Rep. Howard P. “Buck" McKeon (R-CA), the top Republican on the U.S. House Education and Labor Committee, today called on House Democrats to hold hearings on legislation that would replace federally-supervised secret ballot organizing elections with a public sign-up process that makes workers’ votes public for all to see. Numerous media accounts have indicated that Democrats are on the verge of introducing such legislation, which a recent poll found is opposed by 74 percent of voters.
“Eliminating the secret ballot is an assault on workers’ rights. It’s unfair, it’s undemocratic, and it must be defeated," said McKeon. “It’s bad enough that this anti-worker scheme may be moving through Congress; the idea that it could be forced through without a thorough debate is simply unacceptable. The voices of those concerned about the loss of worker rights deserve to be heard."
In response to the news that Democrats are preparing to introduce the misnamed Employee Free Choice Act-a bill that discards the time-tested secret ballot system with a notoriously unreliable public vote process via a card check-McKeon immediately called on Education and Labor Committee Chairman George Miller (D-CA) to ensure the legislation would be subject to a full and open review by the panel.
“In the 110th Congress, there was but one subcommittee hearing in the House on this legislation; the full Education and Labor Committee did not undertake a single hearing, either on the legislative proposal itself or on the underlying policy issues," noted McKeon in his letter to Chairman Miller.
“As you know, a recent national poll found that some 74 percent of voters-with an identical 74 percent of those in union households-are opposed to this measure, the so-called Employee Free Choice Act. Given the controversial nature of this proposal, I am writing today to request that this legislation be thoroughly reviewed by the full Education and Labor Committee, beginning with hearings reflecting multiple viewpoints on the measure and including markups with full opportunity for members of the minority to offer amendments. This legislation would have far-reaching consequences for millions of workers, and the American people deserve nothing less than the complete review and vetting envisioned by the Rules of the House of Representatives," McKeon wrote.
The full text of McKeon’s letter is available online here.