Released on: October 20, 2008, 7:53 am

Press Release Author: Alison Beckwith

Industry: Law

Press Release Summary: North Carolina's largest employers' association says 70 years
of labor laws and court rulings could be overturned if the Employee Free Choice Act
becomes a federal law

Press Release Body: Raleigh, N.C. - The state's largest employers' association,
Capital Associated Industries, Inc. (CAI), is warning its members about the Employee
Free Choice Act (EFCA), a proposed bill in Congress that would dramatically increase
the ability of organized labor to rapidly unionize workplaces. Whether or not the
EFCA becomes law depends on the November elections.

"We've launched a broad effort to educate our members and the business community
about the proposed law," says CAI's CEO Bruce Clarke, J.D., who has served as chair
of the Labor and Employment Law Section of the North Carolina Bar Association. "We
believe a well-managed union-free workplace is a better environment for everyone
involved, but should the current labor laws be overturned by the next Congress and
president, companies need to be prepared."

CAI is warning companies that if passed, the bill would remove the traditional
election process by secret balloting, as well as the chance for both sides to work
out what is best in the workplace. The EFCA makes it easier for unions to organize
employees in a workplace and guarantees a contract by forcing binding arbitration.

There are three main components to the EFCA:

1. No Secret Ballots
This says no secret ballots are required and no union election will be scheduled if
50 percent plus one employee signs a union card. The signatures will be visible to
all and the pressure on employees to sign will be great.

2. Arbitrated Contract
If the union wins the card check process, the parties must have a new and complete
collective bargaining agreement in place and signed within about 100 days or the
union can request binding arbitration. The contract would last two years.
Currently, complex negotiations on a first union contract can take months to
complete.

3. Employer Muzzle
This provision penalizes an employer for speaking out about a unionizing effort, up
to $20,000 per violation for asking an employee, "So, how do you feel about us
getting a union?", for example.

"If this bill passes, employers and managers may feel handcuffed by these penalties
and refuse to tell employees what they need to hear," adds Clarke. "We feel it is
our responsibility to educate our members and other professionals in the community
about what their company might be faced with in the upcoming months."


***

About CAI, Inc.
CAI is a non-profit employers' association founded in 1963 and serves the greater
Research Triangle, Piedmont Triad, and 65 central and eastern counties in North
Carolina. With offices in Raleigh and Greensboro, CAI provides 1,000 member
companies with management information, day-to-day telephone guidance, as well as
training and
human resources services.

To learn more about CAI, visit: http://www.capital.org

Contact: Alison Beckwith, 919-459-8157, abeckwith@919marketing.com


Web Site: http://www.capital.org

Contact Details: 102 Avent Ferry Rd
Holly Springs, NC 27540
919-459-8157