Madisonians have a habit of making a big deal out of just about every political issue, but every once in a while, we get it right and push for an issue that actually matters to everyday people and isn't just a pie-in-the-sky political ploy.

Dane County Supervisor Ashok Kumar — yeah, UW's Ashok Kumar — is planning to put a resolution before the board to allow workers to freely unionize without coercion from malicious employers who simply refuse to recognize unions. The resolution might sound familiar to a few of you who monitor the U.S. House of Representatives' docket, and that is because Mr. Kumar's resolution is based on the recently passed Employee's Free Choice Act (EFCA). The act is currently under deliberation in the U.S. Senate and is ultimately expected not to pass, possibly by presidential veto.

Should EFCA fail as expected, it means that workers who seek to unionize when a majority of employees want to collectively bargain will continue to face the risk of losing their status or recognition as a union because employers can reject their union status.

To do so, employers reveal themselves to the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) elections, in which workers vote for their status as a union. These elections, however, leave workers subject to a variety of circumstances that could ultimately affect the outcome of the vote, including, but not limited to, the number of employees who show up for such an election and actually vote in it.

As the results are limited to those who participate in the elections, they prove to be an unreliable measure of the employees' actual interest in unions, as employers often rely on propaganda to defeat union pushes, necessitating a push in another direction for change.

The Employees Free Choice Act proposes allowing employees to attempt to formulate a union via the NLRB through a certification process requiring a majority of workers to sign a union authorization form, as opposed to the NLRB election.

When this requirement is met, employers will be forced to deal with the newly NLRB-certified collective bargaining unit and recognize the right of workers to assemble and unionize for their benefit.

As EFCA is expected to fail, Kumar's resolution hopes to capitalize on the momentum of this act and serves a great benefit to the people of Dane County, who, without this resolution, would be left with little protection from employers who choose to ignore the majority of their workers' demands.

Kumar has high hopes for the resolution and said in a press release, "I hope this resolution sends a strong signal to our senators in the federal government that workers' rights remain a priority in the heartland."

While Kumar may be wishfully thinking that such action will be the catalyst of change for the Senate, his resolution serves a purpose in that it works on the local level for people who it truly affects.

Working on this level ensures that, barring conflicts of law with greater legislative bodies, the people who Kumar and other Dane County Board supervisors represent will be protected by legislation that escapes the federal level simply because of immature posturing and politicking. When such partisanship dominates the discussion, common-sense ideas, such as allowing people to exercise their rights to assemble and voice their opinions, are defeated.

The local level promises more opportunity for the people to be connected with the democracy they want, as those affected by this resolution live in the same neighborhoods and apartment buildings as the people proposing it.

Our democracy is served best through these local leaders, such as Kumar, who take the initiative to push for resolutions such as this, instead of pushing for resolutions that barely affect the lives of the people with whom they are intimately acquainted.

Praise is due to Kumar, who has taken this chance to support Madison and Dane County citizens, rather than proposing resolutions that violate this principle of necessity and common sense.

Robert Phansalkar ([email protected]) is a senior majoring in languages and cultures of Asia and political science.