Re-Issuing the “quickie” election is payback to big labor by liberal administration

The NLRB has renewed its push to speed up the union election process, and employers should take note.  The press release announcing the proposed rule can be found here.  A federal court blocked the Board’s earlier attempt in 2012 because the Board lacked a quorum when it voted to enact the rule.  Now that the Obama administration has struck the deal which has given the Board its full five-member compliment, the Democratic majority has reformed and resurrected this aggressive attempt to limit an employer’s rights.

Currently, after the a Petition for Representation is filed with the Board, an election is held an average of 38 days later.  Unions typically work behind the scenes for months prior to filing a Petition.  This strategy is used because during an active organizing campaign the Employer has limited ability to present its side of the unionization debate.  The National Labor Relations Act vigorously protects a worker’s right to organize, and an employer must be careful during the pre-petition period to not engage in behavior that would infringe upon rights guaranteed by the Act lest it be charged with an Unfair Labor Practice.

Once a Petition is filed the NLRA permits an employer’s First Amendment right to engage with their workers on the merits of a unionizing proposal: “Expressing of any views, argument, or opinion, or the dissemination thereof, whether in written, printed, graphic, or visual form, shall not constitute or be evidence of an unfair labor practice.”  Sunrise Health Care Corporation, 334 NLRB No. 111 (2001).  Many would argue that the scales of justice are already tipped in Big Labor’s favor when months of campaigning by a union must be countered by an employer in 38 days.  The new rule would push things even more out of balance.  Under the new rule the employer would have only days and at most three weeks before the vote!

The Service Employees International Union has proclaimed the speeded-up election procedures would “ensure that workers are able to exercise a fundamental right we hold dear in our country—the right to vote.” The new rule is, in fact, part and parcel of the current administration’s attack on employee free choice.

If you find yourself targeted by a union reach out to NLRA’s experts today.