Posted on 03/04/2009 10:36:09 AM PST by BGHater
Al Franken could be the missing piece of the puzzle for passage of the labor movement’s No. 1 legislative priority this Congress, a senior union official said Wednesday.
Once seated, the Democratic Minnesota Senate candidate would be the 60th vote for cloture in the Senate on the Employee Free Choice Act (EFCA), said Bill Samuel, director of government affairs for the AFL-CIO.
“That is likely to be the case. We are not giving up on other senators,” Samuel said. “In the very worst case, we are going to have to have Al Franken.”
Franken has not been seated as of yet because he is still caught in a legal battle with his Republican opponent, incumbent Norm Coleman. Franken won an official recount for the Senate seat last year, but Coleman is challenging that decision in court.
Samuel said once Franken is seated, the unions are confident they will have the necessary 60 votes in the Senate to move the bill. If Franken defeats Coleman’s legal challenge, that would leave 59 senators caucusing with the Democrats in the upper chamber.
Last Congress, after easy passage in the House, the legislation died in the Senate after earning only 51 votes to close off debate. Sen. Arlen Specter (Pa.) was the only Republican to vote with Democrats on the procedural move.
If passed, the legislation, sometimes called “card-check,” would allow workers to bypass secret-ballot elections to form a union if a majority of them sign petition cards stating their intention to organize.
The bill has set off a furious lobbying battle between labor unions and business associations. Labor groups support the bill because it should give more workers collective bargaining rights and consequently better wages and benefits. The business community opposes it because it believes it will lead to more strikes and hurt its revenue.
Samuel and other union leaders briefed the press Wednesday on their campaign for EFCA. The labor representatives are confident that they will have a majority of support in the House and the Senate this Congress for passage of the bill.
They also expect the White House to be fully engaged in the process. In a video message Tuesday to the AFL-CIO’s executive council meeting in Miami, President Obama said the bill will pass.
“As we confront this crisis and work to provide healthcare to every American, rebuild our nation’s infrastructure, move toward a clean-energy economy and pass the Employee Free Choice Act, I want you to know that you will always have a seat at the table,” Obama said.
Samuel said he expected the bill to be introduced in Congress in the coming days or weeks. The legislation will come out soon, confirmed Capitol Hill aides. But at least one labor group was expecting the bill as soon as Monday.
“On Monday, March 9, Congressman George Miller and Sen. Ted Kennedy are expected to introduce the Employee Free Choice Act into the House of Representatives,” read a press release on Tuesday from the L.A. County Federation of Labor.
But Democratic aides said lawmakers have not yet picked a day for when to introduce the bill.
“We have not made a decision on timing for introduction of the bill,” said Aaron Albright, spokesman for the House Education and Labor Committee. Miller (D-Calif.) is chairman of the committee.
Samuel also said he was not aware of any move to introduce the bill next week.
“I am not sure where they got their information. As far as I know, there has been no decision made,” Samuel said.
Heh.
That's an order to the Minnesota courts.
-PJ
Yes, but what happens after it gets passed and the country figures out what it really is ...
Good old Specter. I was wondering where they were going to get a Republican vote. Should have known.
I hearing some rumors that Evan Bayh (D-IN) may be changing his position on this bill. Hope so...
They ought to barbeque that one!
Take a look at the large cities that dying and you will find a democrat machine entrenched. The is usually a strong union influence too.
ROTFLMAO. Labor groups support it because it means more dues paying members and fatter pay checks for union bosses. Meanwhile, some workers may get wage and benefit increases while others are going to be unemployed when the company decides it just ain't worth it anymore.
destroy America. where will the union jobs be after all the companies shut down?
#4-
then it will be too late
destroy America. where will the union jobs be after all the companies shut down?’
Let’s say I have a small company that hires 4 people, plus me and my spouse.
I would make sure that the ‘ownership’ of the company changed- with each of the 4 employees haveing a 2% position, and my spouse and me having the remaining 92%.
Then I would pay them as “owners” and NOT as employees. That would also mean that when there wasn’t money to pay them, they waited-—just like myself and my spouse have on numerous occasions. They would also get to see where the company was wasting money and where it could be tightened up.
I learned this many years ago when the union capitulated to a company by having a $900/month turnaround in pay between the older "favored" employees and the younger guys with families and mortages....
its pure income distribution plain and simple.
Just like the MulatObama administration. A redistribution of our money to those who choose not to work or follow the rules. Hmmmmm. Interesting.
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