EFCA Update: Compromise Coming?
Last week here on the Blawg, we discussed a Washington Post article that called the Employee Free Choice Act (EFCA) “flawed” and ”imperfect” but criticized business groups for refusing to engage in compromise talks.
Business’ Response
Click here for a response to the Post article from the Coalition for a Democratic Workforce (CDW).
CDW points to recent data showing that unions win more than two thirds of elections under the existing process and says: “Only in Washington can special interests winning two-thirds of the time see a crisis requiring a legislative fix that would place unreasonable burdens on small businesses and dismantle worker privacy rights.”
CDW also asserts that The Post ”disregarded the impact” that various compromises, including “quickie” elections, would have on small businesses. According to CDW: ”Most small-business owners do not have legal or human resources departments to assist them in following complicated NLRB election procedures. They are focused on running their businesses. Professional union organizers are experts at the process and at manipulating it.”
Compromise Imminent?
According to the Congressional Quarterly, it appears that support among Democrats for the various EFCA compromises is anything but solid.
Describing Senator Tom Harkin’s (D-IA) efforts thus far, Mark Pryor (D-AR) said: “Senator Harkin may be further along the path than I realize, but purely from my perspective I wouldn’t say we’re even in a ‘working group’ stage yet.” Pryor predicted the earliest EFCA could be addressed would be “the next work period, but I don’t know if that’s realistic.”
Other prominent democrats, including Blanche Lincoln (D-AR) and Mary Landrieu (D-LA) say they haven’t been included in the discussions. “I don’t support the card check bill as it is written,” Lincoln said. “If it’s another bill, if there’s something else they’re trying to accomplish, if somebody wants to bring labor and management together to come up with a compromise that they can both agree on, I’m certainly willing to look at that. But I don’t think that’s what’s happening.”
Stay tuned.