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13 IRET Congressional Advisory 1 (1993)

handle is hein.taxfoundation/iretcgadv0012 and id is 1 raw text is: May 4, 1993 No. 13 H.R. 5/S. 55: BENEFITTING FEW AT THE EXPENSE OF MANY One of the most counterproductive things Congress could do, in light of a persistently high rate of unemployment, is to enact legislation that would increase the cost of labor. Yet, The Workplace Fairness Act of 1993 (H.R. Thi -l,,s -,, 5/S. 55) would do just that. Thigislati1, This legislation, which plying ild, Congress failed to pass in 1992, would amend the stnke. National Labor Relations Act .. .. .. (NLRA) and the Railway Labor Act (RLA) to prevent employers from permanently replacing workers involved in union- organized strikes. President Clinton supports the Act and, if passed, has promised to sign it. H.R. 5/S. 55 would have unfortunate social and economic consequences. It would reduce the cost to workers of going on strike and increase the cost of strikes to non-striking employees and employers. The result would be higher unit labor costs, fewer jobs, lower levels of output, and less income for the country as a whole. It would also hurt the ability of American businesses to compete effectively in the world marketplace. American jobs would be lost and replaced by foreign workers overseas. Union bosses and some union workers would gain power at the expense of employees generally. In short, The Workplace Fairness Act is unfair legislation idoe iut ht er's ii that would cause widespread economic hardship so that a few could gain power. Tilting the Playing Field Union leaders and Congressional supporters of this legislation claim that it is necessary to balance workers' bargaining power against that of management. According to Senator Howard Metzenbaum (D-OH), the balance of power has shifted too far in management's direction. These claims are not consistent with the legal rights currently granted to strikers. Under the NLRA, workers can strike without fear of being permanently replaced when the dispute involves a claim of unfair labor practices. If the strike is solely over economic matters, such as wages or fringe benefits, employers have the right to replace striking s not level the workers with permanent in employees. This does not mean, though, that striking ho choose to workers have no further claim on their former jobs. The current law gives striking workers precedence over all other job applicants as new positions open up or as old positions are vacated within the company. Employers are not the only target of H.R. 5/S. 55. The Workplace Fairness Act would unfairly discriminate against any worker who chooses either to remain on the job or to return to his job before a strike is settled. If, following a strike, the size of the company's work force is reduced, the returning striker would get priority in job retention over those who remained on the job. Workers who choose to strike would be rewarded while those who choose to stay on the job would suffer. This legislation does not level the playing field, but heavily tilts it in favor of workers who choose to strike. Besides virtually eliminating management's right to hire permanent replacements for striking Institute for Research on the Economics of Taxation IRET is a non-profit, tax exempt 501(c)(3) economic policy research and educational organization devoted to informing the public about policies that will promote economic growth and efficient operation of the free market economy. 1730 K Street, N.W., Suite 910, Washington, D.C. 20006 Voice 202-463-1400 * Fax 202-463-6199 0 Internet www.iret.org

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