Big Money Scare Tactics

Are you scared yet? The Employee Free Choice Act is not that much different from current law. Current law allows for majority sign up or secret ballot. Current law lets management decide if workers can unionize. The Employee Free Choice Act keeps the majority sign up or secret ballot. What it changes is it lets workers decide if they want to form a union, without management/employer involvement. Taking away the secret ballot is a false statement that has gained tremendous spin from big corporations, like Wal Mart, McDonald's, Home Depot, and from the US Chamber of Commerce. Also business groups have poured money into the "no secret ballot" campaign. The way things are now, the law favors the employers. The Employee Free Choice Act is just that, it lets the workers decide, without harrassment, intimidation, threats, from employers if they want to form a union.

Two MSEA-SEIU Members Lobby on Capitol Hill

Two MSEA-SEIU members, Linda Morris and Helen Hanson, took part in SEIU's Change that Works Worker Mobilization on Capitol Hill last week.

Helen Hanson, SEIU's President Andy Stern, Linda Morris

The Worker Mobilization was around the Employee Free Choice Act. Linda and Helen, along with Subira Gordon from SEIU and members of the Communication Workers Association met with members of Senator Snowe's and Senator Collins' staff.

Senator Snowe's staff was encouraging in that they agreed to meet with workers during the Congressional break in April. These workers will get to meet with Senator Snowe herself and talk to her about the Employee Free Choice Act and what it will do to help workers form unions.

Senator Collins' staff expressed the senator's concerns over the secret ballot and what appears to be a loss of it. The workers meeting with her tried to explain that the Employee Free Choice Act does not take away the secret ballot if workers choose to form a union that way. The Employee Free Choice Act lets workers form unions by a majority sign up or by secret ballot if they choose. It stops the wrangling, threats, intimidation that employers and managers put workers through when they are trying to unionize. It also allows contract negotiations to start without the delay tactics management often times puts their unionized workers through.

Many workers have formed unions, just to have their contract negotiations stalled because management refuses to meet with them at the bargaining table.

While in Washington, D.C., SEIU held a rally in Lafayette Park, right outside the White House. Dana Graham, MSEA-SEIU's former president, spoke about issues facing workers while CEOs continue to make huge incomes at the expense of their workers. He spoke of workers rising trouble with health care and how incredibly expensive it is getting to be. He mentioned a neighbor of his that was skipping doses of her medications in order that her husband could have his.

SEIU also picketed outside the US Chamber of Commerce, across the street from Lafayette Park. The US Chamber of Commerce and other big business groups and coalitions are against Employee Free Choice. It scares them to think that they may wake up one morning to find that their workers have formed a union to collectively bargain for better wages, benefits and working conditions.

On March 11, the Employee Free Choice Act was introduced in the House of Representatives as HR1409. There was also a Senate hearing that day on Employee Free Choice. The committee that heard it was Health, Education, Labor and Pensions of which Senator Ted Kennedy is the chair. The full hearing can be found at the link above. The workers' testimony is excellent.

There was much more support in favor of Employee Free Choice than there was against it. We didn't get to hear the workers' testimony as we had to prepare for our meeting with Senator Snowe's staff.

The next step, here in Maine, is to get that meeting with Senator Snowe herself, and talk to her about what it is like trying to unionize and have management down your throat, watching your back side.

My story of joining the union has none of that intimidation. Managment at Home Care for Maine told workers that they were remaining neutral and that the choice was up to us. We did not suffer the intimidation and threats that many workers face when trying to unionize. We also were able to bargain our first contract within six months of forming a union. Not many workers have that success story.

