Ensign, Heller: Employee 'No' Choice Act Stifles Jobs Among Minorities

Press Release

As Labor Secretary Hilda Solis prepares for her first official visit to Las Vegas, Senator John Ensign and Congressman Dean Heller reminded Nevada employees and employers that legislation she supports, the Employee Free Choice Act (EFCA), would be disastrous to an already struggling economy and threatens job growth and opportunity among minorities.

"The Employee Free Choice Act, or Card Check, will stifle small businesses at a time when our economy desperately needs them to be prosperous and successful," Ensign said. "Small businesses have always been the engine of our economy, especially across the Las Vegas Valley, but this legislation threatens to destroy them."

"As Secretary of State I fought for free, fair, and secret elections and I will continue to do so in Congress. Card Check will cost our nation over a half a million jobs. Any further job losses created by this legislation would be devastating to Nevada workers who in some communities are facing unemployment rates as high as 15.2 percent. During these tough economic times, job retention and creation must be the top priority for Congress, not political paybacks," said Heller.

With only two percent of minority-owned businesses unionized, this bill would drastically reduce the rights of workers in Nevada, including African Americans and Hispanics. The legislation is opposed by the U.S. Hispanic Chamber of Commerce (USHCC) and the African-American Chamber of Commerce.

"One legislative proposal that we do not need, and must avoid, is the Employee Free Choice Act," said Augustine Martinez, president of the USHCC, who testified on Capitol Hill at a hearing led by Ensign. "This legislation proposes the most sweeping change in labor laws in 70 years—and one that could affect millions of small businesses for the worse."

The Employee ‘No' Choice Act eliminates the secret ballot that allows all employees to have a private say in whether their workplace goes union. Many employees may not get a say at all if 50% plus one of co-workers sign cards in support of the union. There is also no obligation on the part of the union to tell an employer that it is launching an organization drive and no obligation for a vote to ensure that everyone's voice is heard.

The Employee ‘No' Choice Act also includes provisions to force collective bargaining agreements, impose government-mandated arbitration and punish employers with one-sided penalties. Studies have shown that the unionization of 1.5 million existing jobs under EFCA in one year would lead to the loss of 600,000 jobs the following year.

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