Senators in Columbia should approve a bill this session that calls for a constitutional amendment that would preserve the secret ballot in South Carolina workplaces. The bill should be passed even though talk of the so-called “card check” bill has cooled in Washington, D.C., thanks to Congress’ single-minded focus on health-care reform.

Last spring, the S.C. House passed a bill that would require unionization votes in South Carolina to be conducted via secret ballot if S.C. voters approve a constitutional amendment. The amendment would protect South Carolina workers from an infringement of their privacy that would give unions too much power to influence the votes to create them.

Under the card check bill, known formally as the Employee Free Choice Act, the only requirement for a union to form would be for 50 percent plus one of employees at a given business to sign union authorization cards. Current law requires 30 percent of workers sign cards to trigger a NLRB-run secret election. In addition, both unions and employers are allowed a chance to present their case for or against unionization leading up to the vote.

American workers should not be denied the right to organize, and the current system really is the best environment for unionization elections. The card check system opens the door to intimidation by union organizers. What worker wouldn’t feel pressured to sign a card when being asked face-to-face whether he supports a union? Especially when he knows that every employee who supports unionization will know exactly which workers have signed pledge cards.

Read the rest of the Greenville News Editorial here.