Earlier this week we called on Congress to swiftly pass the FAA Reauthorization and Reform Act of 2011, because it restores the rights’ of workers. The legislation includes a provision that would end the forced unionization of workers, which was mandated by the National Mediation Board (NMB) when it upended nearly a century of labor policy. Under the bureaucratic ruling made last year by the NMB, a minority could unionize an entire workforce in the airline and railroad industry.
According to the Huffington Post, Big Labor has begun to apply pressure on their political allies in Congress to stop this measure.
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In recent days, union officials have ramped up lobbying efforts to block or remove language in the Federal Aviation Administration reauthorization bill that would make it drastically harder for rail or aviation workers to unionize.
Sponsored by House Transportation Chairman John Mica (R-Fla.) — a major recipient of campaign contributions from the airline industry, totaling more than $620,000 in his career — the controversial provision states if an eligible voter fails to vote for union representation, he or she will be tallied as an active vote against representation.
Such a policy, which puts an extra burden on union organizers to round up all voters, rather than a simple majority, existed up until last July, when the federal National Mediation Board, which adjudicates labor-management disputes, ruled that absent votes ought not be counted against unionization. Labor officials hailed that decision as one of their signature victories last year, and the proposal to strip it away has sparked an equally emotional reaction.
In recent days, union officials have ramped up lobbying efforts to block or remove language in the Federal Aviation Administration reauthorization bill that would make it drastically harder for rail or aviation workers to unionize.
An aide to Rockefeller, who chairs the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation, said he supports the new NMB rule, and that position “has not and will not change.” Harkin, who chairs the Appropriations Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services, told labor leaders to “rest assured” that he would “vigorously oppose any effort to include these dangerous provisions in the FAA Reauthorization Act conference report.”
We ask Congress to swiftly pass the FAA Reauthorization and Reform Act of 2011 to end the politically motivated ruling by NMB, which allows a minority to dictate whether or not an entire workforce wants to be unionized. Furthermore, contrary to what Big Labor’s political allies say, this legislation would restore the rights of workers and ensure that workplace elections are free and fair.