WASHINGTON, March 6 (AP) — The Senate voted Tuesday to give 45,000 airport screeners the same union rights as border patrol, customs and immigration agents, despite a White House threat to veto it. þþThe vote, 51 to 46, rejected an amendment by Senator Jim DeMint, Republican of South Carolina, which would have removed the union rights from a broad antiterrorism bill to carry out recommendations of the Sept. 11 commission previously rejected by Congress.þþThe House passed a similar bill with the same union provision for airport screeners in an indication of organized labor’s strength with Democrats now running Congress.þþRepublicans vowed to remove the provision when negotiators sit down to merge the House and Senate bills.þþ“We’re not going to let big labor compromise national security,” said Senator Mitch McConnell, Republican of Kentucky. þþMr. McConnell, the minority leader, said there were not enough votes in either the House or Senate to override a veto by President Bush.þþWhite House officials released a statement last week saying President Bush’s senior advisers would recommend that he veto the bill if it included the provision for screeners.þþ“It’s absolutely absurd,” said Senator Richard M. Burr, Republican of North Carolina. “Terrorists don’t go on strike. Terrorists don’t call their union to negotiate before they attack.”þþSenator Sherrod Brown, Democrat of Ohio, said collective bargaining rights would not allow screeners to strike and would grant them basic protections from overwork, dangerous conditions and retaliation if they report security breaches.þþ
Source: NY Times
