Most Americans aren’t aware of the obstacles workers face when trying to form unions—but they certainly wouldn’t expect the law or the agency set up to protect those rights to get in the way.  Unfortunately, workers rarely win when they end up at the National Labor Relations Board.

In 1984, a Subcommittee of the House of Representatives adopted a report called "The Failure of Labor Law—A Betrayal of American Workers," which stated the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA) “has ceased to accomplish its purpose…. The evidence is clear that the law does not encourage collective bargaining.  Rather it has become an impediment.”  But first and foremost, the law doesn’t even begin to protect the fundamental right of workers to organize unions. 

In September, the National Labor Relations Board issued an unprecedented number of decisions undermining workers’ fundamental rights.  Two of these decisions added new hurdles that workers must overcome before they can receive what employers have unlawfully taken away, most involving backpay. In one case, the NLRB made it even cheaper for employers to fire union supporters to chill an organizing effort.  In the other, the Republican majority of the Board reversed a 45-year precedent to shift a burden of proof from the employer to the worker, to make it more difficult for fired workers to collect backpay. 

 Until now, workers have successfully formed unions through voluntary recognition, a process where employers agree to recognize a union once a majority of workers sign cards.  This peaceful, swift, and non-disruptive organizing method provides an alternative to the flawed National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) election process.  However, workers and employers who use this method are now undermined by a major ruling of the NLRB.  The Republican majority of the Board sided with anti-union groups in radically changing the law.  Without providing legitimate factual evidence to justify reversing 40 years of precedent, the Board exposed its real political motivations.