Hawaii Governor Stands up for Workers
Hawaii Governor Linda Lingle announced that she will veto a bill that would eliminate a worker’s right to a secret ballot election when deciding whether or not to have union representation in the workplace.
HB2974 HD2, a state version of the Card Check Forced Unionism Bill pending in the United States Senate, would eliminate the secret ballot election.
Under current law, a secret ballot process is generally used to determine whether employees desire union representation. This bill replaces that process with one in which organizers would only need to gather signatures from a majority of employees indicating they were in favor of forming a union.
“. . . [T]his bill would deny workers their privacy and right to a confidential vote when making that decision [unionization] ,” said Governor Lingle. “Maintaining the secret ballot is the best way to protect workers’ privacy and to ensure workers have the ability to vote their conscience without fear of repercussion or retaliation. There is no compelling justification for replacing a fair, democratic process with one that has the potential to erode a worker’s existing rights and protections under the law.”
Three cheers to Governor Lingle for standing up for workers!