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Originally posted at the Huffington Post, David Nassar writes that Wal-Mart in America’s big cities was a bad idea 5 years ago - and is still a bad idea today. That’s why Wal-Mart Watch activists in New York, Chicago and LA have sent over 25,000 letters to their city councils, and more than 1,500 state legislators around the country have been told by their constituents that new Wal-Mart plans should be called off until a worker safeguard like the Employee Free Choice Act is passed.

Wal-Mart in Chicago, New York and L.A. without EFCA? A bad idea

While most of America’s businesses are struggling through the recession, Wal-Mart and the Walton Family are raking in billions in profit. There’s nothing wrong with making money - but the rest of us are getting poorer as a result. Whether it is the low wages the Waltons pay, the taxes that the company expertly dodges or the subsidies Wal-Mart demands, the average American is helping the Walton family get richer every day.

That behavior has been a drag on Wal-Mart’s reputation and a primary reason why the company has had such a hard time entering high-income communities and first tier urban markets like New York City, Chicago and Los Angeles. Now, however, it’s clear that Wal-Mart wants to use the cover of the recession and the promise of new jobs to enter the same communities that have rejected it in the past.

Unfortunately, Wal-Mart hasn’t changed - only the economy has.

Given Wal-Mart’s low-margin, high-volume business model, it has always been dependent on rapid growth to stay alive. Over the past two decades, Wal-Mart’s growth plan has been simple: build as many supercenters in suburban and rural America as possible. But in the past few years, Wal-Mart has had to hit the brakes on its expansion after saturating most of the country and leaving itself few places to grow.

Still, America’s big cities remain largely untapped by the company. Millions of Americans live relatively Wal-Mart-free existences in the metropolitan areas of Chicago, New York, Los Angeles, D.C. and Philadelphia, among others. Now that Wal-Mart sees a moment of weakness, it is poised and ready to strike.

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The week has come and gone, and as always, we have collected the best stories sent to us from employees all over the country about their experiences at Wal-Mart.

The following stories are full of raw and honest commentary from past and current employees regarding everything from cut hours to poor work environments.

This week, we heard from employees about the daily struggles associated with a low wage position, how managers are manipulating hours, and how a lack of air conditioning can lead to unbearable working conditions.

Our first story comes from an anonymous employee in Iowa:

This is an interesting web site. I visit daily and read the associate letters. One reason I do is so I can find out if the rules/hours/pay… whatever...changes are really coming from home office or they are just our management making changes. I am a LONG term assoc. and have had this game played on me a lot in the last 20+ years. The new one now is the total overhaul of our scheduling. People being slotted to work where they have no training. For example, IMS slotted to CSM...and being made to do so with no idea how to do the job. Floor assoc. put up on the registers who don’t even have sign on numbers and have never run a register. Seems like they are setting people up to fail. We are told home office is making the schedule and management has no control. Hours are being slashed. I have seen sales slump for a while before and they cut us all back for a while but I’ve never seen a response like this. The management team we have in our store is so under trained.

Our store manager has to be the worst I’ve seen. The store has turned into a mess. We used to have an outlet to voice concern but with the new “Market Management “ team approach the open door policy has gone out the window.They come into the store and don’t talk to anybody but managment then walk out leaving us with pages and pages of notes. Is this going on everywhere? All I know for sure is Sam is rolling over in his grave. Walmart is not the same as it was when he was in charge. Sure retail will change with the times but the culture of Sam has died. This company is no longer family oriented. Seems all they are worried about is money.

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As you know, the Wal-Mart Watch community in New York, Chicago and LA has been rising up to voice their opposition to Wal-Mart’s attempt to exand into their city urban expansion.

The response in the Big Apple has been particularly impressive. Well over 15,000 letters were sent to all 51 New York City council members from all five boroughs concerning the negative impact that Wal-Mart will have on New York City businesses and community culture.  Several of you have already sent in responses received from your NY councilmembers - who have enthusiastically supported you in your stand against Wal-Mart - and for Employee Free Choice.

