Buffalo, NY  –  June 8 2007 --  In opposition of the so-called “Employee Free Choice Act,” Printing and Imaging Association of New York State, Inc. has joined the Coalition For A Democratic Workplace, a coalition of workers, employers, associations and organizations who are fighting  to protect the right to a federally supervised private ballot when workers are deciding whether or not to join a union.

PIA of New York State is opposed to the so-called “Employee Free Choice Act” because it would strip workers of the right to a federally supervised secret ballot election when deciding whether or not to join a union, leaving workers far more vulnerable to coercion and intimidation during union organizing drives.  The so-called “Employee Free Choice Act” would replace secret ballot elections with a process called “card check” where a union is recognized in a workplace if a majority of workers sign a card in the presence of union organizers. 

Under the card check process, the identity of workers who signed (or refused to sign) organizing cards would be made public to the union organizers, the worker’s employer and co-workers, leaving workers vulnerable to threats and intimidation from union bosses, management, or both.

“The PIA of New York is strongly against the so-called ‘Employee Free Choice Act,’” stated Tim Free, President of the PIA of New York  “Workers in our industry deserve the right to make these decisions free of any outside intimidation, whether from the union or from management.  We believe that the only way to guarantee worker protection is through the continued use of federally supervised secret ballot elections so that personal decisions about whether to join a union remain private.”

Federal courts have repeatedly ruled that federally supervised secret ballot elections are the fairest and most foolproof method to determine whether a union has the support of a majority of employees.  The Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals wrote that “It would be difficult to imagine a more unreliable method of ascertaining the real wishes of employees than a ‘card check.’”  The Second Circuit ruled that “It is beyond dispute that the secret ballot election is a more accurate reflection of the employees’ true desires than a check of authorization cards collected at the behest of a union organizer,” while the Sixth Circuit stated that, “An election is the preferred method of determining the choice by employees of a collective bargaining representative.”

The so-called “Employee Free Choice Act” was introduced by Senator Ted Kennedy (D-MA) on March 29, 2007.  This bill is similar to legislation (H.R. 800) passed by the U.S. House of Representatives by a vote of 241-185 on March 1, 2007.  For more information, visit www.myprivateballot.com.