Card check fight continues
Posted: Thursday, March 05, 2009 4:31 PM by Domenico Montanaro
From NBC's Domenico Montanaro
We posted on what the AFL-CIO was doing yesterday in pushing the Employee Free Choice Act, or card check, from its side, but its opponents, as we noted are also ratcheting up efforts.
The "Workforce Fairness Institute" frames the act as the Employee "Forced" Choice Act." And it equates increased union rolls with a potential loss of jobs -- in fact, 1.5 million more union members would mean a loss of 600,000 jobs, according to a study cited by the group.
Here's the full release:
The Workforce Fairness Institute today warned Congress not to pass the Employee Free ‘Forced’ Choice Act (EFCA) given a new study by noted economist Dr. Anne Layne-Farrar which reveals every three percentage points gained in union membership through card checks and mandatory arbitration would result in a one percentage point rise in the unemployment the following year.
The Employee ‘Forced’ Choice Act would take away a workers’ right to cast a secret ballot in union elections and allow the federal government to impose a contract on businesses which don’t yield to union demands within 90 days. The federal government would be able to saddle businesses with federal bureaucrats dictating workplace salaries, benefits, and rules.
According to the new study, An Empirical Assessment of the Employee Free Choice Act: The Economic Implications, an increase of 1.5 million union members in year one would lead to the loss of 600,000 jobs by the following year. Job losses directly attributed to the passage of the EFCA would be equal to the entire population of Boston, MA.
Dr. Layne‐Farrar concludes, “The costs [of EFCA] should be carefully weighed against any purported benefits of passing the Act, all of which appears to benefit some groups at the expense of others. There is no coherent theoretical argument that explains how the higher costs, greater legal uncertainty, and expanded government intervention entailed in EFCA would improve overall social welfare.”
“This study clearly shows how devastating the Employee ‘Forced’ Choice Act would be to our economy. If passed, we would see unemployment rise dramatically and the American people cannot afford legislation that further damages the economy. EFCA puts everything at risk – our jobs, businesses, sacred right to a secret ballot, and right to keep the federal government from setting wages and benefits,” said Katie Packer, executive director of the Workforce Fairness Institute. “Congress must reject the Employee ‘Forced’ Choice Act, which is nothing more than political payback to union bosses who want to increase their membership at the expense of workers, businesses, and the economy.”