Union Legislation Drive Begins in Congress

by Steve Greenhouse, New York Times, March 10, 2009 Senator Tom Harkin of Iowa on Capitol Hill Tuesday, March 10, 2009 Senator Tom Harkin of Iowa, who plans to introduce a bill on Tuesday that would make it easier to form unions, said in an interview, “We have enough votes to pass the bill in the Senate.” But then Mr. Harkin acknowledged, “I’m not sure if we have enough votes to overcome a filibuster.” Showing how close the vote might be, Mr. Harkin said the bill would probably not come up for a vote until late April or early May, at which point he expects Al Franken to be sworn in as a Democratic senator from Minnesota. That would give the Democrats, including two independents, a 59-seat majority, but it doesn’t guarantee that all Democrats will vote with their caucus to clear the 60-vote filibuster hurdle. Senator Edward Kennedy of Massachusetts, chairman of the Committee on Health, Education Labor and Pensions, is the main sponsor of the bill, and Mr. Harkin is the chief co-sponsor. The bill, known as the Employee Free Choice Act, would make it far easier for Americans to form unions by giving workers the right to unionize as soon as a majority of employees in a workplace sign cards saying they want a union. Business groups bitterly oppose the bill, fearing that it would create a surge in successful unionization drives. The U.S. Chamber of Commerce and other business groups have sent more than 150 business executives to Capitol Hill on Tuesday to lobby against the bill, denouncing it on the ground that it would allow unions to organize workers by largely bypassing secret ballot elections. Mr. Harkin was presiding over a hearing on Tuesday morning about the legislation, and hundreds of union members who were in town to lobby packed the hearing room to show support for the bill. Mr. Harkin and George Miller, chairman of the House Education and Labor Committee, are scheduled to hold a news conference after the hearing to announce that they are introducing the bill in their respective chambers on Tuesday. Mr. Harkin said he had about 40 Senate co-sponsors, while labor leaders say they expect Mr. Miller to have a majority of House members cosponsoring the bill. Democratic leaders and their labor allies may have a hard time securing the 60 votes needed to overcome a Senate filibuster because several Democratic senators who once supported cloture, including Mary Landrieu of Louisiana and Blanche Lincoln of Arkansas, have recently voiced ambivalence about the legislation. Moreover, Arlen Specter of Pennsylvania, the one Republican who supported the bill in previous Congresses, has also signaled that he might not back the bill this time around. The wavering senators are the focus of intense lobbying from business and labor. Steven Law, the U.S. Chamber’s general counsel and the official coordinating the chamber’s campaign against the legislation, predicted that Republicans and business had the votes to ensure that a filibuster succeeds. “We got a jump on organized labor on this bill last year,” Mr. Law said. “As a result a number of senators who were said to support the legislation are showing buyers’ remorse.” In that category, he pointed to Senators Landrieu and Lincoln, as well as two other Democrats: Mark Udall of Colorado and Mark Pryor of Arkansas. Bill Samuel, the A.F.L.-C.I.O’s legislative director, predicted in an interview that the bill would be enacted. “We’re confident it will pass the Senate and be signed by the president.” Mr. Samuel added: “I’m not surprised that some senators are saying they’re undecided because they’re getting attacked back home. It’s not unusual for a senator to say they’re undecided leading to a key vote.” At the hearing, Senator Lamar Alexander, Republican of Tennessee, denounced the bill, saying it should be called the “No Choice Act’’ because, he said, it would eliminate secret ballots. “If we’re looking for ways to be bipartisan in this town, this is clearly the most divisive issue in the Senate,” Mr. Alexander said. “It will divide us down the middle and slow down everything else that we want to work on.” Union officials respond that the legislation would not eliminate secret ballot elections because it would let workers choose whether to form unions through card checks or secret ballot elections. Under current law, management has the power to decide whether to recognize a union through card checks or secret ballot elections. Mr. Harkin said that enacting the Employee Free Choice Act was crucial to help rebuild the nation’s middle class. He said that under current law, it is far too easy for corporations to block unionization drives. “If you want to look at who built the middle class in America, it’s unions,” Mr. Harkin said.

