"Nothing in that bill will help create jobs," said Keith Smith, director of employment and labor policy for the National Assn. of Manufacturers.
While the card-check provision has drawn the most attention, opponents are just as concerned about language that would require compulsory arbitration if management and a newly certified unit could not reach an agreement within four months using collective bargaining.
Card-check opponents say that would allow the government to force unwanted contract provisions on companies, increasing costs. Proponents say the provision would encourage companies to strike contracts with unions quickly.
All along, Republicans have made it clear that they would try to stop the bill with a filibuster. Specter's announcement Tuesday means all 41 Senate Republicans are lined up against the measure.
Some moderate Democrats are queasy too. Sen. Ben Nelson (D-Neb.), for example, has come out strongly against the bill. Other moderates, such as Sen. Mary L. Landrieu (D-La.), have been noncommittal.
A majority of Democrats in the House support the bill, but party leaders there won't force a politically sensitive floor vote if there is no chance the legislation can clear the Senate.
Unions say they are somewhat open to a compromise bill, but they insist that it must include provisions that make organizing easier, force companies to negotiate contracts quickly and increase penalties against employers that retaliate against union organizers.
Last week, the executives of three companies known for their progressive images -- Costco, Starbucks and Whole Foods -- offered what they called a "third way." It would eliminate the binding arbitration provision and preserve management's right to demand a secret-ballot election when workers seek to form bargaining units. But it would also shorten the period management would have to campaign against unionization.
The plan was condemned by both organized labor and big business.
"This proposal is unacceptable. It was written by CEOs for CEOs," Harkin said in a statement co-written by Rep. George Miller (D-Martinez), the act's chief House sponsor.
"It was not a serious attempt to compromise," said Smith of the manufacturers' group.
But the proposal's advocates aren't surrendering, and at least one Democratic senator, Mark Pryor of Arkansas, said he liked the idea. John Mackey, chief executive of Whole Foods, plans to visit Capitol Hill on Tuesday to push the plan.
Lanny J. Davis, a Washington lawyer and former Clinton administration advisor who is spearheading the compromise effort, said that Specter was being recruited for an endorsement and that the group had spoken to Feinstein's office last week. He said he hoped that legislation codifying the proposal could be offered next month.
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joliphant@tribune.com
