Reforming the NLRB: Treating the Disease

Treating the Disease

(Not Just the Symptoms)

Reforming the NLRB:

A Plan of Action to Reform the National Labor Relations Board

Americans for Limited Government
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Reforming the NLRB: Treating the Disease

The NLRB has handed down decisions for years that have driven up costs of production in America and forced companies to move jobs overseas to compete in a global economy. - Rep. Austin Scott, R (GA).
The National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) has recently gone on a rampage seeking to tilt laborrelations law toward union interests. A series of anti-freemarket rulings by the NLRB have served to increase the burden on employers, hurt the already damaged economy, and destroy more jobs. These cases are just the most recent in a series of politically charged rulings by the NLRB. Their decisions have tied the hands of business, and cost customers and taxpayers time and money through expensive and quasi-judicial proceedings that are often overturned in real courts. These recurring issues are a direct result of the flawed structure of the NLRB, which is often swayed by the political leanings of appointees of the administration in power at the time. Without a serious overhaul, these issues will continue to recur, and become more costly.

Prole: Craig Becker

A prime example of an overtly political NLRB nominee, Craig Becker formerly served as Associate General Council of the SEIU before Obama recessappointed him to the NLRB board.

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Reforming the NLRB: Treating the Disease

Pleasing No One

Downside of politicization: in 2007, unions were calling for the NLRB to be shut down! They staged protests at NLRB ofces, claiming their rulings would stack the deck in favor of big business over working men and women.(1)
Americans for Limited Government is supporting solutions addressing these issues through targeted legislation. This legislation is directed at dealing with the root causes of problems faced by employers confronted with the NLRBs political and arbitrary decisions. A brief examination of recent NLRB cases clearly illustrates the need for this legislation.
1) http://lawprofessors.typepad.com/laborprof_blog/2007/11/anti-nlrb-rally.html

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Reforming the NLRB: Treating the Disease

A History of Overturned Cases

NLRB v. Mutual Maintenance Service Co. (1980) The NLRB ordered the reinstatement of an employee who had openly admitted to defrauding the government. Yellow Taxi Co. v. NLRB (1983) "The panel's conduct in the present case does exhibit thinly veiled defiance of precedent established [by this Court] on the application of common law to facts." New Jersey Bell Tel. Co. v. NLRB (1983) A later court found that the NLRB's decision violated Supreme Court precedent, Board precedent, and common sense. University of Great Falls v. NLRB (2002) A later court found the NLRB to be "trolling" through the University's beliefs, making determinations about its religious mission - something courts avoid due to Constitutional concerns. Hoffman Plastic Compounds, Inc. v. NLRB (2002) A NLRB decision was overturned for awarding backpay to an illegal alien. Lee v. NLRB & Communications Workers of Am. (2005) A later court overturned NLRBs mandate for non-union employees to wear union insignia. Smithfield Packing Co. v. NLRB (2007) The NLRBs ruling was overturned for its unreasonable legal conclusions contrary to substantial evidence - a video discrediting union claims.

Americans for Limited Government | 9900 Main Street Ste. 303 Fairfax VA 22031

Reforming the NLRB: Treating the Disease

Recent Cases
The NLRBs recent case against The Boeing Company for their creation of new production lines in South Carolina, a Right to Work state, has focused national attention on the Board's decisions. The NLRBs General Counsel sided with the International Association of Machinists, who allege that Boeings decision to locate the production lines in South Carolina was retaliation against the uniondespite the fact that Boeing hired more workers at the location where the union alleges it was being punished.

Boeings Case

A clear case of NLRB bias against business

"While every other person, business, civic club and homeowners association in America must use the impartial U.S. courts to resolve their disputes, the labor unions get their own extrajudicial forum where the deck is stacked in their favor." - Austin Scott, R-GA

In addition, the NLRB recently proposed new regulations to create quickie elections, decreasing the timeframe between when a unionization petition is filed and when the election is held. Current NLRB rules give employers approximately 45 days to make their case after the union files its petition for an election. After the NLRB finalizes its proposal, that period will shrink to as little as 10 days. Additionally, NLRB rulings have created the possibility of micro unions, which allows labor organizers to cherry pick which employees they want to vote on unionization, and then unionize them accordingly. This allows union

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Reforming the NLRB: Treating the Disease

organizers to take over segments of a workforce a little at a time rather than needing to organize the whole workforce at once. The NLRB also created requirements forcing employers to hang posters with union organizing information in their workplaces. The NLRB then created a new unfair labor practice out of thin air to punish employers who fail to display the poster. This pro-union move has caused quite a reaction among employers.

