Yesterday this was published in the WSJ, with Bernie Marcus calling for the execution of business leaders that don't agree with his extreme right-wing views. Why do these people hate Democracy so much?
"This is the demise of a civilization," moaned Bernie Marcus, cofounder and former CEO of The Home Depot, during an Oct. 17 conference call about card check.
Mr. Marcus sketched out the doomsday scenario for his listeners, with unions going after what he called the "low hanging fruit" and proceeding to organize workers in industry after industry. He had taken it upon himself to notify the nation's CEOs of the danger, but they were not yet grabbing their guns. "This is as important as anything that's ever happened to these companies. And they're not reacting, and they're not fighting. The old time fighters are gone."
But in the class war, as in the real deal, there are always ways of motivating the yellow. "If a retailer has not gotten involved with this, if he has not spent money on this election, if he has not sent money to Norm Coleman and these other guys then those retailers should be shot; should be thrown out of their goddamn jobs.
Not far from Al Qaeda.
It's pretty scary when "elder statesmen" advocate murder for those who oppose their views.
"This is how a civilization disappears. I'm sitting here as an elder statesman, and I'm watching this happen, and I don't believe it."
Mr. Marcus sketched out the doomsday scenario for his listeners, with unions going after what he called the "low hanging fruit" and proceeding to organize workers in industry after industry.
It's Time to Give Voters the Liberalism They Want
Fortunately American democracy doesn't work like that. Bernie is no statesman. He's never been elected by the public, but is merely a "prince of industry." He's right to bitch about the Employee Free Choice Act. Restoring American employees right to organize would hurt the pocketbooks of CEO's who benefit from keeping workers from negotiating with the power of a group. It would help restore the middle class and prevent princes like Bernie from lording over their feudal kingdoms.
Bernie and the WSJ's biggest gripe with the labor reform provided in the Employee Free Choice Act is something called card check. This is a process that has been legal in the US since the inception of the National Labor Relations Act, and was reaffirmed by the Supreme Court in 1969.
Card Check is best thought of as similar to the initiative process in an election. If you get 5% of the voters in a state to sign a petition for an initiative, it gets put on the ballot for a secret vote. With labor organizing, any individual or group can be designated as the representative to bargain for the group by signing petitions (cards). If 30% of the group personally sign a statement authorizing an individual as their bargaining agent, the National Labor Relation Board holds a secret ballot election. If a majority sign statements, the election is considered superfluous and the employer can simply recognize the union.
In democracy, if a majority sign a petition for a statewide initiative, the legislature might also not see the need to conduct a secret ballot election. Similarly, if a majority of voters starts protesting in front of the Capitol, the legislature might just recognize their views and negotiate with them.
Labor relations are pretty simple when everyone follows the law. An employer doesn't even need a card check election to recognize an union. A strike or other demonstration of majority support is enough for management to start negotiations. But strikes screw up the economy and make life difficult for everyone else. Your garbage doesn't get picked up, the buses don't run, and your inventory for your business is delayed because some other company can't get along with their workers. Hence, the National Labor Relations Act was passed. Not to protect workers, but to protect the economy.
It worked pretty good, until the Red Scare and Taft-Hartley wiped out the ability of managers to organize. Today there are only legacy unions at companies where there is a culture of cooperation between employees.
Current employee-management imbalances have harmed the economy badly. Unionized companies like Ford, GM, and Chysler can't compete against foreign owned plants that benefit from the lax penalties for violating the right of employees to organize.
Currently there are no financial penalties for firing union supporters, which is a defacto rescinding of the National Labor Relations Act. Letting employees have the right to negotiate wages and benefits is a fiscal decision. From the WSJ article:
Card check is about power. Management has it, workers don't, and business doesn't want that to change. Consider the remarks made by Wal-Mart CEO Lee Scott at an analyst meeting on Oct. 28, when he was asked about the possible coming of card check: "We like driving the car and we're not going to give the steering wheel to anybody but us."
Reforming labor rights by enacting penalties for lawbreakers is long past due. It will help the middle class and put American companies on a level playing field with the foreign owned newcomers. It will put small employers, who have closer relations with their workers, at an advantage to the anonymous workplace of the big box store. How many small hardware stores did Bernie of Home Depot shutter by keeping his labor costs artificially low.
Pity the CEO's that choose to obey the law out of their conscience. Wal-mart competitor Costco has been routinely criticized for paying workers more than necessary. Costco has some unionized employees, and doesn't break the law when it comes time to organize, so they try to keep workers happy and without the need to organize.
Should CEO's that don't oppose the Employee Free Choice Act and the rights of workers be shot? No. They should be applauded and given a level playing field against their scofflaw competitors. The Employee Free Choice Act should be passed today!