Further comments on the EFCA

Note: PolitickerME received further information and comments from several sources after Wednesday’s story was posted about an ad campaign opposing candidates who support the Employee Free Choice Act.

While Sen. Susan Collins agrees with the message in several ads that attack opponent and U.S. Rep. Tom Allen for his support of the Employee Free Choice Act, she doesn’t believe such ads have a place in Maine politics, a spokesman for her campaign said Wednesday.

Allen’s campaign has called on Collins to denounce the ads. Kevin Kelley, spokesman for Collins, said the Senator does denounce this ad campaign with a blanket denouncement of all ads produced independently of the campaigns.

“Senator Collins has always denounced third party ads,” Kelley said.

Carol Andrews, spokeswoman for Allen, released a statement Wednesday criticizing Collins for not speaking up about the ads.

"These past weeks have shown us clearly that Senator Collins is not concerned with the tone of third party ads so long as they attack Tom Allen. We are now seeing another round of television ads in a campaign that distorts Tom Allen's record, while portraying Maine's working men and women as members of organized crime," Andrews said.

The EFCA seeks to make it easier for workers to unionize, and eliminates the requirement that they be formed by a private ballot. It is also known as the “card-check” legislation.

The ads do not mention organized crime, however the latest ad in question features Vincent Curatola, who plays mob boss Johnny Sack on The Sopranos.

“On the issue this ad has brought up, Sen. Collins does not support the Employee Free Choice Act and she believes that all workers are entitled to a secret ballot. On this ad she finds it ironic that a public servant elected by a private ballot would vote to deny union employees the same right,” Kelley said.

The Alliance for Maine’s Future, a pro-business non-profit, has also come out against the federal legislation.

In a newsletter Tuesday, Executive Director Tony Payne wrote: “It is understandable that people in Maine who have missed out on the nation's economic boom might want to artificially increase their incomes through collective bargaining. The problem is that unless those jobs are creating added value, there is no extra money to go around. If the Card Check Bill were to become law and increased the number and clout of unions, it would drive up the cost of living for all of us while providing no measurable benefit.”

Stacey Morrison, CEO and owner of Ganneston Construction Corp. and Doug Newman, a board member of the Associated Builders and Contractors, also oppose the bill. Click on their names for their submissions on the topic to the Bangor Daily News.

Maine’s chapter of the AFL-CIO supports the legislation. President Ed Gorham has also written into the BDN on the issue.

Allen’s campaign has released a fact-check of the ad, rebutting its major points. The document emphasizes that the EFCA does not eliminate the private ballot, rather it adds another option for workers via a majority sign up process.

“Majority sign-up is much faster than the government-run balloting process and leaves less time for employers to harass and intimidate workers so they will back off from joining a union,” the document states, citing CBS News.