The Rule having passed, debate began at 12:04 p.m.

The link below will take you to detailed coverage.

2:33 p.m.  Vote on the amendments is now taking place.

2:26 p.m.  Rep. George Miller (D-CA):  Republicans are the ones paying back their supporters.   When Republicans were in charge, it was "pay to play."  Employers can veto employees' rights to get a union without an election.  Plus, employers fire people.  You don't need a secret ballot for a decertification.  Employers terminate or reduce pensions. Employers take away health benefits and change working hours.  Everybody needs an agent.  CEO's make a lot of money.  A guy cried at the Hearing.  My granddaughter didn't like that.  There is no penalty for an employer. 

2:22 p.m.  Rep. John Boehner (R-OH):  Imagine if in the 2008 elections you had to show up at a town hall meeting and let everyone know who you want to be President.  Americans don't want that.  Federal courts acknowledge that some people who sign cards don't really want unions.  The NLRB says the same thing.  Real issue here is taking care of union bosses and to let them intimidate people. 

2:20 p.m.  Rep. Buck McKeon (R-CA):  We used to put our heads on our desk and vote in school.  Democrats want to reverse that.

2:19 p.m.  Rep. John Shadegg (R-AZ): Debate is really about giving unions power, not workers.  The LA Times agrees.  [He's serious about this].

2:18 p.m.  Rep. Darrell Issa (R-CA):  Shame on the Democrats for making it possible for unions to intimidate.

2:16 p.m.  Rep. Louie Gohmert (R-PA):  School teachers say that secret ballots separate the US from bad governments.  Democrats are calling those teachers liars.  What about Mecico?  Were they lying then or are they lying now?

2:14 p.m.  Rep. Tom Price (R-GA):  It's just the beginning of eliminating democracy.  Secret ballots are not expendable.  And then there's that Mexican union thing.

2:11 p.m.  Phil Hare (D-IL):  Republicans don't stand up for little people.  I was an organizer.  I worked on a boycott.  Supervisors followed people to the restroom and tell hospitalized employees to go to work or be fired.   "You think this is the end?  My friends, this is only the beginning."

2:09 p.m. Gene Green (D-TX):  I oppose the amendment.  "The rich get richer and the poor get poorer."  Mediation and arbitration is a good thing.  Employers delay things.  Union workers make more money and get pensions.

2:06 p.m.  Rep. Dennis Hastert (D-IL):  Right to secret ballot is fundamental to any democracy.  NLRB has detailed procedures.  Demorcats got very upset in 2000 when they thought the vote did not have integrity.  Unions paid $60 million to get the EFCA passed and to silence workers.  Unions engage in violence and intimidation.  Support the amendment.

2:02 p.m.  Rep. Carol Shea-Porter (D-NH):  Say "yes" to the EFCA.  Employers fire people.

2:00 p.m.  Rep. Roy Blunt (R-MO):  This country believes in secret ballot elections, even if we don't like the results.  Plus, Democrats want secret ballot union elections in Mexico.  

1:56 p.m.  Rep. Yvette Clarke (D-NY):  No one with a good conscience would be opposed to the EFCA.  Plus, employers fire people and hire union busters.

1:52 p.m.  Rep. Buck McKeon (R-CA):  Proposes amendment to require secret ballots.

1:51 p.m.  Vote on the "do not contact" list amendment is postponed.

1:48 p.m. Rep. George Miller (D-CA):  Amendment is just another way to keep employees from getting information.  Employers can still have meetings.  Plus, employers can fire people.  How is the union supposed to communicate.  Employers would tell employees to put themselves on the do not contact list and would find out who signed.  Consultants are bad. 

1:47 p.m. Rep. Robert Andrews (D-NJ):  Union organizers almost never engage in illegal activity.

1:46 p.m.  Rep. Virginia Fox (R-NC):  Democrats twist words and ideas.  If this were a circus, Democrats would be contortionists.  Amendment would avoid harassment, which I know occurs.

1:44 p.m. Rep. Robert Andrews (D-NJ):  Amendment would be unconstitutional.  Coercion by organizers would be illegal.  Board would find cards invalid.  Republicans don't want to give employees the right to refuse to go to captive audience meetings.  Plus, employers fire people.  The amendment would prohibit a union from putting an ad in the newspaper.   