Here are a few of your letters:

I understand that Wal-Mart is interested in opening stores in Manhattan at Union Square, in Chelsea, or along Sixth Avenue. I strongly oppose the opening of a Wal-Mart store in our city. We who live in New York City have no need for a retailer that pays low wages and fails to provide quality health care for its employees, driving them to the use of hospital emergency rooms, thereby contributing to the increase in the cost of health care for the rest of us. Wal-Mart’s cost requirements encourage the payment of low wages to the employees of its suppliers, thus allowing it to become an unfair competitor and leading to the closing of many of its local business competitors. These actions of Wal-Mart drain money from our communities. If the Employee Free Choice Act, currently in Congress, were passed, then, and only then, would the arrival of Wal-Mart on the scene in New York City make any sense.  Wal-Mart workers would then have a chance to bargain for fair salaries and decent benefits and working conditions.  And, Wal-Mart would be forced to compete on an even playing field with its competitors who often are products of the neighborhoods they serve. I hope you’ll do whatever you can to support this crucial legislation as it makes its way through Congress. In this way, you will protect our city and its workers.  And, perhaps, make it possible for a newer, kinder, better Wal-Mart to evolve.

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I’ve heard that Wal-mart might be opening a store in Union Square and I am absolutely appalled.  For starters, I’ve lived in the building directly across from the space, (old circuit city/ Virgin Mega store), for nearly 8 years.  Wal-mart is absolutely antithetical to what NYC is to me, not to mention as anti-nyc neighborhood as it gets.  We need more small businesses hiring people at respectable wages to boost the city, and the people living here.  Wal-mart certainly won’t help me, a tax payer paying directly into the district. I know my local bodegas, my local drugstore, my local clothing shops, my local specialty nooks. These places probably can’t compete with a place like Walmart.  I’ve already seen my favorite East Village bagel shop get muscled out by hot and crusty… And my favorite clothing shops muscled out by rising rent.  And these are the places that make NYC what it is, and bring people to live here, and tourists to visit.  That space in Union Square is PRIME location, and Union Square is the true heart of the city.  Fill it with Walmart, and you kill the heart of the city. Please.  I’m pleading with you, I voted for you, to give me my voice in matters such as these.  And right now, I’m asking you to use your power to oppose Wal-Mart. Thank you for protecting our city.

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It isn’t EFCA, but this week the Oregon legislature took its own step towards ending employer intimidation towards employees seeking to form a union. The Oregon Senate passed Senate Bill 519 - the Worker Freedom Act - by a 16-14 vote. The vote nearly split down party lines, with 16 Democrats voting in favor, and 12 Republicans (plus two Democrats) voting against. The measure now moves to the Oregon House, where a similar bill passed in 2007.

Senate Bill 519, which moved to the House on a 16-14 vote, bars businesses from requiring workers to attend company-organized meetings about politics — including union organizing — and religion. There are exceptions for churches and political parties.

The House bill passed 31-27 in 2007, and five more Democrats have since joined the state house. So, needless to say, the measure’s chance of becoming law are looking pretty good.

With public and legislative support behind the bill - 88% of Oregonians, in a December poll, said they did not think an employer should be allowed to force workers to attend meetings about the employer’s opinion on politics, religion, or union organizing - Oregon’s AFL-CIO President appeared surprised in an April email alert that Republicans were fighting the measure so strenuously. As you will note, the bill doesn’t bar the meetings from taking place - it simply bars employers from taking retribution against employees who choose not to attend meetings on politics, religion or union organizing during work hours.

“SB 519 simply states that an employer can’t discipline or fire a worker for opting out of a meetings on one of these topics. Are our Senators, and are the business associations who opposed this bill, upset that we are limiting their right to fire a worker who disagrees with their political or religious views? That’s all this bill does.”

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As you may have seen, last week we rolled out a new initiative to stop Wal-Mart’s plan to use the cover of recession to sneak in to Chicago, New York City, and Los Angeles.

Since then, supporters across the country have sent thousands of letters urging their local city council members to refuse to even discuss Wal-Mart development plans until the Employee Free Choice Act is passed to safeguard their communities. The WMW team would like to thank everybody who wrote in to their local elected officials.

