NLRB “Quickie Election” Rule Effective April 30

The National Labor Relations Board’s (NLRB) rule on representation case procedures went into effect April 30, 2012. The NLRB rule, also known as the “quickie election” or “ambush election” rule, would expedite the union representation election cycle to as little as 14 days. It is bad for both employers and employees. While the rule doesn’t require any immediate action by employers, nor will the rule affect any cases filed prior to today, employers should still continue to develop internal procedures in the chance of an organizing campaign. The outcome of the rule will require swifter action by employers to educate employees during an organizing campaign. AGC opposes the rule because it effectively limits workers’ access to information and an adequate opportunity to consider information, on whether they want to be represented by the union seeking to represent them. The rule will have a particularly difficult application and detrimental impact on the construction industry due to the complexity of identifying the appropriate bargaining unit and determining voter eligibility in the industry, and the decentralized nature of construction workplaces operated by the same employer. AGC is a member of the Coalition for a Democratic Workplace (CDW) which has filed a lawsuit against the rule. The court is expected to issue a decision on the merits by May 15. A congressional resolution that would have nullified the rule was defeated last week. For background on the rule and AGC’s concerns, click here. For more information on the rule from the NLRB, click here. For more information, please contact Jim Young at (202) 547-0133 or youngj@agc.org.