1:42 p.m.  Rep. Buck McKeon (R-CA):  Employees should have the right not to be contacted.  Democrats say that employees should be able to make up their own minds.  This gives them a chance to do that.  The "do not call" list is very popular.  This would be good.

1:39 p.m.  Rep. Virginia Fox (R-NC):  Proposes amendment that would allow employees to put their names on a "do not contact" list to avoid union solicitation.  Organizers lie to get into workers' homes.  People can have unlisted phone numbers and should have this privacy.

 1:38 p.m.  Vote on salting amenedment is postponed.

1:37 p.m.  Rep. George Miller (D-CA):  The bill would permit discrimination.  Bad salting is already illegal.

1:36 p.m. Rep. Steve King (R-IA): Amendment does not permit discriminiation, just forbids salting.  Salts are bad.

1:34 p.m. Rep. Marilyn Musgrave (R-CO):  Salts sabotage workplaces and file meritless charges.  It is a destructive practice. 

1:27 p.m.  Rep. Mark Souder (R-IN): These are people who come in for the sole purpose of organizing.  Democrats wouldn't let us address this in Committee.

1:30 p.m.  Rep. Robert Andrews (D-NJ):  Salting is legal but disruptive practices are not.  Amendment would permit discrimination against people just because they belong to a union at the time of hire.  It's like refusing to hire someone because they belong to the NRA.

1:27 p.m.  Rep. Steve King (R-IA):  Proposed amenemdent to forbid salting.  It's a spy technique.  I support collective bargaining, but this amendment is necessary.

12:27 p.m.  Chair declares debate on the original bill closed and amendment debate open.

1:23 p.m. Rep. George Miller (D-CA):  Workers are making less.  CEO's make hundreds of millions of dollars.  This lets employees choose whether to have a secret ballot election or a majority sign up.  Employees need card check because employers refuse to contribute to pensions and they cut health care benefits. 

1:19 p.m.  Rep. Buck McKeon (R-CA):  Special interests wrote the script and will get their payback.  Debate comes down to debate between democracy and hypocrisy.  How does this protect free choice if everyone knows how you came down on the issue?  Even LA Times, not known for being conservative, says secret ballots are necessary.

1:18 p.m. Rep. Linda Sanchez (D-CA): Union workers earn more. Employers force employees to go to meetings.  They fire people.  I was a union organizer.

1:16 p.m.  Rep. Charlie Wilson (D-OH):  Economy is moving overseas.  EFCA cuts through red tape.

1:14 p.m.  Rep. Sheila Jackson-Lee (D-TX):  My experience as a union memeber reinforces the need for this bill.

1:13 p.m.  Rep. Ron Klein (D-FL):  We should all be pro worker, but this bill is not.  Effect of this bill is to eliminate secret ballot no matter what it says.

1:07 p.m.  Rep. Steny Hoyer (D-MD):  This is about fairness in the workplace.  Addresses the haves and have nots.  Current system is undemocratic.  Does not abolish election process.  Democrats are the party of workers AND employers.  Republicans hurt workers.  [He's getting worked up here.]  No suprise Republicans would oppose this bill.  Alonzo Morning is on equal footing with his employer. 

1:04 p.m.  Rep.Steven Kirk (R-IL):   89% of Americans want a secret ballot.  79% of Americans oppose the bill.  Congress shouldn't rescue big labor from its own loss of popularity.

1:01 p.m.  Rep. Robert Andrews (D-NJ):  Opponents of the bill have grossly overstated the magnitude of the change.  We are not doing away with the secret ballot.  [Why doesn't someone call them on this misleading statement?]  Employees get to choose whether to have an election or not.  Union leadership coaches baseball teams and goes to Mass.  In 60 years, only 42 examples of union coercion during organizing campaigns occurred.  In 2005, 31,000 people were awarded backpay.  The bill replaces the employer's arbitrary veto and coercion.

12:59 p.m.  Rep. Mark Souder (R-IN):  Secret ballots are not anti-God.  Should we eliminate secret ballots in all elections?

