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Andrew Cline has been editorial page editor of the New Hampshire Union Leader since October of 2001. His writing has appeared in more than 100 newspapers and magazines, including The Wall Street Journal, The Washington Post, and National Review.John Sununu: Secret ballots for them, but not you
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By JOHN SUNUNU
Sunday, Sep. 7, 2008
FAMILIES across New Hampshire celebrated Labor Day last week, and we should all take a moment to appreciate the strength and resilience that American workers bring to our economy every day. Equally important, we should keep the rights of those workers foremost in our minds.
Yet, just the week before, in Denver, the Democratic National Convention passed a platform that would deny those same workers the right to secret ballot elections for union representation. The convention delegates who voted on the platform were largely chosen by secret ballot; the members of Congress who attended were elected by secret ballot; and the presidential election itself will be determined by secret ballot in cities and towns across the country on Nov. 4.
It's hard to imagine the audacity required for these elected officials to deny that same fundamental opportunity to America's workforce.
Private ballot elections, or the right to vote in secret, have been a fundamental article of faith in free societies for so long that it's hard to imagine it ever being otherwise. Americans haven't thought of having it any other way for more than two centuries, and most of us are shocked to hear that there are still places in the world where the right to vote one's conscience is commonly denied.
Despite this history, on March 1, 2007, the House of Representatives voted nearly along party lines to strip workers of the right to a secret ballot in voting for or against a union. The Senate defeated the legislation, but only by the slimmest of margins. Now union bosses are calling in favors, demanding that this law be part of the liberal party platform.
The so-called "Employee Free Choice Act" is anything but. By reversing the decades-long practice of secret ballots at the workplace, its enactment would force workers to stand up and declare their vote in front of both union bosses and employers -- subjecting them to intimidation and coercion by both. Far from granting free choice, the legislation promises to deny it at the workplace and to potentially erode the foundations of free elections everywhere else.
It's no secret why big labor interests are pushing the bill. Over the last few decades, union membership in America has plunged from 34 percent of the workforce to 12 percent today. Union bosses are rightly worried about their political future, and they are asking the Democrats in Congress to do their dirty work.
Not long ago, both parties in Congress stood up to defend the secret ballot. In 2001, a group of Democrats in the House sent a strongly worded letter to government officials in Mexico urging them to reconsider a similar measure there: "We feel the secret ballot is absolutely necessary to ensure that workers are not intimidated into voting for a union they might not otherwise choose," they wrote.
It's hard to disagree with that.
Indeed, the vast majority of Americans, including union members, do agree. Recent surveys show that 78 percent of union members think Congress should keep the law the way it is. Other surveys show that 89 percent of people believe that secret ballots better protect the individual rights of workers. Even the bill's authors realize that a secret-ballot vote is preferable: they may be calling for a publicly declared vote in forming a union, but, incredibly, their bill requires a secret ballot to disband one!
Casting a ballot free from intimidation is essential to our democracy.
For more than 200 years, the United States has enshrined in our election system that every American has the right to vote their conscience privately without coercion.
We should stand to protect the same right for the American worker. In Denver, a group of political elites did just the opposite.
John Sununu, a Republican, represents New Hampshire in the U.S. Senate.
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YOUR COMMENTS
As usual, Mr. Murphy couldn't be more wrong.
For facts, try http://edlabor.house.gov/micro/efca_myth.shtml
- MS, Concord
"would deny those same workers the right to secret ballot elections for union representation"
As Robert pointed out, this is a lie. The bill would not remove the option of having a secret ballot, it merely gives people a choice.
This is either ignorance or deliberate misrepresentation of this bill on the part of Mr. Sununu. Neither reflects well on him.
