Political
Chamber Urges Supreme Court to Preempt California's Anti-Employer Labor Law
By US Chamber of Commerce
Mar 19, 2008, 12:22

Washington, DC — March 19, 2008 — The U.S. Chamber of Commerce presented arguments to the Supreme Court today in Chamber of Commerce of the United States of America v. Brown, a case challenging a California law that restricts employers' rights to speak to their employees about unionization.

"By regulating employer speech, California is putting its thumb on the scale in the debate over unionization," said Robin Conrad, executive vice president of the National Chamber Litigation Center (NCLC). "Federal labor law encourages open and robust debate about unionization. California's law stifles that debate by making it totally one-sided."

Enacted in 2000 in response to union lobbying efforts, California Assembly Bill (AB) 1889 expressly prohibits employers from using state grant and program funds to "to assist, promote, or deter union organizing." California AB 1889 prevents employer attempts to influence employees as well as subcontractors and applies to legal expenses, consulting fees and salaries of supervisors. California law subjects employers to burdensome segregated accounting systems, onerous recordkeeping requirements, treble damages, private rights of actions and attorneys fees. The anti-employer slant of AB 1889 is underscored by several significant pro-union exceptions to its spending ban: employers are free to use state funds to circumvent secret-ballot elections by entering into voluntary recognitions agreements (otherwise known as card-check or "neutrality" agreements) with a union; state funds may be used to allow union access to the employer's property and in connection with grievance handling and certain collective bargaining-related activities.

"At least 15 other states are poised to enact laws that similarly restrict federally protected employer speech about unionization, depending on the outcome of this litigation," Conrad noted. "The high court needs to send a message that states cannot use their spending power to interfere in areas that Congress intended to be left unregulated."

NCLC is the public policy law firm of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce that advocates fair treatment of business in the courts and before regulatory agencies. The U.S. Chamber of Commerce is the world's largest business federation representing more than 3 million businesses and organizations of every size, sector, and region.