Employee Free Choice Act just what Maine's economy needs

Maine Voices Making it easier to form a union will improve workers' odds of job security and prosperity. James J. Campbell, SR. and PENNI THERIAULT We write as a state legislator and a small business owner who share Mainers' deep concerns about the state of our economy. While the federal government enacted an economic stimulus package, more must be done if we are to rebuild the American middle class and emerge from this crisis. This does not mean we need more government spending. Mainers are fed up with Wall Street firms and giant banks getting billions of dollars in bailout money at a time when unemployment continues to rise, more families are losing their homes and health-care costs are skyrocketing. Instead, common sense solutions should be used to create good jobs that an support a family and put money back into our economy. Historically, no institution has been as effective at improving the quality of life for working families as membership in a union. Union members earn better wages, have better health-care coverage and can count on a more secure retirement than non-union workers. As current and former union members ourselves, we know that unions work. Who brought us the weekend? Unions. Who rose with unions? The middle class. It just makes sense. Tens of millions of workers would join a union if they could. The problem is that if they try, and their employer resists, workers have only about a 20 percent chance of success. This is because the current system for forming a union is unfairly tilted in the employer's favor. That's just wrong. It's un-American and one more example of greed and power run amok. That is why we believe it is essential for Congress to pass the Employee Free Choice Act, which will help Maine's economy get back on its feet by removing barriers to union membership and allowing workers, not just CEOs, to share in the economic success they help create on the job. The bill would enable workers to form a union when a majority of their co-workers sign cards indicating they want one. This puts the choice of how to form a union in the hands of workers, not corporations. Just as importantly, the act ensures that workers can freely choose to form a union without intimidation or harassment from their employers. And unlike the corporate bailouts costing taxpayers, and future generations of Americans, hundreds of billions of dollars, the Employee Free Choice Act doesn't cost taxpayers a dime. We are also both Republicans and some in our party oppose this bill. However, we do not view this issue through a partisan lens. We believe enabling more workers to form unions is about justice and fairness – bedrock principles that have guided our nation since its birth. For too long, big corporations have shunned these ideals and enriched themselves at the expense of America's working families. Today, the average CEO makes 344 times more than the average worker. So it is not surprising that CEOs and their Washington lobbyists oppose employee free choice. That opposition has taken the form of a multimillion-dollar is information campaign. The prime example is the role of the secret ballot election. Corporate interest groups claim the Employee Free Choice Act will eliminate elections as part of the union organizing process. This is simply false. The bill explicitly preserves and protects workers' rights to hold a secret ballot election when forming a union. The difference is that it is their choice whether to do so – not the corporations' or CEOs'. It is time to restore justice and fairness to our economy. Restoring the freedom of workers to form unions can play a central role in rebuilding a strong middle class that can drive the next era of American economic strength. When workers – from janitors to health-care workers – have been able to form unions, we see positive results for employees, for employers and for the public they serve. Representative James J. Campbell, Sr., R-Newfield, serves on the Health and Human Services Committee. Pennie Theriault is owner of Lots of Tots Child Care and president of Kids First, MSEA-SEIU. Published in the Portland Press Herald, March 12, 2009

Maine People's Alliance and the Employee Free Choice Act

The Storytellers Project – Maine workers tell it like it is!

Corporate interests are fighting the Employee Free Choice Act with everything they've got, but the power to win is in your voice! A growing, bipartisan coalition of lawmakers supports the Employee Free Choice Act, but to make sure Maine's entire congressional delegation is on board, Maine workers must tell their stories. Whether you're a member of a union or not, we want to hear from you!*

What are the workplace conditions and challenges you face in a non-union workplace?

What's happened when you or workers you know have tried to organize a union?