Particularly strong in their effort were New Yorkers. One letter that was particularly articulate, passionate, and well reasoned was sent to by Bill Millard, a resident of NYC. Thanks to Bill for giving us permission to publish the letter in its entirety:

Dear Councilmember Mendez:

Greetings from St. Mark’s Place. I’ve recently read that the Wal-Mart corporation is trying to gain a foothold in the Union Square area. As a constituent living in the East Village, and as a local architecture writer who treasures the unique culture, heritage, and built environment of our city, I would like to urge you to use all available means to prevent that corporation from opening anywhere in New York. Not in Union Square, not in Brooklyn, not in Queens: nowhere in our city, please. Not now, not ever, not here… and not even if they swear on a stack of every major culture’s holy books that they’ll pull an ideological 180-degree turn and start supporting the Employee Free Choice Act. No matter what promises they make, Wal-Mart simply doesn’t belong in New York City.

With a disgraceful record of corporate behavior and a business model premised on exurban sprawl, automobile dependence, a work force with no better options, and a bland commercial monoculture, Wal-Mart represents everything ugly and mediocre and unjust about our nation, the exact opposite of the values that progressive Americans take pride in. Part of the case against Wal-Mart is simply economic: Wal-Mart destroys local economies, puts people out of work, damages local environments with auto traffic, degrades local pay-scale standards, treats workers like cattle, and evades its responsibilities as a major employer to provide its workers with decent health care. I’m sure you’ve heard the grim stories about workers locked into stores, mandatory work hours off the clock, petty efforts to claw back legal settlements from workers with health problems, exploitation of Chinese labor under conditions that border on slavery—all the things that make the Wal-Mart name stink worldwide. The “low prices” that Wal-Mart offers on its goods are no bargain at all: they merely shift the costs of its profiteering onto the people and places that have the least power to bear them.  (The necessary statistics and narratives on all this, as you’re probably already aware, are available at walmartwatch.com.)

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Over 50 religious leaders from a variety of faiths and denominations came to Capitol Hill this week to lobby members of Congress and show their support for the Employee Free Choice Act. The group has formed a coalition called Faith Leaders for Workplace Fairness, which made its first public announcement in support of the labor reform bill on a conference call with press last week. The coalition has called the legislation a “moral imperative” and a civil and human right. Check out the video of their visit below.

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MAJOR MEETING IN VIRGINIA TONIGHT TO DEBATE FATE OF THE WILDERNESS WAL-MART

• Public gets say on Wal-Mart near Va battlefield [Daily Press (Va.)]
  Hundreds of historians have had their say on Wal-Mart's plans to build a Supercenter near a Civil War battlefield in Virginia.

• Tonight! Orange County will hear your thoughts on Wal-Mart [Free Lance-Star (Va.)]
  Tonight, the Orange County Planning Commission will hold a public hearing on the proposed Wilderness Wal-Mart.
  

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As the New York Times is reporting, a new study by Cornell University professor Kate Bronfenbrenner has found that employers threatened to close plants in 57 percent of union organizing drives, and threatened to cut wages and benefits in 47 percent.

Unfortunately, it now appears to be that several employers - many of which have had stable relationships with their employees for years - have begun to follow Wal-Mart’s lead and get far more aggressive with employee groups seeking to organize. Bronfenbrenner writes:

What distinguishes the current organizing climate from previous decades of employer opposition to unions? The primary difference is that the most intense and aggressive anti-union campaign strategies, the kind previously found only at employers like Wal-Mart, are no longer reserved for a select coterie of extreme anti-union employers.

The report, titled “No Holds Barred: The Intensification of Employer Opposition to Organizing,” is being released today by the Economic Policy Institute. From the report:

Overall, 12.4% of U.S. workers are represented by unions, a density far below what would be the case if all workers who wanted to belong to a union could freely do so. In fact, studies have shown that if workers’ preferences were realized, as much as 58% of the workforce would have union representation.

Of course, we know that one of the ways to rectify this would be federal legislation - the Employee Free Choice Act, perhaps??

For more information on the report, including the press release, fact sheet, and the report itself - click here.

Find the New York Times article, plus a video on how when it comes to unions Starbucks has made itself into the coffee drinker’s Wal-Mart, after the jump.

