This morning the House rejected an amendment that would have made it easier to unionize air and rail workers. The amendment was supported by the Obama administration and the labor unions. Rep. Steve LaTourette (R-Ohio) proposed allowing a National Mediation Board (NMB) ruling that abstentions would no longer be counted as votes against unionization to stand. While it sounds reasonable in theory, in practice it allows unions to be formed with as little worker support as possible.
The 206-220 vote, with just 16 Republicans backing LaTourette, is not enough to withstand a veto, however. Rep. Phil Gringrey (R-GA) said on a conference call earlier this week that he was hopeful his language overturning the NMB ruling could pass the House and Senate by veto-proof majorities. The Obama administration has signaled it will veto the FAA bill over this language. Russ Brown and Ivan Osorio had a piece on this up on the main site.
