The Associated General Contractors of America on Monday spoke out against federal legislation that would make it easier for unions to organize workplaces.
The Employee Free Choice Act, also known as Card Check, would allow workers to approve union representation by signing cards without the need for secret-ballot elections.
Steve Sandherr, the AGC’s chief executive, said the legislation would hurt both union and nonunion construction workers by depriving them of their right to a private vote before deciding whether to join a union.
Sandherr, who is based in Washington, D.C., was in Denver on Monday talking with the organization’s Colorado chapter about President Barack Obama’s stimulus package and the Card Check legislation.
Card Check legislation would open employees to intimidation from union organizers, he said.
Supporters of the measure say it will contribute to economic recovery by increasing workers’ purchasing power through higher wages and better benefits.
“We feel it is one of the critical steps in restoring the middle class in America,” said Matt Moseley, spokesman for a coalition of organizations working to pass the act. “When workers are allowed to organize, they earn more and are 52 percent more likely to have health care.”
Sandherr of the AGC said the legislation also undermines the practice of having multiple construction firms agree to regional or area labor agreements aimed at creating a level playing field among firms.
“The challenge here is that if you have firms that organize through the Card Check process and end up in arbitration, there’s no guarantee the area agreement would be adopted,” he said. “If you have agreements that are not part of the area agreement, it creates the opportunity for crafts to claim work that doesn’t belong to them.”
Ahmed White, professor of labor law at the University of Colorado at Boulder, called the current statute dysfunc-tional because it discriminates against workers exercising their right to organize.
The new bill would be more in line with the basic intent of the labor law, which is to give workers the opportunity to form a union, he said.
“I don’t see any recipe here for chaos,” he said.
Margaret Jackson: 303-954-1473 or mjackson@denverpost.com
