From the desk of Steve Cabot:

These are challenging times for optimists.  I remember writing a year ago that as disruptive as 2010 had been for millions of American workers and their employers, 2011 could well be even more difficult.  I take no joy in the accuracy of that prediction.

But as much as we may feel like frogs swimming in that famous pot on the stove as Washington continues to turn up the heat, I do believe in the core strength and wisdom of the American people.  My hope is that when it’s time to write an assessment a year from now, we will have righted this ship of state, setting the stage for real recovery, and reversing the policies that have discouraged and divided us.

In this moment, however, I prefer to set aside those concerns and reflect on those aspects of life that transcend the sorts of struggles we all face from time to time.  I’m grateful for my clients – for their confidence and constancy – and for my family and friends who deepen my experience of living and bring joy in so many ways.

Yes, there will be opportunities soon enough to address the issues that confront us as employers, and I will be returning in a month to write on those important matters.   Until then, I hope you will find ways to offer and receive the love and support that is central to the significance of this season.

As always, for assistance with any labor relations issues, I encourage you to call me directly on my cell phone (215-990-3423) or contact Georgetta McCabe, my administrative assistant, on her direct line: 800-655-2042.

afl-cio · cabot institute · decertification · EFCA · Labor Relations

From the desk of Stephen Cabot:

The National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) has threatened to sue four states for ensuring that workers can enjoy a basic democratic right to cast secret ballots when it come s to the possibility of unionization. The four states, South Dakota, South Carolina, Arizona, and Utah, have mandated the use of secret ballots in union elections.

The NLRB has made the Alice-in-Wonderland assertion that secret ballots violate federal law. Though Congress has refused to pass the Employee Free Choice Act that would have permitted unions to coerce workers into signing “card checks” to ensure union representation, the NLRB has repeatedly looked for opportunities to present unions with opportunities to impose the use of “card checks” on workers, who may not want to join a union.

Indeed, the most effective tactic that workers have against forced unionization is the secret ballot. No union organizer gets to coerce, embarrass, or intimidate a worker to join a union when the workers’ preferences are made oblique by casting secret, anonymous ballots.

We back the efforts of Minnesota Republican Representative John Kline to amend the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA) with the passage of the Secret Ballot Protection Act. While the Republican dominated House of Representatives very well may pass the amendment, the Democrats in the Senate will not pass it. Corporate America, therefore, will have to wait until the election of 2012 to be delivered from the high-handed, pro-union actions of the NLRB. Meanwhile, it is essential that corporations put in place survival strategies that prevent labor relations problems before they arise.

amendment · cabot institute · card check · card checks · corporate america · Democrats · EFCA · Employee Free Choice Act · John Kline · Labor Relations · mandate · mandates · national labor relations act · National Labor Relations Board · nlra · nlrb · Republicans · stephen cabot · Steve Cabot · union · unionization · Unions

From the desk of Stephen Cabot:

The National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) has threatened to sue four states for ensuring that workers can enjoy a basic democratic right to cast secret ballots when it come s to the possibility of unionization. The four states, South Dakota, South Carolina, Arizona, and Utah, have mandated the use of secret ballots in union elections.

The NLRB has made the Alice-in-Wonderland assertion that secret ballots violate federal law. Though Congress has refused to pass the Employee Free Choice Act that would have permitted unions to coerce workers into signing “card checks” to ensure union representation, the NLRB has repeatedly looked for opportunities to present unions with opportunities to impose the use of “card checks” on workers, who may not want to join a union.

Indeed, the most effective tactic that workers have against forced unionization is the secret ballot. No union organizer gets to coerce, embarrass, or intimidate a worker to join a union when the workers’ preferences are made oblique by casting secret, anonymous ballots.

We back the efforts of Minnesota Republican Representative John Kline to amend the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA) with the passage of the Secret Ballot Protection Act. While the Republican dominated House of Representatives very well may pass the amendment, the Democrats in the Senate will not pass it. Corporate America, therefore, will have to wait until the election of 2012 to be delivered from the high-handed, pro-union actions of the NLRB. Meanwhile, it is essential that corporations put in place survival strategies that prevent labor relations problems before they arise.

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From Stephen Cabot’s desk in Philadelphia:

In a recent decision, the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) has opened its back door ever wider for unions to enact a de facto Employee Free Choice Act (EFCA), also known as card checks.
The NLRB decided that an important auto supply company, Dana, in Michigan, can permit the further establishment of unionization amongst its employees through card checks. The UAW already represents workers at a number of Dana facilities. And the union wanted to organize the remaining workers. In an effort to win union concessions without resorting to collective bargaining, Dana agreed to permit the UAW to use card checks to organize those workers who were not represented by a union. No longer will there be secret ballot elections at Dana. Instead, union organizers can now pressure or even intimidate workers into signing card cards.
Dana agreed to the use of card checks and the abolition of secret ballot elections in exchange for the UAW agreeing to maintain the company’s plans to reduce employee benefits and permit mandatory overtime. The UAW further agreed not to call for a strike. And the NLRB gave this unusual deal its stamp of approval!
It may seem like a good deal for Dana, but if labor disputes arise in the future, the UAW can resort to a full assortment of union tactics to win concessions, and it will have the added leverage of representing all of Dana’s workers. In the meantime, the UAW will significantly increase revenues from the union dues of many new members.
Both the NLRB and the UAW have found a clever way to impose card checks on Corporate America and enlist millions of workers into the ranks of unions. It is a bad portent for Corporate America, the American economy, and every American industrial city from Philadelphia to Los Angeles, from Houston to Chicago, from Atlanta to Seattle.

