#union elections

[orissapost]

Odisha govt mulls revival of students’ union elections from next academic year

Odisha Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi Thursday announced that the state government is contemplating the resumption of students’ union ele

[worklabournewsresearch]

President Biden and Unions

“Two months into the new administration, labor leaders are proclaiming Joseph R. Biden Jr. to be the most union-friendly president of their lifetime — and ‘maybe ever,’ as Steve Rosenthal, a former political director for the A.F.L.-C.I.O., said in an interview. ... Yet Mr. Rosenthal and other labor advocates confess to a gnawing anxiety: Despite Mr. Biden’s remarkable support for their movement, unions may not be much better off when he leaves office than when he entered it.”

“That’s because labor law gives employers considerable power to fend off union organizing, which is one reason that union membership has sunk to record lows in recent decades. And Senate Republicans will seek to thwart any legislative attempts — such as the PRO Act, which the House passed this month — to reverse the trend. ... Under current law, employers can inundate workers with anti-union messages — through mandatory meetings, email, signs in the workplace — while unions often have trouble gaining access to workers. And though it is technically illegal to threaten or fire workers who take part in an organizing campaign, employers face minimal punishment for doing so.”

“The PRO Act would outlaw mandatory anti-union meetings, enact financial penalties for threatening or firing workers and help wrongly terminated workers win quick reinstatement. It would also give unions leverage by allowing them to engage in secondary boycotts — say, asking customers to boycott restaurants that buy food from a bakery they are trying to unionize. ... Even with the legal protections envisioned under the PRO Act, however, it will be hard for unions to make large-scale gains in coverage, many experts say. Labor law often effectively requires workers to win union elections one work site at a time, which could mean hundreds of separate elections at Amazon alone. ... And the PRO Act’s chances for enactment are remote so long as opponents have recourse to the Senate filibuster, which effectively requires 60 votes to pass legislation.”

The New York Times, March 25, 2021: “Biden May Be the Most Pro-Labor President Ever; That May Not Save Unions,” by Noam Scheiber

Economic Policy Institute, March 18, 2021: “Three reasons why the PRO Act won’t destroy freelancing or the gig economy,” by Eve Tahmincioglu

National Review, March 11, 2021: “PRO? Con”

Photo Source: Mills, D. (2021). President Biden met this month with Kristin and James Smith, the owners of Smith Flooring, a union shop, in Chester, Pa. [Photograph]. The New York Times. https://www.nytimes.com/2021/03/25/business/economy/joe-biden-unions.html

[davidhencke]

Unison:A libel threat, a database and a " cut and paste" email - all to help Dave Prentis win?

Unison:A libel threat, a database and a ” cut and paste” email – all to help Dave Prentis win?

Cliff Williams,Unison assistant general secretary and later head of Team Dave, as a guest speaker at the FDA conference. Pic credit: fda.org.uk

SPECIAL REPORT FROM THE HEARING BY FREELANCE JOURNALIST ALEX VARLEY WINTER – a colleague of mine at the former Exaro website

The head of Team Dave – Dave Prentis’s election campaign – and a leading official at the union was cross questioned today by…

View On WordPress

[peterwk]

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/12/22/business/nlrb-adopts-rules-to-speed-unionization-votes.html

Nice! Basically the rule changes will put most of the legal mumbo jumbo that employers use to delay union elections for months after the election. Then it can all be sorted out afterword. This will shorten the time that employers will have to bring in union busting law firms that help intimidate workers and violate labor law while muddying the waters of an election process with frivolous delays.

I dunno why the Chamber of Commerce is against this. It'll save businesses money. Now instead of companies hiring $1,000-a-day lawyers from union busting firms like Jackson Lewis for months and months at a time, it'll be more like two months or less. :)

--

NLRB: In recent years, only about 10 percent of NLRB election cases have gone through the hearing process. Such elections have been held on average 101 days after the election petition was filed with a regional office. “This rule is about giving all employees who have petitioned for an election the right to vote in a timely manner and without the impediment of needless litigation,” said Chairman Pearce. http://www.nlrb.gov/news/board-adopts-amendments-election-case-procedures