Issue Position: Worker's Rights

Issue Position

Cazayoux and Obama Agree: Get rid of secret ballots.

The Facts on the Union "Card Check" Agenda
The "Employee Free Choice Act" (EFCA), also known as "Card Check" is a bill labor unions are promoting that would rewrite the rules of union organizing and get rid of employee private-ballot voting. Under current law, employers are required to collectively bargain with unions only when a majority of employees vote privately for union representation in an election supervised by the National Labor Relations Board.

The EFCA would force employers to deal with unions whenever the unions can force a majority of employees to sign a union card- without the employees provided the freedom of a private ballot. Since it is union organizers, not employees, who typically pick which method is used, EFCA would allow unions to effectively replace all private-ballot voting with the high-pressure, signature-collection method.

What the Unions Say:

In 2006, President Joe Hansen of the United Food and Commercial Workers union - a supporter of the signature-collection method - admitted about private-ballot elections: "We can't win that way anymore."

Andy Stern, head of the Service Employees International Union says: "If we pass the Employee Free Choice Act, these unions will grow by 1.5 million members a year, not just for five years but for 10 to 15 straight years."

What Cazayoux Says:

In March, Don Cazayoux told the Annual Convention of the Louisiana AFL-CIO that "a strong union movement is vital for a strong economy" and that he would support eliminating the secret ballot for workers. (Advocate, 3/18/08)

What Obama Says:

""We will pass the Employee Free Choice Act. It's not a matter of if, it's a matter of when,' said Sen. Barack Obama (D-Ill.). "We may have to wait for the next president to sign it, but we will get this thing done.'" (Chicago Tribune, 3/4/07)

What Bill Cassidy will do:

I will defend the rights of every worker. I will oppose efforts by Barack Obama, congressional Democrats, and labor unions to put their agenda above Louisiana workers who currently enjoy the right to work without interference. I believe one of the basic tenets of democratic elections is the secret ballot. The reason this is necessary for political elections is the same reason it is needed for decisions on union organizing - it reduces the ability of leaders on one side, or the other, to intimidate voters. I will not allow the elimination of the secret ballot and other infringements on the rights of individuals who want to work.

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