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CALIFORNIA WAL-MART FINED FOR NOT PROTECTING WORKERS FROM HEPATITIS B

• NorCal Wal-Mart workers to be tested for Hepatitis [San Jose Mercury News (Calif.)]
  About 20 employees of Wal-Mart's Yuba City store will be tested for Hepatitis B after one worker was diagnosed with the bloodborne disease in December.

AMERICA'S OLDEST STATE PRESERVATION GROUP JOINS FIGHT TO SAVE WILDERNESS BATTLEFIELD

• Preservation group: Civil War battlefield at risk [Associated Press via Forbes]
  Preservation Virginia has joined a growing opposition that says a proposed Wal-Mart Supercenter near the Wilderness Battlefield threatens the Civil War site where nearly 29,000 troops were killed or injured 145 years ago.
  

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This week we’ve continued to hear from workers who are frustrated with their jobs at Wal-Mart. As always, we are amazed by the sheer quantity and variety that we get on a day-to-day basis. Regardless of what the mainstream media and Wal-Mart spokesmen say about the company, you can always come to this website to hear the real stories from the workers who write us.

The following comments - both from employees and non-employees - address expensive health care, wages, unions, food donations, doctor’s notes, and the lack of air conditioning—it was enough to make two workers quit this week.

A.M. from Indiana writes to us about wage discrimination and expensive health care:

In our store you only have a chance at a promotion if you kiss up to the managers. Moreover, the variance in the pay rates for the same job codes ranges about three dollars. Tell me how this is fair! Not to mention the health care issues, how can I afford daily meds for a chronic condition when my premiums are so high and my pay is so low? When I get to the pharmacy, I find that 80 percent of my prescriptions are not covered.

An anonymous worker from Pennsylvania describes an uncomfortable anti-union meeting:

I am disgusted with myself and the way in which my life has turned out since I have been employed with Wal-Mart for five years. I recently became a salaried manager because I needed the money. After four years at Wal-Mart, I had not yet worked my way up to what I had made at my previous job - a fast food franchise. You must understand, I never wanted to work for this company, but the truth is that when you are poor, you have no skills, and you have no college education, it is difficult to find a job that pays well. I expected to be poorly paid for a while. However, I had high expectation for myself and expected to move quickly through the management ranks.

Before starting with the company, I had read lots of anti-Wal-mart propaganda. I knew there were a ridiculously small number of women managers compared to males - especially when I factoring in how many more women work at Wal-Mart. I expected those challenges and I embraced them. Unfortunately, I overcame them without ever doing anything to ensure that no other deserving woman would be held back.

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Yesterday, at an event in New Mexico, President Obama again reaffirmed his support for the Employee Free Choice Act. The New Mexico Independent notes that Obama also signaled that a compromise might be necessary to get the bill through the Senate.

Nonetheless, it’s reassuring to know that President Obama stands with Wal-Mart workers in their struggle for better jobs

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PRESIDENT OBAMA REAFFIRMS SUPPORT FOR EMPLOYEE FREE CHOICE

• Obama on his support of the Employee Free Choice Act [New Mexico Independent (N.M.)]
  President Obama said today at his town hall in Rio Rancho that he’d like to see the Employee Free Choice Act pass, but that compromise might need to happen on the details of the bill if it’s to pass the U.S. Senate.
  

• Live from Rio Rancho, it's President Obama [USA Today]
  A man asks about the "employee free choice act," which would help more unions form. Obama praises the contribution of unions to society, and worries about the decline in union membership. But he cites objections to the "free choice" act, including the fact that it does not assure secret balloting for formation of a union. Notes there aren't enough votes in the Senate to get the act passed, but says there may be room for compromise.
  

• Obama Says Union Bill Lacks Sufficient Senate Support [Wall Street Journal Blogs]
  Not surprisingly, unions praised the president’s remarks. “What a difference having a pro-working family president makes,” said Service Employees International Union President Andy Stern. “For hard-working families who suffered for eight long years under George Bush’s extreme antiworker policies, President Obama’s and Vice President Biden’s leadership on behalf of the middle class is a breath of long-needed fresh air.”
  

