


As Election Day nears, new research shows troubling signs for candidates who support the misnamed Employee Free Choice Act - or union "card check" legislation. The surveys conducted in the battleground states of Louisiana, New Hampshire and New Mexico are consistent with nationwide voter sentiment and with polls taken earlier this year in other states. The research also sheds additional light on the disparity between union workers around the country and union bosses in Washington regarding the Employee Free Choice Act (EFCA).
Faced with declining union membership, labor leaders have aggressively sought passage of the EFCA. Under the EFCA, workers would effectively lose their right to a private ballot when deciding whether to join a union. The private ballot would be replaced with a "card-check" scheme where a union is automatically recognized if a majority of workers simply sign a card; the workers' signatures are made public to their employer, the union organizers and their co-workers.
"It's clear there's a disconnect between the labor bosses in Washington, DC who are lobbying to effectively remove private ballots for workers, and rank and file union members who overwhelmingly support keeping their vote private when deciding whether or not to join a union," said Brian Worth, vice president of the Independent Electrical Contractors, Inc. and member of the Coalition for a Democratic Workplace. "Opposition to the Employee Free Choice Act is widespread among voters in Louisiana, New Hampshire and New Mexico, regardless of party affiliation and actually increases among union members themselves. Hopefully, candidates are listening," added Worth.
Highlights from the surveys include:
-- Two-thirds of Louisiana voters (67%), seven in ten New Hampshire voters (71%), and nearly eight in ten New Mexico voters (78%) agree that secret ballot elections are the cornerstone of democracy and should be kept for union elections. Agreement with this statement increases among union households to 78% in Louisiana, 75% in New Hampshire and 87% in New Mexico.
-- At least seven in ten voters in Louisiana (71%), New Hampshire (73%) and New Mexico (77%) say that having a federally supervised secret ballot election is the best way to protect workers' rights when organizing a union. Among union households, this sentiment increases to 80% in Louisiana, 81% in New Hampshire and remains consistently high in New Mexico (78%).
-- The majority of voters in Louisiana (63%), two-thirds of New Hampshire voters (68%), and seven in ten New Mexico voters (72%) oppose Congress' "Employee Free Choice Act". Among union households, opposition to the legislation increases to 68% in Louisiana and to 76% in New Mexico. Union household opposition to the EFCA in New Hampshire remains consistently high at 69%.
-- A plurality of voters in Louisiana would be less likely to vote for Mary Landrieu (45%) if she supports the EFCA. In New Hampshire, 46% of voters would be less likely to vote for Jeanne Shaheen if she supports this legislation. More than four in ten voters in New Mexico (44%) would be less likely to Tom Udall if he supports this legislation.
More information about each statewide poll can be found at www.MyPrivateBallot.com.
(marketwatch.com)