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Court Upholds Election Rules For Rail Workers

December 19, 2011

While in the midst of a crucial contract vote, the thousands of workers in the nation’s profitable railroad sector got support from the U.S. Court of Appeals when judges upheld a rule designed to make union representation elections under the Railway Labor Act more democratic.

For decades, employees had the deck stacked against them when organizing. If an eligible employee voted for representation, that counted as a “yes” vote – but to abstain from voting counted as a “no.”

That rule changed in 2010, when the National Mediation Board brought election procedures in line with those of the National Labor Relations Board. But GOP lawmakers appealed the mediation board’s decision.

Friday, Dec. 16, the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit affirmed the rule changes. The court ruled that the mediation board did not overstep its authority in making the rule changes – which deflated a key critique by anti-worker lawmakers to keep elections tilted toward management’s favor.

“This is a sound, fair decision that upholds our American ideals about voting,” said IBEW Railroad Department Director Bill Bohne:

If there are 30 people in a prospective bargaining unit and 12 vote for union representation and other 18 don't vote, the workers now win representation. Before the rule change, the non-votes would have canceled out the workers’ desire to join the union. The NMB’s new rules level the playing field for employees looking for a voice on the job.

The court’s majority opinion reads:

For seventy-five years, the National Mediation Board counted non-voters as voting against union representation, thereby requiring a majority of eligible voters to affirmatively vote for representation before a union could be certified.

In 2010, the Board issued a new rule: elections will henceforth be decided by a majority of votes cast, and those not voting will be understood as acquiescing to the outcome of the election. Appellants challenge the new rule, claiming that it violates the statute and is arbitrary and capricious.

Rejecting the arguments of those challenging the 2010 rules, the court validated the board’s judgment.

The IBEW represents nearly 6,000 workers in the railroad industry.

The ruling applies not just to rail employees, but all workers in the transportation sector. Recently, anti-worker legislators attempted to block the Federal Aviation Administration reauthorization bill, which included an amendment to overturn the mediation board’s 2010 decision and go back to the old voting rule.

For more on the decision as it relates to employees in the airline industry, click here to read a press release from the Communication Workers of America, which represents workers at major airlines.