Labor Unions are furiously trying to quash a stealthy maneuver aimed at preventing the National Labor Relations Board from pursuing its suit against Boeing for moving a production line from Washington state to South Carolina.
Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC) has been leading the charge against the NLRB ever since the agency slapped Boeing with a suit earlier this year charging the defense giant with illegally retaliating against union workers in Washington state by moving a factory to South Carolina, a right-to-work state.
During a Wednesday Appropriations Committee hearing, the South Carolina senator will attempt to add language to a bill funding the NLRB that would stop the suit against Boeing dead in its tracks, according to a report in Politico.
Normally senators can move to strip out unwanted riders when bills reach the floor, but with so little time left on the legislative calendar this year, individual appropriations aren’t expected to reach the floor, and the Senate will be forced to consider one massive omnibus spending bill chock full of riders.
The Democrats control the majority in the Senate so normally this advantage would prevent this type of move, but the Appropriations Committee is narrowly divided 16-14, and already one Democrat, Sen. Mark Pryor (D-Ark.), has publicly said he is leaning towards supporting the measure.
The language drafted by Graham obviously targets Boeing but is written in a more generic way that would impact the agency’s ability to take action against companies who move production lines or other aspects of their businesses from one state to another.
Union forces became aware of Graham’s plans early Tuesday evening and began a lobbying blitz against it. The House last week voted 238-196 in favor of a similar anti-NLRB measure with eight Democrats supporting it.
