Veto Threat Looms Over House Labor Bill

President Bush makes a statement to members of the media, in the Roosevelt Room at the White House in Washington, Wednesday, Feb. 28, 2007, as he met with members of military service organizations. (AP Photo/Charles Dharapak) (Charles Dharapak - AP)

Unions and their Democratic allies say employers use the time before elections to pressure workers. The labor rights group American Rights at Work said 80 percent of employers hire union-busting consultants and 90 percent force employees to attend one-on-one anti-union meetings with their supervisors.

John Schmitt, senior economist for the Center for Economic and Policy Research, says that about one out of five union activists can expect to be fired as part of organizing activities.

But opponents argue that eliminating elections would allow the hard-sell tactics of organizers to go unchecked. People trying to get workers to sign cards "are not going to tell workers about the downsides of organizing. They are not going to talk about how expensive the dues are," said James Sherk, policy analyst at the Heritage Foundation.

Bush has issued only one veto so far in his presidency, to kill a bill expanding federal backing for stem cell research. It's unclear if this bill will ever reach his desk: Democrats in the Senate would need 60 votes to overcome a likely GOP-led filibuster.

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The bill is H.R. 800

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