After the Employee Free Choice Act’s (EFCA) momentum seemed to come to a screeching halt when Sen. Arlen Specter (D-Pa), along with other Democrats, announced last month that they would not vote for cloture on the bill, efforts to revive the measure are mounting. Yesterday, Sen. Tom Harkin (D-Iowa) – one of EFCA’s chief sponsors – said that he is “actively” talking with those Democratic senators who have expressed reservations about the “card check” legislation to try to come up with a compromise bill that he could take directly to the Senate floor.  In the alternative, Harkin claimed that he would move forward with the original bill sometime in June. In response, business groups have reiterated their position that any so-called compromise would be unacceptable.

An article at Politico claims that some of Harkin’s fellow Democratic senators who oppose EFCA as written say they have been left out of any compromise talks. Thus, even if an EFCA alternative is introduced, it is unclear how many backers such a bill would have.

In its current form, EFCA would permit the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) to certify a union as the employees’ exclusive bargaining representative based on a majority of signed authorization cards, potentially eliminating the secret ballot process. This card check provision has given a number of lawmakers pause, including many Democrats.  Sen. Specter – the only (former) Republican to vote for cloture on this bill when it was introduced during the last Congressional session – cited this provision as the reason he would not support EFCA this time around. Although no details on a possible compromise have been released, it is believed that in order to regain Sen. Specter’s backing, the card check provision would have to be significantly amended and/or eliminated.

Other controversial components of EFCA that have aroused the opposition of many business groups include a provision mandating binding arbitration to determine the terms of a first union contract if the parties do not reach agreement on their own after 90 days of bargaining and 30 days of mediation. Business groups have made clear that this clause is as problematic, if not more so, than the card check provision. The bill also would impose harsher penalties on employers that commit unfair labor practices during organization drives. Stay tuned for any new developments.