Unions have grabbed onto virtual organizing like drowning ...well, you get the point. Since last October, the NLRB's General Counsel established the roadmap for creating a virtual authorization card that will be accepted as a basis for a representation petition, Unions have been employing the device. Now, interested employees can sign-up in the privacy of their bedrooms while still in their skivvies. No person-to-person solicitation and no physical cards to spot.
The process is simple. A union establishes a dedicated website for a target employer: "Employees For Fairness At Scrooge, Inc." or "Hey, Legree! Give Us Our Fair Share" Employees are invited to visit the site. The site is filled with propaganda AND a union authorization card that can be accessed, completed and signed all online.
It's the ultimate in stealth organizing. Employees in a micro-unit, or even larger, can sign cards from their homes – or when at work – without the employer knowing that a campaign is underway. The first the employer knows about it is the Petition for an Election sent by email at the same time as it is filed with the Board, or before. In as little as ten days, but more likely twenty days, an election is held to determine whether the employees in a unit sought by the union will be represented.
The best way to combat virtual organizing is to have an educated workforce that understands what unions are, what they can do, what they can't do and what they cost. Most of all, the employees must know what a union authorization card is and how it can be used. This education, obviously, has to come before the organizing begins. A failure to educate your employees may result in your workforce, or a part of it, becoming unionized by accident.
Disclaimer: This Alert has been prepared and published for informational purposes only and is not offered, nor should be construed, as legal advice. For more information, please see the firm's full disclaimer.
