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On Friday, Congressman Rick W. Allen (GA-12) introduced H.R. 2241, the Secret Ballot Protection Act, which amends the National Labor Relations Act to enhance employee protections by guaranteeing every vote to unionize a workplace is cast with a secret ballot. Upon introduction, Congressman Allen issued the following statement:

"Congressional Democrats have been attempting to undermine workers’ rights to privacy in the union election process for years—which is exactly why we need the Secret Ballot Protection Act. This legislation would guarantee every vote to unionize a workplace is cast with a secret ballot, eliminating the threats posed by the deceptive 'card check' scheme. I am thankful for Chairman Walberg's support as we continue the fight for workers' rights, choices, and freedoms in the 21st century," said Congressman Allen.

"The secret ballot is a hallmark of our democracy that allows workers to freely vote on union representation," said Chairman Walberg. "Unfortunately, Democrats and union organizers keep looking for new ways to eliminate the secret ballot. This creates new, dangerous opportunities for organizers to harass, coerce, and threaten workers — all in support of union leaders looking to expand their influence. That’s why we need Rep. Allen’s Secret Ballot Protection Act: to protect workers’ access to their fundamental right of voting freely to determine their own future."

BACKGROUND: Under current federal labor law, workers choose whether or not to be represented by a union through a federally-supervised secret ballot election. However, workers can also organize through a "card check" campaign, in which workers are asked to publicly declare their support for union representation by signing an authorization card. When a simple majority of workers sign a card – by free choice or not – the union is then recognized with the employer’s consent. Workers are denied a vote by secret ballot and exposed to intimidation and coercion.

Specifically, the Secret Ballot Protection Act would amend the National Labor Relations Act to:

• Require a secret ballot election before a union can be certified or decertified, eliminating once and for all the threats posed by the card check scheme
• Prevent employers from bargaining with any union that has not been certified by a secret ballot election
• Prohibit union bosses from negotiating with an employer before they have been certified by a secret ballot election