“EFCA”The Employee Free Choice Act

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Objectives

• Review proposed changes to NLRB process under EFCA

• Share recommendations for next steps

• Provide presentation format to modify and share with your leaders

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What it is today…• Being considered as part of the agenda for the

first 100 days of Obama administration• Amendment to the National Labor Relations Act • Will end employees’ right to a secret ballot

election for or against union representation• Could Impose an arbitrator’s collective

bargaining agreement on employees and employers if the parties cannot agree to terms

• Strengthens penalties against employers for Unfair Labor Practices during the card signing campaigns

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Current Outlook

• Passed the House in 2007 by a wide margin and stalled in the Senate

• It is Big Labor’s number one legislative priority• President Obama has committed himself to the

proposal and passing the house is virtually ensured

• Outlook in Senate is less certain but looking more possible

• Secretary of Labor Elect position uncertain

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Why is it big labors #1 legislative Priority?

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5

10

15

20

25

30

35

40

1935 1945 1955 1965 1975 1985 1995 2007

Percentage of Unionized U.S. Workforce – Private Sector

How does a union get voted in

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Current Process Under the NLRA• Union approaches employees for support (usually

through union cards)

• Once enough support is gained (requirement is 30%

signed cards) the Union can file a petition with the

NRLB

• Employer communications with employees

• Secret-ballot election

• Good faith negotiations

What the new process could look like with EFCA

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Election/Certification process is Different

NLRB is precluded from holding elections if union requests certification upon achieving card majority – Card signing becomes a critical step

First official notice will be notification from the NRLB of Union Certification

– No guaranteed opportunity for all employees participate in the process

– “pre-election” Risk of pressure tactics and misrepresentations by organizers

– No opportunity to communicate with employees

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How will unions get employees to sign cards?

Pay for performance / Organizing Incentive Programs

$5.00 per authorization card obtained during the organizing campaign, paid to the person obtaining the card

$10.00 per authorization card at the successful conclusion of a card check or successful conclusion of an NLRB election, paid to the person originally obtaining the authorization card

$15.00 per authorization card (signed prior to the successful card check/NLRB election) at the point that the contract is negotiated and approved, paid to the person originally obtaining the authorization card

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Bargaining Process is different

10 day window to commence bargaining

90 days after bargaining commences either party may request mediation by they Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service

30 days after the request for mediation, the Service will refer the matter to an arbitration board which will render a decision settling the dispute. The decision will be binding upon both parties for two years.

Employees lose the ability to vote on contract terms

Penalties for employers increase significantly

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Advertising Campaign

 

YouTube - We Don't Ask - National Ad for the Employee Free Choice Act

Pro-active Practices

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Proactive Approach• Review/examine/communicate management of

relevant company policies. For example non solicitation, bulletin board posting etc.

• Maintain/Promote/Continue your focus on Positive Employee relations 

• Educate company leaders about the Employee Free Choice Act and its implications

• Train your supervisors to recognize and respond – quickly and effectively - to the earliest warnings of union card signing activity

• Inform your employees and new hires of the dangers of signing a union card, and explain the advantages of a direct relationship

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Pro-active Practices

– Building supervisory/leadership skills• Provide the personal Touch• Know your team• Communicate• Respond to employee concerns vs. reacting• Build relationships with employees

– Continue to build trust– Be honest– Be consistent

• Be sure they understand the non solicitation policy, bulletin board posting policies and know how to respond to violations in a positive manner

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Pro-active Practices

• Weekly Informational and participative meetings

– Information sharing about EFCA and unions» What is EFCA?» What would EFCA mean for our workplace?» Conflict Management regarding unions or EFCA» Updates on the status of the legislation

– Participation» Supervisors bring up situational leadership issues

and brainstorm positive language

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Pro-active Practices

• Educate Employees– Review employee survey data and responses to their

feedback– Help them understand their benefits

• Wages• Single digit increase in health care costs for five straight

years• 401(k) and Profit sharing match• Flexible time off policy

– Review current processes in place to help them get resolution to their issues, and have their ideas heard and respected

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Pro-active Practices

Educate Employees

– They may be approached by union organizers supporters, anywhere even off site and there will be increased pressure to sign authorization cards

– Show them what a signature card looks like– Signing the card may be presented in conjunction with other important

employee concerns and unions could infer things like Universal Health Care could be a positive outcome of the union, when in fact all issues related to pay benefits….