What kinds of benefits and conditions do you now enjoy as a union worker that you didn't have before? Help pass the Employee Free Choice Act in Congress! Learn how by emailing EFCA4ME@gwi.net or amy@mainepeoplesalliance.org

What is the Employee Free Choice Act? The Employee Free Choice Act would give workers the power to decide how they want to organize a union (by majority sign up or by ballot election) and to secure a contract with their employer in a reasonable period of time; it would also toughen penalties against employers who violate their workers' rights. Go to www.americanrightsatwork.org to learn more! Why is the Employee Free Choice Act so important to our economy? Protecting the right to form unions is about maintaining the American middle class. It's no coincidence that as union membership numbers fall there are growing numbers of jobs with low pay, poor benefits, and little to no security. A new nationwide poll that shows that a clear majority of members of America's middle class supports the Employee Free Choice Act. Overall, 68% of middle-class adults would have liked their representative in the U.S. House to vote for the bill. Specifically, 80% of Democrats, 60% of Republicans, and 59% of Independents polled were in favor of their representatives voting for the bill. Go to www.drummajorinstitute.org/library/report to learn more!

Why is it so important to workers? It's plain as day: workers are struggling in this country. Today's workplaces are tilted in favor of lavishly-paid CEOs, who get golden parachutes while middle-class families struggle to get by. The Employee Free Choice Act can restore the balance: We know that coming together to bargain with employers over wages, benefits, and working conditions is the best path to getting ahead. Workers who belong to unions earn 30 percent more than non-union workers, and are 63 percent more likely to have employer-provided health care.

Why is your story so important to success?? Corporate interests are fighting the Employee Free Choice Act with everything they've got. They're protecting the status quo – a rigged system which allows employers to intimidate, harass, and even fire workers who try to form a union – 30% of employers fire pro-union workers during union organizing drives. Don't let them win by using those same tactics of intimidation and harassment in the legislative process! A growing, bipartisan coalition of policymakers supports the Employee Free Choice Act – but we're not there yet...and we won't get there without you! Polls and statistics provide important information – but workers' stories are most persuasive and real life experiences can't be refuted. Please share your story – it's the most powerful tool we have! Stories can be emailed to amy@mainepeoplesalliance.org

*Your privacy will be protected – you need not reveal your name or where you work*

Political ad criticized from both sides

BY KEITH EDWARDS Staff Writer Kennebec Journal/Morning Sentinel AUGUSTA -- A political advertisement featuring an actor who played a mobster on "The Sopranos" apparently portraying a labor union boss, which is critical of U.S. Rep. Tom Allen, is being denounced by both the Allen and U.S. Sen. Susan Collins campaigns. Allen, a Democrat, and Collins, a Republican, are running against each other for the U.S. Senate. The ads, paid for by the Coalition for a Democratic Workplace, suggest Allen, because he was a co-sponsor of the Employee Free Choice Act, wants to deny workers the right to vote by secret ballot when deciding whether to join a union. The coalition is not affiliated with either of the campaigns. The issue of the Employee Free Choice Act aside, both campaigns said third party, negative campaign ads don't belong in Maine. "You've got a bunch of big corporations targeting Democratic candidates running for Senate," said Carol Andrews, spokeswoman for Allen's campaign. "They've put a lot of money behind these ad campaigns. In our state they're spending upwards of $800,000 bashing Tom Allen, unions, and Maine working people. It's a total insult and a slap in the face." Andrews said the ad seeks to demonize Maine's union workers, who include firefighters and shipbuilders. "They are not organized crime," Andrews said. While Andrews said the Allen campaign has publicly asked Collins to denounce the ads, she said the Collins campaign has been silent about the ads. However, on Friday, Collins' campaign spokesman Kevin Kelley denounced the ads, too. "Senator Collins' campaign has nothing to do with these ads, which are apparently running in several cities around the country," Kelley said. "Senator Collins has always denounced third-party ads like these and continues to believe that they should have no place in Maine politics." Coalition leaders said their most recent ad, developed by nationally known media strategist Mike Murphy and featuring actor Vince Curatola, who played gangster John "Johnny Sac" Sacramoni on the former HBO television series "The Sopranos," was an effort to use a recognized character and humor to make their point. The organization describes itself as a coalition of workers, employers, associations and organizations. Its members, according to a list on the organization's Web site, appear to be primarily made up of business and industry associations. Rhonda Bentz, a spokeswoman for the Coalition for a Democratic Workplace, said the organization has no ties to the Collins campaign. "They didn't even know we were running or creating," the ads, Bentz said. "We felt it is important in that there is an opportunity to educate Maine citizens there is a threat to private ballot election. Whoever gets elected to the Senate -- Allen or Collins -- it is likely, next year, they will be faced with how to vote on this issue." Regarding the Employee Free Choice Act issue, Kelley said Collins voted against the act because, "Just as every member of Congress is elected by secret ballot, she believes that employees should have the same right when it comes to determining union representation." However, Andrews noted the act would not take away workers' rights to vote by secret ballot. Instead, Andrews said, it would keep the option of a secret ballot vote, while also giving workers an additional option. She said the act adds the majority sign-up, or card check, process, in which workers seeking to form a union could sign cards indicating their desire to do so. Andrews said that process would be much quicker and make it easier for people to unionize. She said the current system allows the employer to direct when union elections would be held, and some employers can take advantage of the system to delay the process and "try to wear people down so they never do it." Bentz said the Employee Free Choice Act would leave the decision of whether to use secret ballots or the card check process in union elections up to union bosses and organizers. An almost identical ad, just featuring different candidates, has also run on television in Minnesota, where Democrat Al Franken is challenging incumbent Republican Sen. Norm Coleman. Keith Edwards -- 621-5647 kedwards@centralmaine.com

