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House GOP Declares Open Season on Workers’ Rights, Labor Board

 

December 9, 2011

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“Punitive,” says a spokesperson for the National Federation of Independent Businesses. “Labor regulation run amok,” says the Chamber of Commerce. “[Guaranteeing] unemployment will remain high,” said a researcher from the right-wing Manhattan Institute.

 

What are corporate lobbyists and right-wing talking heads going so ballistic about? A poster.

The National Labor Relations Board issued a ruling this summer that requires employees to notify their workers about employee workplace rights by merely putting up a poster. The rule is similar to those already in effect regarding wage and safety regulations. One leading business attorney recently referred to the controversy as “much ado about nothing,” but that hasn’t stopped Congress from trying to gut the board and take away basic workers’ rights in response.

As Working America’s blog reports:

Just this year, the Republican-led House has devoted extensive time and effort to attacks on the NLRB – some 50 bills, hearings, amendments and resolutions. The anti-NLRB efforts include budget cuts aimed at reducing the agency’s ability to do its job to enforce labor law and the refusal to confirm nominees to fully staff the board.

At the top of the congressional GOP’s hit list are new NLRB rules to help streamline union elections.  

As we wrote last June:

The changes will cut down on excessive paperwork, allowing workers to submit signed petitions online. The board also proposes to help make workplace elections more transparent. The new rules require employers to provide workers with an up-to-date so-called excelsior, or voter, list in electronic format soon after an election date is set.

The GOP’s war on the NLRB has reached the point where a Republican member of the board, Brian Hayes, threatened to quit in order to deny the NLRB  a quorum. Operating at only three members, the board may cease to operate if the GOP continues to block every nominee President Obama has offered.

Republicans on the House Education and Workforce Committee passed a bill in October that could potentially add months- or even years-long delay to the union election process by making it easier for employers to challenge voting results and launch frivolous legal appeals, costing employee time and money.

Bill opponent Rep. George Miller (D-Calif.), says:

The bill’s clear intention is to wear down workers so that they give up fighting for a better deal. Its singular goal is to delay and ultimately prevent union representation elections.

House Republicans have also introduced legislation to cripple the government’s ability to enforce existing workplace health and safety laws. 

Says International President Edwin D. Hill:

Instead of doing something about the unemployment crisis, the GOP has been wasting Congress’ time thinking of ways to get around the law of the land, paralyzing government agencies charged with enforcing them. Someone should remind Speaker Boehner about the National Labor Relations Act, which guarantees a worker’s right to a free and fair workplace election. Capitol Hill needs to focus on putting Americans back on the job – not engaging in political payback on behalf big-money contributors and anti-worker extremists.

American Rights at Work has more information on the campaign against the NLRB.

 

Photo used under a Creative Commons License from Flickr user republicanconference.