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A group of Rabbis have jumped into the deep end of the EFCA fight by writing Senator Specter a letter in support of the controversial legislation which Wal-Mart also strongly opposes. The Rabbis clearly come down on the side of workers’ rights here. They point to a Talmudic ‘sanctity of labor’ that Wal-Mart, by neglecting its workers’ wages and benefits, has blatantly disrespected.

The Rabbis make an argument similar to what we at Wal-Mart Watch and others have been saying: it’s time to provide workers a level playing field, or as the Rabbis put it, ‘balance the scales of justice.’ Casting Specter’s opposition, and thereby Wal-Mart’s in religious terms, the Rabbis wrote:

“Every major religion is sympathetic to the laborer. Judaism was early among the major religions in its assertion that labor involved more than mere economic activity. The commandment to observe the Sabbath was as much an affirmation of human dignity as of divine authority. “Six days shalt thou labor and do all thy work.” But the seventh day was to be holy - holy in the eyes of God, but equally important - holy in its respect for all who work. As it is written in Deuteronomy: “You shall not abuse a needy and destitute laborer, but you must pay him his wages on the same day, for he is needy and urgently depends on it.” It is not always easy to translate the sanctity of labor into terms that have meaning today, a time in which the marketplace seems to have been elevated above all other holy altars. We believe that the Employee Free Choice Act presents an opportunity to give concrete meaning to the often frustrated dream of a just society.” [Huffington Post]

This isn’t the first time that Wal-Mart’s values have been challenged by religious authorities. Some have gone so far as to call Wal-Mart’s treatment of labor immoral. We certainly think it is. And 75 Wal-Mart Workers who came to DC last week agreed, including Eugene Robinson who made an impassioned plea for better treatment from his employer. Watch the video here.

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OBAMA ESTATE TAX CHANGES TO CURB WALTON FAMILY WEALTH?

• Changes Proposed to Estate Tax Techniques [Wall Street Journal]
  One particular strategy the Obama administration wants to rein in has allowed some wealthy families to pass on tens of millions of dollars to their heirs free of gift and estate taxes, especially since the Internal Revenue Service in 2000 lost a high-profile legal challenge. In that case, the IRS challenged a trust set up by Audrey Walton, ex-wife of Wal-Mart Stores Inc. co-founder Bud Walton. She used a vehicle, known as a grantor-retained annuity trust, or GRAT, that potentially allows the grantor of a trust to pass on much of the appreciation of an asset to heirs free of gift tax.
  

WAL-MART SPONSORING 'LATINO SUMMIT'...

• Latino Economic Summit Website Launched to Serve as Resource Center for Latino Businesses [Latino Economic Summit Press Release]
  The Summit was sponsored by Wal-Mart and LATINO Magazine and gathered over 180 Latino business and community leaders who had key opportunities to have one-on-one dialogue with the panelists and revealed opportunities for Latino businesses to thrive in the midst of the ongoing economic turmoil.
  

...WHILE BEING SUED BY THE EEOC FOR DISCRIMINATION AGAINST HISPANICS

• Al Norman: Wal-Mart's 'Wetback' Problem [Huffington Post]
  The Wal-Mart corporation has been carefully nurturing its image as a strong supporter of the Latino community in America, opening stores designed for Latino shoppers, and hosting economic summits for Latino businesses.
  

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Multiple proposals are being pushed by pro-business groups in 13 states in response to a certain bill pending in Congress known as the Employee Free Choice Act.

With the successful passage of the Employee Free Choice Act still up in the air, business groups appear willing to take no chances. The individual pieces of legislation, such as a resolution proposed in Missouri, are generally geared towards requiring secret ballots in union elections instead of allowing workers to choose between elections or signing cards.

The measure resembles proposals being pushed by pro-business groups in 12 other states in response to a bill pending in Congress that would make it easier for employees to form unions.

Florida is another state with a bill on the table - the Florida proposal has been titled “Guaranteeing the Right to Vote by Secret Ballot.” Not everyone in the state is sold on its “guarantee,” however:

“The intent of the language is to mislead the voters, to make the voters think that they are voting in favor of protecting their own rights at that ballot box,” said Rep. Richard Steinberg, D-Miami Beach. “That is not what this is about.”

