers in NC automatically eligible for collective bargaining under the federal standards? And what of non-public safety government employees? If one group gains collective bargaining rights, how long would it be before others do and unions take over state and municipal governments in our state?
Thanks to efforts by the National Sheriffs’ Association and other pro-jobs, pro-employee rights organizations the amendment was withdrawn. While this was a victory for all who care about the future of our state and country in terms of competing for jobs in a global economy, it is a short-term victory. The unions have made clear that they are not giving up the fight. The National Association of Police Organizations stated in a release to its members: “The fight to pass the collective bargaining bill in the U.S. Senate is now more focused and we are putting all of our efforts into ensuring its passage. Next year is a new Congressional session and we are optimistic that we can build on our broad bipartisan support and move the bill successfully in 2008.”
Unions Vow to Take Center Stage in 2008 Elections
A recent Wall Street Journal article outlines labor’s vigor in the upcoming elections, saying that “big labor is growing new political muscles and is now the single-strongest force in elections outside the two national political parties.” AFL-CIO President John Sweeney has vowed to spend $200 million on the 2008 elections and field 200,000 volunteers.
As the union movement is gaining momentum with a united front both nationally and at the state level, North Carolina’s business community must equally join forces and build momentum to prevent the labor movement’s anti-business agenda from becoming America’s agenda. Our Chamber sees these recent actions as a wake-up call to the business community and we are paying close attention.
Please let our Chamber hear from you on this important issue. Take a few seconds to answer the poll question on the left-hand side of this interactive e-newsletter. As manufacturers in the fifth-largest manufacturing state in America, let us know how important recent union efforts to replace secret-ballot elections with a card-check system and overturn North Carolina’s ban on collective bargaining by city, county and state is to your business.
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