By Nelson Cary and Amanda Kuehner on Posted in Union OrganizingIf you think unions only organize manufacturing plants and construction sites, think again. With the 2020 election year in full swing, unions continue to form among Democratic political campaign staffers. These political staffers are using their party’s pro-union stance as an opportunity to unionize their own campaigns. Sen. Bernie Sanders (I) became the first presidential… Continue Reading
By Allen Kinzer on Posted in Union OrganizingBy a vote of 833 to 776, the VW workers in Chattanooga again rejected the UAW. The vote was held from June 12 through June 14, and 93% of those VW workers eligible to vote did cast a ballot in the NLRB-supervised election. This UAW defeat follows the UAW’s defeat in 2014. In this 2019… Continue Reading
By Nelson Cary on Posted in Union OrganizingBy Susan Connelly of PTI Labor Research, Guest Blogger* PTI Labor Research analyzed union representation petitions that were filed within the first half of the year. States with the most petitions filed (pdf) included: New York, California, Illinois, Pennsylvania and New Jersey. Each of these top five states are “Non-Right to Work,” where it is legal to… Continue Reading
By Nelson Cary on Posted in NLRB,Union OrganizingOn the heels of the much anticipated decision involving the Macy’s department store chain, discussed on this blog last week, the NLRB on Monday released its opinion in a similar case involving Neiman Marcus. Unlike the outcome in the Macy’s case, however, the NLRB found the bargaining unit that the union sought to represent was not… Continue Reading
By Nelson Cary on Posted in Union OrganizingBy Al Kinzer Just before the NLRB hearing about the UAW objections to the VW election was to start, the UAW withdrew its objections to its 712-626 defeat in the February 2014 election. Thus, the UAW ended its legal battle to overturn the election results. The UAW stated that pursing its objections would take months… Continue Reading
By Nelson Cary on Posted in NLRB,Union OrganizingBy: Nelson D. Cary, Michael J. Shoenfelt Yesterday, the NLRB’s regional director for Region 13(Chicago), Peter Ohr, issued a 24-page ruling in which he held that college football players at Northwestern University were employees entitled to the right to organize. Ohr reasoned that the players met the standard for an employee under the NLRA and… Continue Reading
By Nelson Cary on Posted in Union OrganizingBy Al Kinzer On March 10, 2014, the NLRB Acting Regional Director issued an order allowing two groups of VW workers opposed to the UAW and an another organization to intervene in a hearing on the UAW’s effort to have its election defeat set aside. After the UAW’s 712-626 defeat at Volkswagen, the UAW filed objections… Continue Reading
By Nelson Cary on Posted in Union OrganizingBy Al Kinzer Seeking to set aside its loss, the UAW filed formal objections to the VW election with the NLRB. The UAW alleges interference with the NLRB election process by third parties. The UAW requests that the NLRB set aside its 712-626 loss in the February 14 election and conduct another secret-ballot election. The UAW has until… Continue Reading
By Nelson Cary on Posted in Union OrganizingBy Al Kinzer By a vote of 712 to 626, the VW workers in Chattanooga rejected UAW representation. The defeat leaves the UAW in a precarious state. The UAW was hoping to use a victory at VW as momentum for its campaigns at Nissan in Canton, Mississippi, and at Mercedes Benz in Vance, Alabama. Instead, the UAW finds… Continue Reading
By Nelson Cary on Posted in Union OrganizingBy Al Kinzer Voting begins at 6:00 a.m. on Wednesday, February 12, and the polls close at 8:30 p.m. on Friday, February 14. By 11:00 p.m. on Valentine’s Day, Chattanooga will know whether the UAW has been certified as the exclusive union representing the Volkswagen workers at its Chattanooga plant. VW has done a lot for… Continue Reading
By Nelson Cary on Posted in Union OrganizingBy Al Kinzer Between February 12 and 14, the polls will be open for the workers at Volkswagen’s plant in Chattanooga to decide whether they want to be represented by the UAW in a secret-ballot election. Much is at stake for the UAW, the VW workers, and the Chattanooga community. For the UAW, this is the… Continue Reading
By Nelson Cary on Posted in Union OrganizingWith no fanfare, the DOL has changed the anticipated date for the final rule regarding persuader activity. The DOL has been working on this rule for several years and published a proposed rule in 2011. Previously, the DOL had indicated it would publish the final rule in November 2013. Mercifully for employers, November came and went with… Continue Reading