What we can do
In response to these problems, Americans for Limited Government is supporting two bills that will end the NLRBs kangaroo court and allow states to grant additional protections to employees. The two bills are the Protecting American Jobs Act and the State Right to Vote Act. These two bills would cut off harmful NLRB decisions at the pass, before they can destroy more American jobs.

Austin Scott

The Protecting American Jobs Act

Each of the controversial regulations are being challenged in various arenas. But, as Americans for Limited Governments President Bill Wilson said, [Austin] Scott's legislation would ensure these kinds of decisions wouldn't continue to happen again and again as they have for the last 75 years. Wilson adds that it would ensure that fair labor law decisions are made in real courts. This bill would strip the power of the NLRB to adjudicate unfair labor practice charges, while keeping it as overseer of unionization elections. The bill would do this by removing the authority of the Board's General Counsel to issue complaints on unfair labor practice charges.

Representative Austin Scott (R-GA) introduced The Protecting American Jobs Act.

Americans for Limited Government | 9900 Main Street Ste. 303 Fairfax VA 22031

Reforming the NLRB: Treating the Disease

"Left unchecked, unions will continue to drain taxpayer money and kill private sector jobs. Scott's bill curtailing the NLRB's extrajudicial extremism represents a solid rst step in preventing them from doing so." - Bill Wilson, ALG President
These complaints would be litigated by the parties in U.S. District Courts on equal footing, without the power of a federal agency backing one side. The bill would also prohibit the NLRB from using its limited statutory grant of rulemaking authority to do things like creating new unfair labor practices (e.g. in the case of the posting requirement). In all, the Protecting American Jobs Act provides for a full-scale redesign of the NLRB. The Act will directly deal with the problems caused by overreaching partisan decisions made by political nominees, while still allowing for labor violations to be treated justly. Besides unions, bureaucrats, and lawyers, no one benefits from losing company time and energy pursuing cases that are only going to be overturned by the courts. This bill allows for charges to be resolved before a neutral court- one less swayed by political influence.

Jeff Duncan

State Right to Vote Act

Introduced by Representative Jeff Duncan (Rintroduced the state SC), the State Right to Vote Act currently has Right to Vote Act. wide congressional support. This bill would prevent the NLRB from challenging state laws and state constitutional provisions that grant employees additional protections not currently afforded to them by federal law.

Jeff Duncan (R-SC)

Americans for Limited Government | 9900 Main Street Ste. 303 Fairfax VA 22031

Reforming the NLRB: Treating the Disease

Specifically, the bill would reform the National Labor Relations Act by allowing states to pass laws to protect the right to a secret ballot in unionization elections. These secret ballot elections would continue to be conducted by the NLRB. By allowing the states to decide crucial decisions like whether to require secret ballots for union elections, the State Right to Vote Act prevents the NLRB from unilaterally trampling workers rights, as well as states rights.

Conclusion
The National Labor Relations Board represents a serious and continual threat to American jobs. This threat stems from a flawed structure that allows political appointees to inject harmful partisan politics into labor disputes. This threat can be resolved legislatively, through the solutions supported by Americans for Limited Government. With your financial support, we can ensure that this legislation is considered and receives serious national attention. Through online efforts and direct lobbying, we can demonstrate that this legislation will directly address the threats created by the NLRB. ALG is working to build a solid foundation for these bills by working with key legislators who have direct oversight in these areas. We anticipate that hearings will be held on these bills over the next few months. The mere introduction of these bills is a shot across the bow of the NLRB and will give them some pause in making future one-sided rulings.

About ALG
Americans for Limited Government is a conservative, free market think tank. Founded in 2001, it is dedicated to protecting the rights and liberties of the individual. We are ghting against government regulation and ghting for increased government transparency. With your support, we can roll back the tide of increasing government intervention. Find out more at our website:

www.GetLiberty.org

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