HOUSE Republican Leader John Boehner

Washington, Nov 20 - House Republican Leader John Boehner (R-OH) today highlighted the irony of House Democrats’ use of a secret ballot process to select the Chairman of the Energy & Commerce Committee for the 111th Congress – a right they support taking away from workers during union elections in the workplace.  Earlier this week, the powerful chair of the House Rules Committee, Rep. Louise Slaughter (D-NY), expressed relief to Congressional Quarterly that today’s caucus-wide Energy & Commerce Committee vote would be determined by secret ballot, noting, “It’s a secret ballot…  Thank the Lord.”

Boehner issued the following statement:

“President-elect Obama and Democratic leaders have expressed a desire to govern from the center, and if they do we will work with them on behalf of the American people.  However, an overwhelming majority of Americans strongly oppose their plan to end secret ballot rights for our nation’s workers, and rightly so.  Killing secret ballot rights in the workplace may be a priority for the special interests that have placed Democrats in charge of Washington, but it is not in the best interest of workers – or our democratic system.

“Earlier in this Congress, 228 House Democrats voted to expose workers’ votes in union organizing elections to everyone – their employers, their co-workers, and union bosses.  Today, those very same Members are enjoying secret ballot rights that Americans have come to take for granted in a hotly contested race for a powerful Committee chairmanship.  What message does this send to workers across our country?

“The secret ballot election is a cornerstone of our American democracy.  If it is good enough for House Democrats to rely on during today’s high-stakes vote, shouldn’t it be good enough for millions of American workers across America who value their workplace privacy?  House Republicans will stand firmly against the decidedly undemocratic card check – and strongly for democracy in the workplace.”  

NOTE: Union elections have been monitored for decades by the National Labor Relations Board and decided by a secret ballot vote.  At the beginning of the 110th Congress, however, House Democrats passed the cleverly-titled Employee Free Choice Act (H.R. 800), which would establish a “card check” process through which union organizers and bosses gather authorization cards purportedly signed by workers expressing their desire for a union to represent them. 

Card checks notoriously leave workers vulnerable to coercion, pressure, and outright intimidation and threats – from either the management or the union side of the election.  President-elect Obama and House Democratic leaders supported the bill during House and Senate votes last year, in spite of the fact that nearly 90 percent of Americans oppose it.  More information on today’s ironic vote can be found on the Education & Labor Committee Republicans’ website.

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