Employee Free Choice Act
The Employee Free Choice Act (EFCA)
(H.R. 1409, S. 560) is a pending piece of le-
gislation in the United States. Its text states
that it would "amend the National Labor
Relations Act to establish an easier system to
enable employees to form, join, or assist
labor organizations, to provide for mandatory
injunctions for unfair labor practices during
organizing efforts, and for other purposes."[1]
The latest version was introduced into both
chambers of the U.S. Congress on 10 March
2009.[2]
In order for a workplace to organize under
current U.S. labor law, the card check pro-
cess begins when an employee requests
blank cards from an existing union, and re-
quests signatures on the cards from his or
her colleagues.[3] Once 30% of the work
force in a particular workplace bargaining
unit has signed the cards, the employer may
decide to hold a secret ballot election on the
question of unionization.[3] In practice, the
results of the card check usually are not
presented to the employer until 50 or 60% of
bargaining-unit employees have signed the
cards.[3] If the employer decides to demand
an election, and the majority of votes in the
election favor the union, the National Labor
Relations Board (NLRB) will certify it as the
exclusive representative of the employees of
that particular bargaining unit for the pur-
pose of collective bargaining.
If enacted, the EFCA would change the
currently existing procedure to require the
NLRB to certify the union as the bargaining
representative without directing an election
if a majority of employees signed cards.[1]
The EFCA would take away employers’
present right to decide whether to use only
the card-check process or to hold a secret-
ballot election among employees in a particu-
lar bargaining unit, and instead give the right
to the employees to choose a secret-ballot
election in cases where less than a majority
of employees has chosen to unionize through
card-check.[3][4] The proposed
legislation
would still require a secret-ballot election
when at least