HUNDREDS OF ABC MEMBERS ATTEND 2010 LEGISLATIVE CONFERENCE: Hundreds of ABC members traveled to Washington, D.C., June 16-17, to attend ABC’s 2010 Legislative Conference. Attendees heard from former and current legislators and political experts on issues such as the economy and what can be done to help small businesses. During the opening general session, 2010 ABC National Chairman Jim Elmer, president of James W. Elmer Construction, Co., Spokane, Wash., emphasized how important it is for ABC members to continue to make their voices heard among their political leaders after leaving the conference.
“At a time when taxes should be lower and barriers to access to capital removed, those in power have done just the opposite,” Elmer said. “Your efforts must not end once you leave Washington; take this message home and become involved in your communities.” House Republican Leader John Boehner (Ohio), who recently introduced a resolution in the U.S. House of Representatives congratulating ABC on its 60th anniversary, told attendees that governmental growth needed to be curbed and that there should be more transparency. He noted that if he becomes Speaker of the House he will address these issues. “The bigger government gets, the smaller the American people get,” Boehner said. “The more government takes, the less we have to invest in our families and businesses…the American people want more control over the government and I aim to give it to them.”
Former U.S. Representative Pat Toomey (R-Pa.) expressed great concern over America’s growing deficit and the prospect that the next generation will be worse off for the first time. Toomey also expressed concern over the Democrats’ solutions to solving the economic crisis noting “wealth and opportunity doesn’t come from the government.” In addition, Brett McMahon, vice president of business development for Miller & Long Concrete Construction, Bethesda, Md., and winner of ABC’s first Merit Shop Political Leadership award, spoke about the success of the ABC Free Enterprise Alliance’s Halt the Assault campaign.
“Since ABC’s inception, we have never backed down from a fight,” McMahon said. “You owe it to yourself, your employees and your family to defend what you own and your way of life.” Keynote speakers Mary Matalin and James Carville, coauthors of the bestselling memoir, All’s Fair: Love, War, and Running for President, talked about their differing views of the political landscape and their shared passion for the impact the gulf oil spill will have on the nation.
ABC OPPOSES LEGISLATION THAT INFRINGES ON FREE SPEECH RIGHTS: ABC June 15 opposed the Democracy is Strengthened by Casting Light on Spending in Elections (DISCLOSE) Act (H.R. 5175) because it would adversely impact the first amendment rights of businesses and trade associations, while allowing unions to retain their influence in the political process. The bill was introduced by Rep. Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.), chairman of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, in response to a Jan. 21 court decision that restored free speech rights to businesses and trade associations by allowing them to engage in independent expenditures and electioneering communications in connection with federal elections. Included in the DISCLOSE Act is a ban on certain campaign-related activities by businesses with government contracts, although it imposes no similar restrictions on labor unions that receive federal grants or negotiate collective bargaining agreements with the government. The bill also requires businesses and trade associations that engage in campaign-related activity to comply with new Federal Election Commission reporting requirements, including disclosing donors who give $600 or more – a requirement that wouldn’t affect most labor unions since dues are generally under that threshold.
“ABC believes the DISCLOSE Act is a direct attack on businesses and trade associations, threatening to silence their voice in the nation’s political process,” ABC stated in a letter sent to all members of the U.S. House of Representatives. In addition, the DISCLOSE Act proposes mandatory disclosures for television and radio advertisements where the highest ranking official of an organization would have to appear in the ad and state that he or she “approves this message.” These mandatory disclosures could consume 13 or more seconds of airtime in a 30-second commercial.
USCIS ANNOUNCES REDESIGN OF E-VERIFY WEBSITE: U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) June 13 launched an updated version of the E-Verify online employment verification system website. According to USCIS, the new design will make the website easier to navigate, will minimize errors and has new security features that will mask Social Security numbers and minimize the chances of fraudulent access.
The improved website comes just months after a January report found that E-Verify wrongly authorizes about 54 percent of illegal immigrants to work in the United States. A September 2009 rule makes the use of E-Verify mandatory for all federal contractors, but it is still available to non-federal contractors on a voluntary basis. Designated agents are not required to implement this new version of E-Verify immediately, so employers that use a designated agent should check to see whether these changes will be reflected immediately in the interface that is provided.
Before using the updated system for the first time, users are required to complete a 20-minute tutorial. For more information, visit www.dhs.gov/E-Verify.
Members-Only Bargaining Unit Update. On June 14, 46 labor law professors sent an unsolicited amicus brief to the NLRB urging the NLRB to use the rulemaking process to require recognition and bargaining by employers when a union represents less than a full majority of employees in the bargaining unit. In such a situation, the union and the employer would bargain about only employees who are members of the union and not any other employees. In 2007, seven unions led by the IBEW filed a petition with the NLRB to enact such a rule. In 2008, seven unions led by the Carpenters Union, the Laborers Union and the Teamsters Union filed a similar petition. During the 27 month period when the five member NLRB had just two members it was unable to take action on the petitions. However, the recent recess appointments of two additional members by President Obama gives the NLRB a sufficient number of members to vote on the petitions and issue a notice of proposed rulemaking. There may not be enough votes in Congress to pass card-check legislation, but it appears that there are enough votes for the NLRB to enact a rule requiring members-only bargaining which will certainly assist organizing efforts by unions in the construction industry and all industries. Stay tuned. By Bill Harding, Chapter Attorney