– What they will loose is the right to a private vote. • If EFCA passes in its current form– a private vote is no longer required to

hold an election, therefore Union certification will only require 51% of employees to sign a card, the other 49% our out of luck

– Could loose their voice when voting on labor contract – contracts can be formed by the arbiter with no ratification vote that will impact .

– ~2 1/4 hours of pay per month Union dues– Share their rights as non-union employees

• Self-representation• Participation in decision making

Appendix A

Supervisor Presentation

“EFCA”The Employee Free Choice Act

Leader Training

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Objectives of our meeting

• Discuss the Benefits of working at Blyth (your company name here)

• Share information regarding new piece of labor legislation called “EFCA” or the Employee Free Choice Act

• Share next steps for you as leaders

• Share resources and support available to you

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Our Company Believes

• We believe in treating each other with respect and fostering an atmosphere of caring, open communication, and candor

• We believe in maintaining positive relations with our employees through open dialogue, valuing their contributions and recognizing their work

• As a team member, you will be a contributor to our success, no matter what your role is. In return, you can expect to join a winning organization that really cares about its employees. Our core value system is based on fairness and mutual respect. We believe in offering a positive working environment where employees and management work together by engaging and focusing on meeting our strategic goals

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Our Benefits

• Competitive Benefits– Single Digit increases in medical costs for

past three years (nationwide trend 11 – 13 percent increases)

– Competitive 401K• Accelerated vesting time• Dollar for dollar on first 1% and .50 on the next 5%

– Net 3.5% matching with 6% contribution

– Profit Sharing between over 2% in last three years

EFCA

What is it?

How will it change things?

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What it is today…• Being considered as part of the agenda for the

first 100 days of Obama administration• Amendment to the National Labor Relations Act • Will end employees’ right to a secret ballot

election for or against union representation• Could Impose an arbitrator’s collective

bargaining agreement on employees and employers if the parties cannot agree to terms

• Strengthens penalties against employers for Unfair Labor Practices during the card signing campaigns but not for unions

How does a union get voted in

27

Current Process Under the NLRA• Union approaches employees for support (usually

through union cards)

• Once enough support is gained (requirement is 30%

signed cards) the Union can file a petition with the

NRLB

• Employer communications with employees

• Secret-ballot election

• Good faith negotiations

What the new process could look like with EFCA

29

Election/Certification process is Different

NLRB will not be able to hold secret ballot election if union requests certification upon achieving card majority – Card signing becomes a critical step

First official notice will be notification from the NRLB of Union Certification

– No guaranteed opportunity for all employees participate in the process

– Risk of pressure tactics and misrepresentations by organizers

– No opportunity to communicate with employees “pre-election” to help them understand the impact of their signature

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How will unions get employees to sign cards?

Pay for performance / Organizing Incentive Programs

$5.00 per authorization card obtained during the organizing campaign, paid to the person obtaining the card

$10.00 per authorization card at the successful conclusion of a card check or successful conclusion of an NLRB election, paid to the person originally obtaining the authorization card

$15.00 per authorization card (signed prior to the successful card check/NLRB election) at the point that the contract is negotiated and approved, paid to the person originally obtaining the authorization card

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Bargaining Process is different 10 day window to commence bargaining

90 days after bargaining commences either party may request mediation by they Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service

30 days after the request for mediation, the Service will refer the matter to an arbitration board which will render a decision settling the dispute. The decision will be binding upon both parties for two years

Employees lose the ability to vote on contract terms

Penalties for employers increase significantly

32

Things to be aware of• Your team members may be approached by union organizers supporters, anywhere even off site

and there will be increased pressure to sign authorization cards• Let them know that signing the card may be presented in conjunction with other important

employee concerns and unions could infer things like the opportunity for job security, or to have a voice to have a union

– They currently have the opportunity to elect a union using a secret ballot– Job security is typically not covered as part of the collective bargaining agreement with a

Union. Union contracts typically cover issues related to daily issues, wages, hours and conditions of employment. Keep in mind these will be negotiated.

