Hawaii: Business Owners Find State Difficult if Card Check Passes
According to the Hawaii Reporter:
Private businesses could find it a great deal more difficult to operate here in Hawaii if House Bill 2974 becomes law. Known as the "Card Check Bill", the legislation has already passed the House and Senate, and it is headed to the Governor's Office for her signature.
Under this bill, workers will no longer be able to determine if they want to be represented by a union through an election process using secret ballots. The "Card Check" bill will give unions the ability to pick off employees one at a time. They will intimidate workers into signing individual cards indicating they would like to join a union.
Unfortunately, some hardworking employees will sign the petitions, not because they are in favor of a union shop, but because of persistent union requests, peer pressure tactics or simply not wanting to be harassed anymore.
When the Union organizers have collected enough signed petitions to equal 50% plus one of the company's employees, the union will inform the employer that they are the legitimate negotiating entity for the company's employees and the company will have no recourse. The "Card Check" bill does not level the playing field, as unions are fond of saying, it gives them the upper-hand.
Under current law, if 30% of employees of a company sign a petition stating they are interested in joining a union, The National Labor Relations Board will arrange for an election and the employers will have time to make their case and listen to the employees' concerns.
The issue to join a union or not will then be decided by a secret ballot. If a majority of employees vote in favor of union representation, then the company is required to recognize the union as the official negotiating entity. However, if House Bill 2974 becomes law, the secret ballot goes out the window.
The timing for this bill could not be worse. The cost of living in Hawaii is skyrocketing while our economy is slowing down. On Thursday, ATA Airlines ceased operations. This past Monday, Aloha Airlines laid off 1,900 employees, last week Molokai Ranch laid off over 120 employees, NCL is reducing its cruise ship fleet in Hawaii from three ships to one, and even attractions like Sea Life Park have recently laid off employees.
This bill sends a strong message to businesses that Hawaii is not a business friendly place. According to the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC), Hawaii ranked 45th out of 50 states in economic outlook and we ranked 50th out of 50 on the sales tax burden levied on our citizens. The Alliance for Worker Freedom gave Hawaii an "F" in its 2007 National Report Card...click to continue.