Both measures remain in their respective statehouses - the Florida Senate still has to consider the issue, while the Missouri proposal remains with the Missouri House, and its chances of passing the Senate during this legislative session appear slim.

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****UPDATE (12:59pm)****
Both the Wall Street Journal and the Washington Post have released snippets from Senator Specter’s statement this morning, and the WSJ noted that “Vice President Joe Biden had been openly courting his old friend and colleague from the Senate Judiciary Committee, making the case that he could breeze to re-election as a Democrat.” From Specter’s statement:

“When I supported the stimulus package, I knew that it would not be popular with the Republican Party. But, I saw the stimulus as necessary to lessen the risk of a far more serious recession than we are now experiencing. Since then, I have traveled the State, talked to Republican leaders and office-holders and my supporters and I have carefully examined public opinion. It has become clear to me that the stimulus vote caused a schism which makes our differences irreconcilable. On this state of the record, I am unwilling to have my twenty-nine year Senate record judged by the Pennsylvania Republican primary electorate. I have not represented the Republican Party. I have represented the people of Pennsylvania.”

It should be noted that this flip comes almost exactly one month after Specter flipped on another issue - namely, ending his support for the Employee Free Choice Act. Could a switch to the left, in a union-heavy state like Pennsylvania, pave the way for Senator Specter to renew his support of EFCA?

From the Washington Post earlier today:

Specter To Switch Parties

Pennsylvania Sen. Arlen Specter will switch his party affiliation from Republican to Democrat and announced today that he will run in 2010 as a Democrat, according to a statement he released this morning.

Specter’s decision would give Democrats a 60 seat filibuster proof majority in the Senate assuming Democrat Al Franken is eventually sworn in as the next Senator from Minnesota. (Former Sen. Norm Coleman is appealing Franken’s victory in the state Supreme Court.)

“I have decided to run for re-election in 2010 in the Democratic primary,” said Specter in a statement. “I am ready, willing and anxious to take on all comers and have my candidacy for re-election determined in a general election.”

He added: “Since my election in 1980, as part of the Reagan Big Tent, the Republican Party has moved far to the right. Last year, more than 200,000 Republicans in Pennsylvania changed their registration to become Democrats. I now find my political philosophy more in line with Democrats than Republicans.”

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Yesterday, Sen. Michael Bennet - the junior Democratic Senator from Colorado - again declined to take a position on the Employee Free Choice Act, even though most of his Senate colleagues have already done so. Bennet, appointed to the Senate after Ken Salazar’s nomination for the Secretary of the Interior, has been reluctant to support EFCA because of pressure from local and national business leaders.

After the latest inquiry into his position, Sen. Bennet is trying to position himself in the center by saying:

“I’m in a much better position to be helpful to a constructive conversation by not having taken a position on the existing language in the legislation than I would be if I had.”

But straddling the fence is not always the safest political position, and he’s already taking heat for refusing to make up his mind. Scott Newkirk, of Fort Collins, CO was quoted by Denver’s ABC-7 News:

“I can’t believe how bad he waffled on that,” Newkirk said. “What we’ve got here is someone who may or may not be willing to make tough choices. I really hope he faces a primary challenge.”

We agree that in the U.S. Senate, tough choices must be made. Sen. Bennet is facing reelection in 2010, and is no doubt worried about his political career. But waffling on Employee Free Choice isn’t going to help persuade any workers to come out to polls a couple Novembers from now.

Senator Bennet, it’s time to take a stand with Wal-Mart workers - and workers everywhere - on the right side of history.

Bennet stays mum on union-vote issue [Denver Post]:

U.S. Sen. Michael Bennet on Wednesday declined once again to take a position on a labor-business battle royale over legislation that could make it easier for workers to organize.

“Everywhere I go, from the labor side I hear: ‘This is the most important issue to us.’ From the business community I hear: ‘Stopping this is the most important issue to us,’ “Bennet said during a meeting with The Denver Post editorial board.