- Dan Brent, Manchester
Mr. Owen and Mr. Mann,
Please lets not continue to spread falsehoods about the deceptively named Employee Free Choice Act. The act is a major overhaul in the National Labor Relations Act and has now become the centerpiece of the democratic platform so we should be honest in what EFCA will do. First, EFCA will eliminate the use of private ballot elections to determine a workers interest in joining a union, free from the intimidation of a union organizer standing over them or an employer for that matter. EFCA allows the union to choose the method of election rather than the business owner in the NLRA current form. Under EFCA, the union organizers will know exactly who does or does not want to join the union opening employees upto coercion, peer pressure, and intimidation. Why would organizers want a secret ballot election when they could know exactly who supports them and who does not. The act removes the private ballot by not allowing the employer to ask for a private ballot election in which the true preferences of their employees can be determined. Finally, Mr Owen read your quote from the bill again
"a majority of employees in an appropriate unit has signed authorizations designating the union as its bargaining representative" No mention of a private ballot there. If any groups have contributed to the declining fortunes of American Workers it is the Labor Unions increasing labor cost and decreasing production quality and output making American products inferior in a global market and raising the cost of doing business in this country. Jobs are being shipped away because of Unions increasing the cost of even being in business and ovetime has been lost because companies can't take on higher labor costs to produce inferior products. The American worker is still the best worker however the union has made them less competitive and increased the cost of goods and services just look at the growth of government. For those who do want the facts go to www.unionfacts.com
- Matt Murphy, Hampstead
Thank you Senator John Sununu. Secret ballots are important. People should not be coerced into voting a certain way. I am NOT a fan of Senator Sununu. I ran against him in the 2002 Republican United States Senate primary. I disagree with him on many issues. I do agree with him on this issue.
If unions want to increase their wealth and power, they should buy the majority of stock in many small companies and become majority investors in many startups and make the decisions.
Unions might have more members if they support more policies that are beneficial to unions and their members. Unions and their members would be wealthier if they buy stock in many companies and mutual funds and encourage Congress to pass a law that eliminates taxation of interest from savings accounts and dividends. Millions of middle class people obtain dividends. Unions and their members would benefit more from the sales of stocks and mutual funds they own if the capital gains tax is eliminated. The more capital available to businesses the more people they are able to hire and the more money they are able to spend on job training, research & development, and plant & equipment.
I would like Congress to pass a 2 percent national sales tax that is placed on most items other than food, shelter, health care, and education. If the national sale tax is adopted, the federal income tax on individuals and businesses should be reduced at the same time. Some of the money obtained from the national sales tax could be used to fund Social Security and Medicare.
- Ken Stremsky, Manchester, NH
Wouldn't you think a sitting senator would know the truth about what is in bills? Well, actually not as few people actually read them. This bill allows organizers to decide whether or not to have a secret ballot. Is that the same as outlawing a secret ballot? Only if you think preventing stem cell research helps medical research or that drilling everywhere will have any effect on gas prices before ten years have gone by. That's our Senator Sunoco.
- Robert Mann, Deerfoe;d
Senator Sununu,
As a ferocious opponent of workers rights and unionization you have done more to strip workers of rights than any other NH elected official in history.
The Employee Free Choice act is a proposal that will allow anyone to join a union without having to go through years of legal battles and intimidation. If you are so concerned about the ballots why did you not request a change in the wording of the bill? If this was the only point of contention for Republicans why was there no negotiation?
Here is what the Senator is talking about.
“Certification on the Basis of Signed Authorizations
Provides for certification of a union as the bargaining representative if the National Labor Relations Board finds that a majority of employees in an appropriate unit has signed authorizations designating the union as its bargaining representative. Requires the Board to develop model authorization language and procedures for establishing the authenticity of signed authorizations.”
In other words a board has to verify the authenticity of the request. You can read the entire act (S. 1041) here
http://www.americanrightsatwork.org/employee-free-choice-act/resource-library/employee-free-choice-act-bill-summary-hr-800/s-1041.html
Where were you Senator Sununu when they were taking overtime away? Where were you when they shipped all our jobs away? Where were you during these and so many other events that have hurt the American worker? Oh yea, you were busy voting against the American worker over and over and over again.
Do you really think that we’re going to buy your sudden change of heart when your vote record shows a long history of voting against the American worker?
Nice spin Mr. Senator but it’s not going to work, we will be laying you off in November pack your bags.
- Jim Owen, Raymond NH
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