By Nelson Cary on Posted in Union OrganizingBy Nelson Cary and Ashley Manfull Recently, the District of Columbia Circuit Court of Appeals reigned in a union-friendly NLRB decision involving comments made during a union organizing drive. In Flagstaff Medical Center, Inc., the NLRB held, among other things, that Flagstaff’s President violated the NLRA during a meeting with food services employees during a union… Continue Reading
By Nelson Cary on Posted in Union OrganizingBy Nelson Cary and Bradley Gibson The NLRB has granted review in two cases that address whether graduate student assistants seeking to be represented by a union are employees covered by the NLRA. Chairman Mark Pearce (D) and Members Richard Griffin (D) and Sharon Block (D) ruled in favor of granting review in the cases, while… Continue Reading
By Nelson Cary on Posted in NLRB,Union OrganizingThe NLRB announced today a delay in the effective date of its recently published final rule requiring the posting of a notice of employee rights under the NLRA. Employers subject to the NLRB’s jurisdiction are now expected to have the notice posted by January 31, 2012. The rule was previously set to take effect on November 14, 2011. According to… Continue Reading
By Nelson Cary on Posted in NLRBBy Nelson Cary and Brad Gibson With the current NLRB, it is good to be a labor union around Labor Day. Last year, the NLRB handed out an expanded right to engage in "bannering" without running afoul of the NLRA. This year, the NLRB relieved unions, and the employers who voluntarily recognize them, of the possibility… Continue Reading
By Nelson Cary on Posted in NLRBBy Nelson Cary and Micah Dawson After identifying issues neither the union nor the employer raised, and inviting interested parties to submit briefs on those issues, the NLRB has issued a union-friendly decision. In the process, the NLRB has reversed a 20-year-old precedent for bargaining unit determinations in nursing homes, rehab facilities, and other non-acute health… Continue Reading
By Nelson Cary on Posted in NLRB,Union OrganizingToday, the NRLB officially published a Final Rule that requires private-sector employers, both union and non-union, to post a notice in their workplaces notifying employees of their rights under the NLRA. Pursuant to the new rule, employers subject to the NLRA must “post notices to employees, in conspicuous places, informing them of their NLRA rights, together… Continue Reading
By Nelson Cary on Posted in Union OrganizingBy Allen Kinzer and Nelson Cary Recently, we alerted you to the U.S. Department of Labor’s effort to change the reporting requirements for businesses who engage external advisors in connection with union organizing issues. As we continue to review these proposed regulations, their scope becomes even more problematic for employers. For example, suppose you are a… Continue Reading
By Nelson Cary on Posted in NLRBIn New York New York Hotel & Casino, 356 N.L.R.B. No. 119 (2011), the Board expanded the right to handbill on private property. The party accused of wrongdoing in this case was a casino. Completely within the casino’s property, a different employer, pursuant to a subcontract with the casino, operated a restaurant. The restaurant’s employees… Continue Reading
By Nelson Cary on Posted in EFCA,NLRBPreviously, Vorys on Labor reported on several state ballot initiatives that advanced amendments to state constitutions. The amendments purported to protect the right to a secret ballot in any election, including a labor election. These amendments passed by substantial margins in Utah, South Dakota, South Carolina, and Arizona — everywhere they were on the ballot. As the… Continue Reading
By Nelson Cary on Posted in Union OrganizingMany commentators have noted the decline in unions’ use of the NLRB’s formal election process to organize new groups of employees. A central tool that has arisen in its place is the neutrality and card check agreement. In these agreements, an employer agrees that it will recognize and bargain with a union if the union can… Continue Reading
By Allen Kinzer on Posted in Union OrganizingWith card check recognition all but dead, the UAW is trying to take matters into its own hands in re-writing rules for union elections. A couple of months ago, UAW President Bob King stated the following during an auto industry speech about the “Free Choice Act” and his notions for principles for fair union elections: While… Continue Reading
By Nelson Cary on Posted in NLRB,Union OrganizingDuring union organizing campaigns, employers are often confronted with complaints from employees that employee organizers are "harassing" them about signing union authorization cards. Sensitized through years of training on laws prohibiting discrimination and harassment, an employer’s first instinct is often to view such complaints under its harassment policy. Employers sometimes also encourage employees to report "harassment"… Continue Reading
