WASHINGTON — Faced with retail industry opposition, a House panel began considering a bill Thursday that could test organized labor’s clout with the new Democratic majority in Congress.
The legislation would require the National Labor Relations Board to develop a procedure for a union to be recognized if a majority of employees sign authorization cards — known as a “card check” system — choosing the union as their bargaining representative. It would instruct the NLRB to certify the union without giving employers the option of an secret election.
Under current law, there is no mandate that employers must recognize when a majority of workers sign the cards in favor of unionization. The employer then has to seek a secret ballot.
Retailers are concerned the legislation would ease the way for unions to organize their workers.
The bill would also strengthen penalties for employers who try to strong-arm workers seeking to organize by imposing civil fines of as much as $20,000 per violation.
“Most employers are not bad actors, however, I do believe the current structure of the representation process perpetuates the ability of a few employers to coerce employees without consequence,” Rep. Robert Andrews (D., N.J.), chairman of the House subcommittee on Health, Employment, Labor and Pensions, said in a statement. “I believe that restoring workers’ free choice through [the bill] is the only way to ensure that they have the right to bargain for fair wages and benefits.”
The support divided along party lines at the committee hearing on the Employee Free Choice Act, which was introduced by Rep. George Miller (D., Calif.) and has 232 co-sponsors, well above the 218 votes needed for passage in the House.
The panel heard from a group of workers who were allegedly intimidated and fired for supporting unions, as well as representatives of the AFL-CIO and U.S. Chamber of Commerce.
Rob Green, vice president of government and political affairs at the National Retail Federation, said the trade association has joined the Coalition for a Democratic Workplace, along with the American Apparel & Footwear Association, and will soon launch an aggressive lobbying campaign to fight the bill.
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“This legislation puts the opportunity to organize front and center in a retail environment,” Green said.
Chris Chafe, chief of staff at UNITE HERE, the primary apparel and textile workers union, said the legislation is “incredibly important” for workers because “it further legitimizes the possibility of alternative routes that workers and companies could choose.” Chafe said, “If Congress passes [the bill], it will create a different framework and conversation between employers and labor, and it will create conditions whereby it’s easier for workers to illustrate their interest in having a union.”