• Employees will loose the right to a private election and vote free from coercion – If EFCA passes in its current form– a private vote is no longer required to hold an election,

therefore Union certification will only require 50% +1 of employees to sign a card, the rest of the employees will be out of luck

• Employees could loose their voice when voting on labor contract – EFCA currently proposes strict timeframes to agree on a contract. If the union and employer cannot agree within a very short timeframe, contracts will be formed by the arbiter with no ratification vote that will impact all employees, and their employer as well

• Employees will loose money out of their paycheck – on average about 2 1/4 hours of pay per month required to be paid for Union dues

• Under the union they will loose their rights of – Self-representation– Participation in decision making– Union now becomes their voice

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Things To Do – Keep your eyes and ears open to what is going on with your team

• If there is organizing going on typically you will be the first to become aware of it

– Feel free to discuss your opinions or experiences with unions– Listen to your teams concerns

• Provide them information• Its ok to tell them “I don’t know” and be sure to find out the answer and follow

up with them within a reasonable time frame • Provide an ear if they just want to talk

– Provide the personal touch– Continue to build relationships with employees

• Continue to build trust• Be honest• Be consistent

– Tell employees about any untrue or misleading statements by an organizer or in a handbill, or through any other medium of union propaganda. You may always give employees the correct facts.

– Talk with your leaders or Human resources if you have and questions

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Things not to do

“TIPS” Threaten You can't threaten employees with loss of jobs or reduction of income or benefits if the union gets in. You can't tell them that there will be a strike if the union wins the election, or that management will refuse to bargain with the union. And you can't use intimidating or coercive language to influence an employee. You are free to give them your own opinions on the union and to tell them that they have a right to present their anti-union views to their co-workers

InterrogateYou cannot ask employees what they think about the union or its officers, their union sympathies, or what they know about the internal affairs of the union. (But you may listen if information is offered.) Don't ask if they have signed cards or attended any union meetings.

PromiseYou can't promise employees increased wages, promotions, or benefits if they reject the union. And you can't tell employees that you won't discuss wage increases with them until the union is out of the picture. That's considered an implied promise of reward.

SpyYou may not spy on employees to determine their feelings about a union; you may not attend union meetings; and you may not even give the impression that you're watching employees' union activities. It's easy to unintentionally create the impression that employees are under surveillance. Do not ask questions like "We know who is involved with the union." "I hear you're involved with the union, Betty. Is that true?" "Let me know if you hear of anyone supporting the union; I'd like to talk to them and give them our company's position." "They won you over last night, didn't they?“ There have been cases where this has implied spying on employees' union activities. Do not imply that you have someone on the inside telling you about union meetings or insinuate that you know when and where union meetings have been held (unless the notices of meetings are public knowledge). Do not create the impression that you know exactly what has been said at these union meetings. Do not request employees to report the identity of pro-union sympathizers to you or to other officials of management. Also, you may not encourage those you supervise to engage in surveillance of the union activities of their co-workers, or to reveal who is for or against the union. Do not question (even when you are off company premises) an employee's spouse, relative, neighbor, friend, or co-worker as to whether the employee is for or against the union.Do not tell employees that co-workers are informing you about union activities, or that some employees are "keeping you posted" on what is going on with the union; do not imply, even in a joking way, that you are receiving information about union activities in the plant. Do not even start a conversation with the statement, "I've heard that some people are interested in the union...." All these statements can be viewed as creating the impression of spying or surveillance.

What do the cards look like?

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Example of a “Card Check/signature card”

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Example of a Secret Ballot

Questions?