Corporate Attack Dogs Targeting Rep. Tom Allen for Support Working Families

Last week brought us news of Wal-Mart pressuring employees to vote against Democrats like Rep. Tom Allen who are fighting for working families. Now we’re learning that corporate front groups are taking it a step further and unleashing vicious, misleading attacks on Allen. Corporate-financed groups like the misnamed “Coalition for a Democratic Workplace” and “Center for Union Facts” are on the attack because Rep. Allen supports the Employee Free Choice Act to restore workers’ freedom to form unions and bargain without employer harassment. Across the country, these front groups are running misleading TV, radio and newspaper ads attacking candidates who are doing the right thing. It is important that Rep. Tom Allen knows you are behind him and the other candidates 100 percent. Please take a minute and tell Rep. Tom Allen that you appreciate their support for the Employee Free Choice Act. The Employee Free Choice Act, when enacted, will restore balance between corporate power brokers and workers trying to form unions. Right now, corporations have ALL the power— Corporations decide how workers will form their union. Corporations illegally fire workers for supporting a union. Corporations force workers into intimidation meetings with supervisors. Corporations threaten to shut down if workers unionize. Corporations delay contract negotiations. And corporate fines for violating our rights are so insignificant that these fines are treated as just a regular cost of doing business. And as a result, 60 million workers who want to join unions cannot. Which means millions of working men and women are intentionally denied the higher wages and better benefits that come with a union card—and America’s middle class dwindles. Please thank Rep. Tom Allen for supporting the Employee Free Choice Act. The Employee Free Choice Act isn’t complicated. It would enable workers to choose for themselves whether to form a union by majority sign-up or through a National Labor Relations Board election. It would strengthen penalties when corporations trample the rights of workers trying to organize and bargain. And it would ensure that once workers form a union, the company can’t indefinitely delay reaching a contract. With wages stagnating, prices rising, health and pension benefits disappearing and the middle class shrinking, what could be more important than giving every working man and woman a fair chance to bargain for a better life? Please take a moment to let Rep. Tom Allen know that you support the Employee Free Choice Act, too. Thank you. In solidarity, Working Families e-Activist Network, AFL-CIO

