Anti-Labor Attacks Fail to Fell Merkley, Other Ds; Poll Indicates Why by: torridjoe Wed Nov 12, 2008 at 15:45:00 PM PST

Kind of a slow news day--or at least I find nothing supremely compelling that I have the time to write up--but I'll share with you a press release from the Oregon AFL-CIO, pointing out that the aggressive campaign waged against Democratic candidates like Jeff Merkley for their support of labor was an utter failure. Groups like the US Chamber of Commerce tried to focus in on Merkley's support for the Employee Free Choice Act, otherwise known as "card-check," but voters weren't biting. From the release: What did we learn from the results of last week's election? Voters soundly rejected the misleading anti-union corporate campaign opposing the Employee Free Choice Act and overwhelmingly backed candidates, like Jeff Merkley, who support working families. The election results tell us a lot, but now we also have poll data that goes even further. A poll by Peter D. Hart Research Associates, commissioned by the workers' rights advocacy group American Rights at Work, shows that anti-union advertising was among the least important factors in determining voters' choices for U.S. Senate and that voters continue to support making it easier for workers to join unions.  {Comments from ARW head David Bonior, and a link to the poll, below the fold}

torridjoe :: Anti-Labor Attacks Fail to Fell Merkley, Other Ds; Poll Indicates Why

Says American Rights at Work Chair David Bonior: No matter how hard corporate interests tried to mislead voters, it just didn't work. State by state, millions were spent, but the fact remains, the Employee Free Choice Act never became the wedge issue corporate interests sought. Six newly elected senators, including Jeff Merkley, expressed strong support for the bill, despite the millions of dollars the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and the business community spent to try and defeat them--Jeff Merkley getting the most fierce of the attacks across the country. The new senators--Rep. Mark Udall of Colorado, Jeanne Shaheen of New Hampshire, Rep. Tom Udall of New Mexico, Kay Hagan of North Carolina, Mark Warner of Virginia and Jeff Merkley--could play a key role in passing the legislation. The bill did not come to the Senate floor last year after senators failed by nine votes to invoke cloture. The atmosphere also is different at the White House. While President Bush had promised to veto the bill, President-elect Barack Obama co-sponsored the bill in the Senate and has said he will work to pass the bill once he takes office. Here are the main findings of the poll: Nearly two-thirds (60 percent) of voters believe it is important to pass the Employee Free Choice Act, and nearly one-third (31 percent) of voters strongly believe it should be a priority for Congress. When told about proposed legislation in Congress that would make it easier for workers to form unions by allowing employees to be represented by a union when a majority of their co-workers sign cards saying they want to join that union, voters favor the Employee Free Choice Act by nearly two to one (55 percent favor; 28 percent oppose). Voters are more than twice as likely to say big corporations having too much power (50 percent) create a bigger problem for people like them than big labor unions having too much power (23 percent). Overall, 55 percent of voters in these states say they approve of labor unions, compared with just 27 percent who say they disapprove. Click here to read a summary of the poll {pdf}. [emph mine]

Tags: 2008 Elections, unions, Labor, card-check, Employee Free Choice Act, polling, AFL-CIO, (All Tags)

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