U.S. Chamber Blasts Recent Gifts to Organized Labor
By US Chamber of Commerce
WASHINGTON D.C.—U.S. Chamber of Commerce Senior Vice President of Labor, Immigration, and Employee Benefits Randy Johnson, issued the following statement today on the Department of Labor’s (DOL) new proposal to vastly expand reporting obligations for employers under the so-called “persuader” regulations and a proposal from the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) that would shorten the period for union elections:
“When organized labor failed to pass its top priority, the card check bill, we knew it was only a matter of time before the administration used the regulatory process to tilt the playing field in organized labor’s favor during union campaigns. The proposed rules by the DOL and the NLRB, coming one day apart, are a blatant attempt to give unions the upper hand by limiting the ability of employers to exercise their free speech rights. Unions already win more than 60% of all elections held by the Board, undermining any argument that current rules are unfair.
“The ‘persuader’ regulation would make it virtually impossible for companies to obtain the legal advice they need to safely exercise their statutory rights to express their views during union organizing campaigns. It has long been on the wish list of organized labor and its issuance is no surprise.
“Hot on its heels, the NLRB’s announcement today is another not so cleverly disguised effort to restrict the ability of employers to express their views during an election campaign, to inform employees of the pros and cons of unionization. These rights have been guaranteed to employers under 8(c) of the National Labor Relations Act since 1947 and were specifically added to the law in recognition that union abuses arising under the 1935 Wagner Act needed to be countered. The unions vehemently fought that provision then and they are trying to effectively eliminate it now.
“These assaults on statutory rights, however disguised, will be strenuously opposed by the U.S. Chamber.”
The U.S. Chamber of Commerce is the world’s largest business federation representing the interests of more than 3 million businesses of all sizes, sectors, and regions, as well as state and local chambers and industry associations.
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