There’s a lot of spin kicking around about the Employee Free Choice Act, also known as the “card-check” legislation. PolitickerME will attempt to break the bill down to determine what it really does.

The bill adds another means for unions to organize, designed to circumvent some of the problems workers frequently encounter in the process.

Rep. George Miller (D-Calif.) is the sponsor of the House version, and Sen. Edward Kennedy (D-Mass.) sponsors the Senate version. Both U.S. Rep. Mike Michaud (D-East Millinocket) and U.S. Rep. Tom Allen (D-Portland) are cosponsors.

The bill passed in the House last year, but was filibustered in the Senate.

Two groups, the Employee Freedom Political Action Committee and the Coalition for a Democratic Workplace, are aggressively targeting candidates in the following states with competitive U.S. Senate races: Maine, Oregon, Minnesota, Kentucky, Mississippi, Louisiana, Colorado and New Hampshire. The groups are supporting the candidates who oppose the bill – all of whom are Republicans.

Ads by the two groups star Soprano-esque characters – including an actor from the HBO series – acting as union bosses and intimidating workers into signing the card. The point? Workers can be intimidated into joining unions because there is no longer a mandatory private ballot.

The AFL-CIO sees it differently. They haven’t done any media buys – instead they are educating their members on the importance of the bill.

In the Maine U.S. Senate race, Allen is challenging incumbent Sen. Susan Collins (R-Bangor), who opposes the bill.

The facts

As followed are the facts of the Employee Free Choice Act, according to the non-partisan Congressional Research Service.

-The EFCA will amend the National Labor Relations Act, which sets the current standards for forming a union.

-Currently unions form when 30 percent of employees petition. The petition is examined by the National Labor Relations Board. Then an election by secret ballot is held. If the parties cannot resolve the details of the election on their own, the board will step in.

-Under the EFCA, workers could use the existing method to organize. They could also form a union by getting the majority of workers in the anticipated bargaining unit to sign authorization cards. These cards would be examined by the National Labor Relations Board for approval. If approved, the union would be formed without an election.

-Under current law, if a majority of workers sign authorization cards, they can request to be recognized voluntarily by their employer. The CRS reports that such approval is rare. In the U.S. Supreme Court case NLRB v. Gissel Packing Co., the Court ruled that an employer does not have to accept the cards as proof of a majority, and could insist on an election.

-Under current law, the Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service may get involved in disputes by the request of one of the parties or on their own ambition, however they should “avoid attempting to mediate disputes which would have only a minor effect on interstate commerce,” the law states, as quoted by the CRS.

-Under the EFCA, if a union-employer dispute occurs, either party has the right to notify the FMCS if an agreement is not reached within 90 days, and they must step in. If an agreement is not reached within 30 days of this point, the FMCS can refer the parties to an arbitration board.

-The EFCA imposes new penalties for unfair labor practices. It increases civil penalties for discrimination. Penalties are also imposed for employers who attempt to coerce employees when they attempt to form a union.

-According to the CRS, labor organizations back the EFCA because of what frequently happens in the time between a petition and an election. “During this period, it is believed that employers often hire anti-union consultants, terminate pro-union employees, and conduct captive-audience meetings where employees are exposed to the employer’s views against representation.”

-The CRS characterizes the opposition to the bill as follows: “Those who oppose this kind of certification express concern for a union’s possible use of coercive and intimidating tactics to obtain signatures. They also fear the increased possibility of forged signatures on authorization cards.”

Previous coverage:

Video: Allen responds to the anti-EFCA ads

EFCA: What Maine’s labor community says

527 group pushes Collins-Allen poll (commentary)

Group hits Allen on support of card-check legislation

Online videos: Anti-EFCA group confronts Mainers

AFL-CIO: Anti-EFCA ad with Sopranos star a smokescreen

Further comments on the EFCA