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Posted by Brendan Gaffney | Permalink

Tags: labor, employee free choice act, union, efca, legislation, colorado

Apr15

In First Interview As Wal-Mart CEO, Mike Duke Attacks EFCA

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Mike Duke held out over two full months to give his first interview as Wal-Mart CEO.

Apparently it was unannounced, but the Today Show featured a bit this morning where Matt Lauer walked with Duke through a new Wal-Mart store and tossed him some of the typical softballs. Lauer’s last question was what he thought about EFCA, and Duke (of course) towed the company line.

He said the Employee Free Choice “would be damaging to the American economy long-term.” Wal-Mart, he implied, doesn’t need unions because it has a “unique relationship with its employees.” Unique, indeed.

Here’s the full video—fast forward all the way to the end for the bit on EFCA.

Visit msnbc.com for Breaking News, World News, and News about the Economy

Posted by Eric Bull | Permalink

Tags: employees, labor, employee free choice act, efca, health care, mike duke, matt lauer

Apr13

Chamber of Commerce Releases More Misleading EFCA Ads

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The Chamber of Commerce (and its major funders like Wal-Mart) are continuing to spend millions of dollars to misinform Americans about the Employee Free Choice Act.

The Chamber announced today a $1 million ad buy in the key EFCA states of Colorado, Virginia, Louisiana, North Dakota, and Nebraska.

The new ads still claim the outright lie that Employee Free Choice Act “denies” secret ballot elections. The ads are also picking up on the latest anti-worker talking point: that Free Choice means excessive government intervention in small business. (As opposed to their solution, of course: that management have 100% of power in the workplace.)

As usual, the ads are masking the real purpose of the legislation, helping workers obtain fair wages and good benefits by leveling the playing field between workers and employers. 

Watch the North Dakota ad below, as well ads for Nebraska, Louisiana, Colorado and Virginia. Let the Chamber of Commerce and Wal-Mart know in comments section of the YouTube videos that we aren’t buying it.

Posted by Research Team | Permalink

Tags: employee free choice act, efca, advertising, congress, chamber of commerce, television

Apr07

Democratic Senator Blanche Lincoln Reverses EFCA Support, But Leaves Door Cracked

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Yesterday, Sen. Blanche Lincoln (D-Ark.) became the first Senate Democrat to oppose the Employee Free Choice Act. But when later allowed to elaborate, she left the door open for her to eventually get on board a revised version of the legislation.

It looked bleak early on - as the Washington Post reported, Senator Lincoln didn’t mince words when stating whether she still supported the Employee Free Choice Act legislation that she had voted for back in 2007:

“I cannot support that bill,” Lincoln told the club, one attendee recounted to Arkansas Business. “Cannot support that bill in its current form. Cannot support and will not support moving it forward in its current form.”

But as the day moved forward, Senator Lincoln did soften her stance - if only a bit - after listing several issues she hoped to tackle in 2009:

“Even though the Employee Free Choice Act is not on this priority list, it is receiving a lot of attention in the news and is the focus of many of my conversations with constituents on both sides of the issue. I consider both the labor and the business communities to be my friends. However, now that we need all hands on deck, including business and labor, to get our economy moving again, this issue is dividing us...I am stating today that I cannot support Employee Free Choice Act in its current form and I can’t support efforts to bring it to Senate consideration in its current form. I will consider alternatives that have the support of both business and labor but my pledge today is to focus my full attention on the priorities I have mentioned that affect every working family in Arkansas.”

Why is Senator Lincoln’s vote so important? Her defection would make it increasingly difficult for supporters of the bill to get the 60 votes needed to invoke cloture and help it to move forward under Senate rules. Not surprisingly, Lincoln’s shift towards the right - she has also recently made news for teaming with Senator Jon Kyl (R-Ariz.) to push a provision that would slash the controversial estate tax rate (or “death tax” if you’re a Republican or just a pessimist) - just happens to come as she looks towards a 2010 reelection bid in Arkansas, Wal-Mart’s home state. And we all know what Wal-Mart thinks of EFCA.

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Posted by Corey Himrod | Permalink

Tags: labor, efca, legislation, tax, arkansas, washington, unions, workers, democrat