From Politico, “Labor presses Specter on EFCA,” video and the script of a new ad by American Rights at Work airing in Pennsylvania targeting Sen. Arlen Specter (D-PA). The script:

Pennsylvania backed Specter when he was the deciding vote for President Obama’s stimulus package. It’s already bringing new jobs. Specter usually does the right thing. Two years ago; he supported the Employee Free Choice Act, to help working people join together for fair pay and benefits. So now, where will Specter stand? With Obama, Biden, and the working families of Pennsylvania… Or with greedy CEOs, and Big Business lobbyists? Call and Tell Specter Pennsylvania’s for him…..As long as he’s for the Employee Free Choice Act.

Subtle people, these American Rights at Work operatives. Although we’re disappointed the union front group decided to illustrate “Greedy CEOs and Big Business lobbyists” with grainy photos of Wall Street buildings. Couldn’t they have found a George Grosz caricature or something more evocative?

American Rights at Work… American Rights at Work…. They were in the news recently. What was it? Oh yes, “Labor Advocate to Join Biden’s Middle-Class Task Force.” You would think Mary Beth Maxwell would want nothing to do with the the Middle Class Task Force.

In the continuing staffing up of Cabinet agencies, the White House last week announced the appointment of Mary Beth Maxwell to be a senior advisor to Labor Secretary Hilda Solis, with liaison responsibilities to Vice President Joe Biden’s Middle Class Task Force.

AP summarizes: “President Barack Obama has appointed a key union activist as senior adviser to Labor Secretary Hilda Solis, another sign of the influence that organized labor wields in the Obama administration.”

Maxwell has been the executive director of American Rights at Work, a union front group* that has financed much of the advertising in support of the Employee Free Choice Act — or more accurately, attacking business as greedy exploiters of the working man and women. The political scuttlebutt before Solis’ nomination as Labor Secretary was that Maxwell might fill the post. (See this Wall Street Journal blog post.) Solis served on American Rights at Work’s board of directors.

We’re in low, low dudgeon about appointments like Maxwell’s. Of course a Democratic White House is going to put labor allies in positions of power at the Department of Labor. And being named as a liaison to a PR effort looks like the very definition of a sinecure as opposed to being put in a substantive position of power.

* We refer to American Rights at Work as a “union front group” just as a dig. Its hack writers are always referring to the Coalition for a Democratic Workplace as a front group for corporations, etc., when the group — in which the NAM is an active member — is clear about its membership. CDW opposes the Employee Free Choice Act.

If anything, the Coalition for a Democratic Workplace should be called a “corporate upfront group.”

* American Rights at Work describes itself as a non-profit. Yes, but the group is also registered as a lobbying organization. See its latest disclosure. So we’ll now call them a “union front group and lobbying outfit.”

The labor front group, American Rights at Work has released a new ad aimed at countering “misleading attacks its opponents have made”. The group claims that there is a “deceptive campaign” under way “to divert attention away from the actual substance of the bill and what it seeks to accomplish.” Well OK, one would think that the ad would go into some detail about what the bill would do right? The bill implements a card check system, allows for government control of wages in the workplace and administers an effective gag rule on employers that attempt to provide their employees information about union representation.

So let’s take a look at the ad, with the script of the audio below:

“The Real Secret” TV: 30
Voice-over: Corporate greed. It’s caused a meltdown of our economy. Just look at the news … or your retirement account.
Now, greedy CEOs want to prevent workers from joining unions to level the playing field. Their new scheme to keep wages low? Spreading lies about the Employee Free Choice Act.
The truth is the Employee Free Choice Act absolutely protects workers’ right to choose a secret ballot election. But the choice would be the workers. Not their bosses.
That’s the secret Big Business doesn’t want you to know.
On Screen Disclaimer: Paid for by American Rights at Work

Hmmm…doesn’t give much detail. What lies are they dispelling? How does this bill protect workers’ rights, when it effectively eliminates secret ballots and would often lead to taking away the right of employees from actually approving their first contract? To get the facts about the Employee ‘FORCED’ Choice Act, click here.

The group’s executive director continues to describe the EFCA by stating:

“The current company dominated system is not balance. It gives employers far too much power to intimidate and harass workers.”

Instead EFCA seeks to undermine the careful crafted within our labor law system, in order to allow labor leaders the ability to intimidate and harass workers.

The AFL-CIO misleadingly describes the EFCA as

“An amendment to the existing National Labor Relations Act that makes no change, no repeal, and no amendment provision that dictates the election process.”

Well I guess technically it amends the NLRA, HOWEVER it is a radical re-write of our current labor law system that intends to send our system back to the 1930s. Far from the modernization our labor law system needs to better reflect the dynamics of employee relations in today’s modern manufacturing economy. At a time when employees are facing so many challenges, wouldn’t money used to buy all this air time and political contributions better spent on workforce development and training programs?