Pennsylvania AFL-CIO president Bill George said yesterday that he and other labor leaders have told Sen. Arlen Specter (R., Pa.) that they would help him survive a primary challenge next year if he supports legislation that makes it easier to unionize workers.

"If he's there for us, we'll be there for him," George said in an interview. "We would do everything we can to make sure he wins," he said, including efforts to persuade union members to register as Republicans so they could back Specter at the polls.