In the world of COVID-19, the National Labor Relations Board has made a key shift in policy for union elections. The change from the pre-pandemic preference of in-person voting to mail-in elections begs the question, how does this effect us and what can we do?
A Look at the Numbers
Since March, a whopping 90% of Board elections were conducted by mail. Until we are finally clear of this pandemic threat, any upcoming election petition likely will be conducted via mail-in ballots.
A recent study by Bloomberg Law found there were 313 mail-ballot elections tallied through October 16 in 2020. In these elections, unions won an astonishing 72.2% of the time. Employers fared a bit better in manual, in-person, elections lowering the union win-rate to 70.5%.
How to Not to Respond
Before diving into what employers should do with a mail-in union election petition, how can an employer mishandle a petition? The answer if fairly simple. Ignoring the petition or attempting to handle it yourself all but guarantees a union victory. As previously discussed, a union workplace brings a number of negatives from increased operating costs to decreased profits, to name a few. Bringing in experts to help you ward off these negative effects is crucial to maintaining control and profitability for your business!
Bring in the Experts
Regardless of whether your election is a mail-in or manual election, employers face an initial uphill battle. A critical step employers must take to even out the playing field is hiring union election specialists. In this regard, the NLRA is your one-stop shop to keep your business union-free. The numbers don’t lie, our firm has an incredible 97% success rate securing successful outcomes. Those figures are based on election victories, withdrawn petitions, or disclaimers of interest. Don’t wait any longer, contact one of our experts today!
Moving Forward
Unfortunately, the current pandemic isn’t going away anytime soon. Current estimates suggest the general public won’t have access to the vaccine until late spring or early summer. Therefore, it is unlikely the Board will back off its strong preference for mail-in ballots anytime soon. The silver lining is business owners should address a mail-in union election the same as one conducted in person. Don’t sit on the sideline before it’s too late, hire a union election specialist or risk losing your business to money and power hungry unions!
