Will EFCA Be Enacted in 2009?

by | Apr 2, 2009 | Employee Free Choice Act

In Today’s Issue: Will EFCA Be Enacted In 2009? It’s the first question I get asked by just about everyone these days. It’s at the top of the mind of virtually every knowledgeable business leader in America. Everyone wants to know one thing: Will the Employee Free Choice Act be enacted this year? 1) On March 24th Arlen Specter announced his opposition to the Employee Free Choice Act and – most importantly – said that he would vote against cloture (method of closing a debate and causing an immediate vote without fully exploring the issue) . So is that the death of the Free Choice Act until 2011 (after the next round of Senate elections in November of 2010)? Very doubtful, for two reasons: 1. Unions have two immediate goals. Return on the hundreds of millions they invested in the 2008 election cycle and knowing exactly where they need to invest in 2010. There is really one good way to do that: force a vote on EFCA in 2009. That way unions can count noses and figure out who to go after in 2010 and then get some kind of compromise legislation (more on that in a minute). Then they’ll go to work on the Senate seats in 2010 so they can come back for the rest of their agenda with a (they hope) filibuster-proof majority in 2011. 2. Unions can’t leave the historical victory of 2008 with nothing to show for it. They’ve been left at the altar enough times to know that the only thing you can be sure about in politics is that you can’t be sure of anything. The opportunity to amend the National Labor Relations Act comes around about never. They’ll want some sort of compromise while they try to build on their 2008 victory. Unions are currently sitting at around 58 votes for EFCA. Some may argue it is a vote or two less than that because some “Blue Dog” Democrats won’t support it but I think conservatively you must assume that all or nearly all Democrats will, in the end, do what labor says. This goes back to the “counting noses” strategy. Any Democrat that announces opposition to EFCA is buying the full wrath of the labor movement in his or her next election. Mark it down: unions will demand revenge for any Democrat who bucks them on Free Choice. So being that close they only need a couple of Republicans to help them pass a compromise bill (by the way, one was already introduced in the House – you can download a copy of it at the end of this email). Who might those Republicans be? Well, Specter is one of them. If you didn’t actually read or hear Specter’s speech you probably want to do that – he already listed a whole heap of amendments to the labor laws that he would sign on to support (you can also download those at the end of this message), and most of them would have nearly the same effect as the EFCA. There has been speculation about some other “hardball” tactics to get EFCA passed in its current form this year (including blowing up the filibuster, a move threatened and nearly implemented in the 100th Congress) but I would look for some kind of compromise legislation sometime later this year. It most likely will include quick elections, but could also include “baseball” arbitration (that’s one of the things Specter mentioned he would support in his speech) and equal time provisions (in other words allowing union organizers onto your company property to meet with employees at work). The bottom line? This thing is far from over. You should keep updated on a daily basis on what is happening and prepare your company leadership for the possible compromise proposals (being on this email list is a great way to do that). Don’t let your guard down. And keep educated. Resources: Here are some of the key things you should consider “required reading” on the Free Choice Act. HR 1409 (the text of the EFCA of 2009) HR 1355 (the text of the EFCA compromise bill) Arlen Specter’s Law Review Article View Arlen Specter’s Speech (plus a transcript and the appendix) To your success, Phillip Wilson Next Time: Unions: Good or Evil?

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