Some Myths about the Employee Free Choice Act

Sen. Collins uses same talking points and backs up lies of Union Busting group "Union Facts" It is outrageous that Senator Collins’s office issued a written statement using the exact same deceptive language as the Center for Union Facts (the recent anti union ads blanketting Maine) in misrepresenting the Employee Free Choice Act. Collins is showing her true colors and she's either choosing to so grossly mislead the Maine people on such an important piece of legislation or simply doesn’t understand it and uses the spin of Richard Berman’s anti-union front group. Senator Collins owes the Maine people an explanation on her misrepresentation of this important piece of legislation. She must also denounce the sleazy, deceitful ads of all the Berman front groups that are getting involved in Maine (Center for Union Facts, Employee Freedom Action Committee, etc.) The Center for Union Facts misrepresents the Employee Free Choice act to equate it with electing people to office. Their ad depicting classroom elections for school officers is deceptive as it states that this is exactly what unions want to do with the Employee Free Choice Act. The Employee Free Choice act is about forming unions, not about how to elect union officers. Unions in America elect officers by way of healthy democratic processes. No-one is advocating to change that. The question is: what is the best process to form a union in the first place. It is important to note that no – one voted on whether or not we should have a Maine legislature or a U.S. Congress, our votes are to elect the representatives. This is a very, very different process. In response to the EMLC press conference on Thursday, the Washington D.C. based Center for Union Facts’ managing director J. Justin Wilson told WLBZ: "In organizing elections people go and have a vote, just like election day in Maine," Wilson explained. "They want to switch to a system where a union organizer approaches you at your house and say sign this contract and theydon't even show you the fine print." Senator Collins is against the legislation, Felicia Knight, Collins' DeputyCampaign Manager issued a written statement addressing the ads."Senator Collins' campaign has nothing to do with these ads, which are currently airing in several media markets around the country. On the issue, Senator Collins strongly believes that all workers are entitled to their long-standing right to a secret ballot. It is ironic that a public servant, elected by a secret ballot, would vote to deny union employees the same right." Brewer: Union head slams ads By Eric Russell Saturday, June 07, 2008 - Bangor Daily News BREWER, Maine — Local union representatives are hitting back at a national nonprofit agency that has been running targeted television advertisements, including some in Maine markets, slamming labor practices. Jack McKay, president of the Eastern Maine Labor Council, said the Center for Union Facts of Washington, D.C., claims to support workers’ rights but "everything they do undermines workers." "The biggest thing, I think, is that these ads are deceitful and they misrepresent what unions are asking for," McKay said Friday of the ads, which ran on local NBC, ABC and CBS affiliates in recent weeks but have since stopped. "Truthfully, they know what we want and they are deliberately misrepresenting that." One of the ads in question portrays children voting in a class election and then depicts union bosses hijacking the process. The ad campaign is centered on the Employee Free Choice Act, a piece of legislation that has been supported by the U.S. House but has yet to make it through the Senate. Union supporters and many Democrats are in favor of the bill, but Republicans have generally opposed it. The Center for Union Facts claims the Employee Free Choice Act would strip workers of their right to vote privately when forming a union. McKay said unions have always conducted their elections in the open and will continue to do so. The reason the ads have flooded the Maine market is because of the contested Senate race between Sen. Susan Collins and U.S. Rep. Tom Allen, who have differing views on the Employee Free Choice Act. McKay said the ads are particularly outrageous because the Center for Union Facts is little more than a nonprofit arm of Berman Associates, a powerful Washington lobbying firm. McKay said its founder, Richard Berman, has represented interests of the tobacco and fast food industries. Center for Union Facts managing director J. Justin Wilson issued the following statement regarding the group’s advertising campaign in Maine: "Union bosses are the ones with a long history of corruption, deception, and mismanagement. Given that, we think Mainers should be especially concerned with their deceitful attempt to eliminate workers’ fundamental right to a private-ballot election when unionizing." McKay said his first instinct was to ignore the ads, but he wants the public to have both sides. "It was important for us to come out and denounce these ads because they received so much air time," he said. "And I’m sure we haven’t seen the last of them."