Washington Report: NLRB Pushes for Union Organizing Rules

One proposal would help unions organize new members by requiring businesses to hand over lists of employee phone numbers and emails to union leaders prior to an election.

January 30, 2012

WASHINGTON - Now that the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) has its necessary five members to operate, the group isn€™t wasting time on moving a union-friendly agenda.

NLRB Chairman Mark Pearce told The Associated Press that one change the board wants to make is to require businesses to hand over lists of employee phone numbers and emails to union leaders before an election. He would also like the board to consider rule changes it didn't have time to approve last year, such as the use of electronic filings and quicker timetables for certain procedures.

"My personal hope is that we take on all of these things and consider each one of these rules," Pearce said.

Pearce's comments come three weeks after President Obama made recess appointments of two Democrats and one Republican to the NLRB. Republican leaders have challenged the appointments as unconstitutional, saying the Senate was not technically in recess when Obama acted.

If the NLRB decides to propose the new rules, it would expand on sweeping regulations approved in December that speed up the process for holding union elections at work sites after unions collect enough signatures from employees. Those rules are slated to take effect April 30, according to the AP.

Business groups and GOP members are concerned that the NLRB is well equipped to approve even more union-friendly rules to organize new members.

"I knew this was going to happen," said Rep. Trey Gowdy (R-SC) told the AP, a member of the House Committee on Education and the Workforce. "The NLRB has lost all pretense of objectivity in my judgment."

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