Alexander Cosponsors Bill to Protect Workers and Employers from NLRB Decision that Will “Destroy Jobs and Divide Workplaces”
Says “we need more certainty and fairness in the workplace, not more conflict, lawsuits, and uncertainty”
Washington, D.C., June 14 –U.S. Senator Lamar Alexander (R-Tenn.) today announced he is cosponsoring a bill to reverse the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) decision establishing a sweeping new legal standard that allows unions to form micro bargaining units, or “micro-unions,” for the purposes of collective bargaining with employers.
“This bill will protect workers and employers from a decision that will destroy jobs, divide workplaces, and make it harder and more expensive for employers to do business. We need more certainty and fairness in the workplace, not more conflict, lawsuits, and uncertainty,” said Alexander, the senior Republican on the Senate committee that oversees labor policy.
The Representation Fairness Restoration Act, which was introduced by Senator Johnny Isakson (R-Ga.), comes in response to the (NLRB) decision in the “Specialty Healthcare” case, which said that unions could organize small numbers of employees within a company into micro-bargaining units.
For example, in one grocery store, the cashiers could form one “micro union,” the baggers could form another, the produce stockers could form yet another, and so on. This could potentially create several different unions within the same store location, making it easier for unions to gain access to employees and nearly impossible for employers to manage such fragmentation of the workforce. This decision also makes it virtually impossible for excluded employees to be included in a bargaining unit.
Alexander also cosponsored the bill when it was introduced by Isakson during the previous Congress.
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