cabot institute · Dana · EFA · EFCA · Employee Free Choice Act · employees · employers · labor · Labor Relations · National Labor Relations Board · nlrb · organized labor · Philadelphia · Philly · Stepen Cabot · Steve Cabot · UAW · unionization · Unions

From the desk of Stephen Cabot:

If there was ever any doubt that the Obama Administration is pro-union, that doubt can now be extinguished. The President’s National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) has stated it wants all companies to post notices and perhaps even disseminate e-mails informing employees of their right to join unions.
So determined is the administration to do big labor’s bidding that this is the first time since the passage of the National Labor Relations Act in 1935 that the NLRB has demanded that employers post such a pro-union notice.
Organized labor, which supported the election of President Obama to the tune of tens of millions of dollars, has been frustrated that congress has not passed the Employee Free Choice Act (EFCA). As a result, the NLRB has been diligently working to enhance opportunities for unions to organize the workers of as many companies as possible. This latest move by the NLRB is just one of many acts designed to promote the ongoing unionization of American workers.

administration · American · cabot institute · congress · EFCA · Employee Free Choice Act · Labor Relations · national labor relations act · National Labor Relations Board · nlra · nlrb · organized labor · President Obama · stephen cabot · Steve Cabot · unionization · Unions · workers

From the desk of Stephen Cabot:

For several months, I have been writing that the NLRB has been looking for ways to do an end run around the mis-named Employee Free Choice Act. Ideologically disposed to providing whatever support it can to unions, the NLRB’s latest intention is to endorse quickie elections to hasten union representation.
The time from petition to election usually takes 38 days. However, Mark Pearce, a Board member, would like to shorten that period of time to between five and ten days, which is what exists in Canada.
In order for employers to present their side of the unionization story, to educate their employees to what they will be losing if they vote for union representation, they need sufficient time to communicate facts and concepts to employees. And because union organizers usually operate in secret, employers will not know that their employees have been the targets of union propaganda until a petition has been filed. Five to ten days will hardly be adequate time for management to present its case. After all, the union organizers may have been propagandizing workers for weeks, if not months.
A quickie election is indeed an end round around the dormant Employee Free Choice Act. Instead of card checks, union authorization cards will lead to petitions which will lead to quickie elections. Five days later, a union will be in place. Say hello to the Employee Free Choice Act in disguise. It is, therefore, essential that Corporate America pro-actively develop strategies for defeating such scenarios. And the time for doing so is Now!

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From the desk of Stephen Cabot:

President Barack Obama, in an effort to shore up support from organized labor, said that he will push for stronger organizing rights for unions. One can assume, based upon such a promise as well as his appointment of Craig Becker to the National Labor Relations Board, that while the Employee Free Choice might be lifeless, it will soon rise from the dead. (The EFCA is beginning to resemble a vampire that cannot be slain).
The president had made his revivifying remarks on August 4 to the executive council of the AFL-CIO. While the president received numerous standing ovations, he was warned that unions will only support those politicians who back organized labor’s multi-faceted agenda, which includes the passage of the EFCA. And the president stressed that his administration will, indeed, work to seek passage of the ACT, which – of course – he will proudly sign into law. (At that point, one can imagine another round of thunderous applause).
However, knowing that he cannot get congress to pass many of labor’s pro-union initiatives, the president not only stated that “We are going to keep on fighting to pass the Employee Free Choice Act,” but that he would use his executive powers to implement changes, ones that do not require legislative approval (e.g. the appointment of Craig Becker).
It is apparent that Mr. Obama is siding with big labor and against Corporate America. That is not only bad for American businesses, but it is also bad for the entire economy, which affects all Americans, including union members.

afl-cio · business · cabot institute · congress · corporate america · EFCA · Employee Free Choice Act · Labor Relations · National Labor Relations Board · nlrb · organized labor · President Obama · stephen cabot · Steve Cabot · Unions · workers

From the desk of Stephen Cabot:

The National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) is seeking new ways to help unions increase their ability to organize workers. It is doing so by investigating and promoting the possibility of permitting employees to vote via home-based computers and other offsite computers in union representation elections. Electronic voting would clearly hamper goals of management, while significantly broadening the opportunities for organized labor. Here are four problems of electronic voting:

1. Electronic voting would replace paper ballot voting, which is monitored in the workplace. Paper ballot voting has proven successful in eliminating fraud and in preventing union organizers from coercing and intimidating workers.

2. Electronic voting would be a boon to unions, for it would accelerate election procedures and truncate the time during which employers could inform employees of the disadvantages of union membership.

3. If remote electronic voting were to replace paper ballot voting, there would be enormous opportunities for union organizers to coerce and intimidate workers. Furthermore, it would be impossible to determine if people, other than legitimate employees, were doing the actual voting.

4. Votes that have been electronically registered could be altered by hackers, resulting in stolen elections.
The introduction of electronic voting may be the NLRB’s first of several steps to sneak elements of the Employee Free Choice Act (EFCA) into the National Labor Relations Act. Such administrative action is a clever way of helping organized labor achieve its goals, two of which are to increase the number of unionized workers and put more money in union coffers.

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