The day before signing one of the most
severe austerity budgets in the country, California Governor Jerry
Brown vetoed a law that would make it easier for farm workers to
unionize. The bill would have allowed farm workers to organize by
gathering signed cards rather than enduring employer intimidation
during a drawn-out union election process.
The vetoed law was similar to proposed
national legislation called the Employee Free Choice Act. Many
politicians pledged their support to this bill in order to secure the
support of organized labor, but EFCA was abandoned shortly after the
Democrats swept into power after the 2008 elections.
Brown, a Democrat, is following the
basic approach of his party, campaigning as a friend of labor but
attacking poor and working people once in office. Brown’s veto
exposes the common class interests shared by both major capitalist
parties and highlights the need for working people to organize and
fight independently.