12:53 p.m.  Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D-CA):  This has bi-partisan support.  Committee did a great job.  This is about basic workers' rights and ending discrimination and protecting jobs.  It will bring social justice.  It dishonors God if we don't promote liberty and justice for all.  That's what this bill does.

12:51 p.m.  Rep. Adrian Smith (R-NE):  Workers don't like this bill. 

12:50 p.m.  Rep. Lynn Woolsey (D-CA):  I'm a former HR Manager.  Productivity is better if workers get paid.  Middle class is disappearing.  Union workers earn more, get pensions.  Bill is the prescription we need.

12:48 p.m.  Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R-WA): This bill heads us in the wrong direction.  Would be bad for health care and would increase health care costs.  Biggest concern is undue pressure on employees.  I will vote against this bill in public to protect the citizens' right to vote in private.

12:46 p.m. Rep. Phil Hare (D-IL):  I was in a union, wouldn't be here without them.  They helped me buy a house.  CEO's make too much money.  Give every American the chance to go from the floor of a union shop to the floor of Congress.

12:44 p.m.  Rep. Danny Davis (D-IL):  EFCA promotes the American way.

12:42 p.m.  Rep. Steve Chabot (R-OH):  Would hit small businesses hard.  Rules committe should have allowed consideration of amendment exempting small business.  Dems want to limit debate because this is a bad bill.

12:38 p.m.  Rep. John Tierney (D-MA):  Republicans don't care about employers.  NLRB remedies are not strong enough.  Employers force employees to go to meetings.  They hire consultants.  Employers drag out negotiations. 

12:37 p.m.  Shelley Berkley (D-NV):  Secret ballots are still possible. My district has the best employers anywhere, but the current system allows for abuses.

12:36 p.m.  Rep. John Yarmuth (D-KY):  This bill is Americans for America.

12:35 p.m.  Rep.Robert Andrews (D-NJ):  If an employee asks for card back, it will be treated as invalid.

12:34 p.m. Rep. Charles Boustany (R-LA):  Should be allowed to consider amendment to let workers who change their minds to get thier cards back.  We allow that for purchases of cars and homes.  Union organizers mislead employees and do other bad things.

12:31 p.m. Rep. Dennis Kucinich (D-OH):  Workers' rights are human rights.  Union workers make more money.  They get pensions.  They get health care. 

12:29 p.m.  Rep. Bob Goodlatte (R-VA):  Bill strikes a blow to privacy rights.  Democrats insisted on secret ballots in Mexico.  Bill betrays American workers.

12:27 p.m. Rep. Rush Holt (D-NJ):  This isn't really about the red herring of secret ballots.  It's about leveling the playing field and advancing the economy of the country.

12:25 p.m.  Rep. Ric Keller (R-FL):  No one should be allowed to intimidate.  This bill is really about rewarding labor for supporting Democrats.  Zogby poll of union members showed that union members say secret ballots should be kept.

12:24 p.m.  Joe Courtney (D-CT):  I was a small business owner 60 days ago.  I looked into it, and you can still have elections under the EFCA.  Cards are not the back of a napkin.  The NLRB will protect people.

12:22 p.m. Rep. Joe Wilson (R-SC):  Opposes EFCA.

12:20 p.m. Rep. Keith Ellison (D-MN):  This is a human rights act.  Unions never intimidate people. 

12:18 p.m. Tom  Price (R-GA):  Orwellian Democracy.  Should be called the "Employee Intimidation Act."  Secret ballots are the only way to determine true intentions.  Yes, intimidation occurs on both sides.  Cards are sometimes signed just to avoid offending someone or to get organizers off one's back.

12:17 p.m.  Rep Rosa DeLauro  (D-CT ):  Board routinely rules on the side of employers. 

12:14 p.m.  Rep. Sam Johnson (R-TX):  Bill would strangle employee free choice.  This is payback to labor.

12:11 p.m.  Rep. George Miller (D-CA):  When you try to organize, you get fired and stalked.  You can still have a secret ballot, but employers can't require it. Too many appeals.  Bargaining takes too long.  This is simple legislation.

12:05 p.m.  Buck McKeon (R-CA):  Everyone in the House was elected by secret ballot.  No one disputes the right to organize.  But secret ballots should be a right.

12:04 p.m.  Mazie Hirono (D-HI):  Penalties are not effective.