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Railway Labor Act Amendments Change Union Election Procedures in Railroad and Airline Industries
Practical Law Legal Update 8-518-0822 (Approx. 4 pages)
Railway Labor Act Amendments Change Union Election Procedures in Railroad and Airline Industries
by PLC Labor & Employment
| Published on 23 Feb 2012 • USA (National/Federal) |
On February 14, 2012, President Obama signed into law the FAA Modernization and Reform Act of 2012. This legislation includes measures amending the Railway Labor Act (RLA) to change the showing of interest requirements for triggering union elections in the railroad and airline industries and to increase oversight of the National Mediation Board's (NMB) operations and regulatory activity.
FAA Modernization and Reform Act of 2012
On February 14, 2012, President Obama signed into law the FAA Modernization and Reform Act of 2012, which authorizes appropriations for the Federal Aviation Administration and includes measures that amend the Railway Labor Act (RLA) to change union certification election processes in the railroad and airline industries and impose greater oversight of the National Mediation Board's (NMB) regulatory activities. Specifically, under this legislation:
- Union elections will be held only when at least 50% of employees in a craft or class show interest in selecting a representative for collective bargaining. This replaces an NMB regulation that required a showing of support from 35% of employees not previously represented who sought an election for a collective bargaining representative.
- When an NMB election ballot has three or more options and no option receives a majority of votes, there will be a runoff election between the two options that received the most votes in the first election. This replaces an NMB regulation that required a runoff election between the two unions that received the most votes.
- The Government Accountability Office (GAO) will evaluate the NMB's certification procedures within 180 days following the enactment of this law. The GAO will make recommendations on how to improve the fairness and accuracy of elections.
- The GAO will then audit the NMB every two years to examine the NMB's operations, including its:
- information management practices;
- resource management; and
- processes for investigating and conducting certification elections.
- The NMB must hold a public hearing that meets the requirements of the Administrative Procedures Act for all substantive rulemaking.
These measures to change NMB election petition process and increase oversight of the NMB's regulatory activity were incorporated as Section 1001 to 1004 of the FAA Modernization and Reform Act largely in response to a 2010 NMB rulemaking. There, the NMB revoked its long-standing requirement that a union garner votes by a majority of eligible voters to win an election in favor of a requirement that the union only garner the majority of the votes cast. However, the final version of the FAA Modernization and Reform Act that was enacted does not amend the RLA to supplant or invalidate the NMB's 2010 rulemaking.
The FAA Modernization and Reform Act will be enacted as Public Law No. 112-95, which has not yet been published.
Practical Implications
Unions typically do not request an election unless they have authorization cards from a majority of a potential voting craft or class. Therefore, the amended showing of support requirement will not likely affect the frequency with which unions file petitions for elections. Employers that oppose unionization and are subject to organizing campaigns by multiple unions may have a second opportunity to campaign in run-off elections that they never had before.
In light of the amendments to the RLA, employers covered by the RLA should ensure that any summaries they may provide about the NMB's election process incorporate the amendments to the RLA made in the FAA Modernization and Reform Act are accurate, since providing inaccurate information about the election process may be grounds for overturning favorable election results. Employers that are opposed to unionization can accurately instruct employees in campaigns that the NMB's election process may permit a simple majority to determine whether an entire craft or class will be represented in a union. These employers should encourage eligible voters to vote "No" for union representation, since the votes cast will continue to determine NMB election results, regardless of whether the majority of eligible voters support union representation.