After years of unsuccessfully trying to increase revenue by organizing additional dues-paying members, the UAW recently voted to increase union dues by a whopping 25%. A veteran autoworker making $28 an hour will be out an additional $168 per year. Of course, this decision was met with resistance from rank and file UAW members. Some…

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) and the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) entered into a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) whereby employees who file untimely complaints against their employers alleging violations of the OSH Act will be told to contact the NLRB. The statute of limitations to file a complaint with OSHA is just…

According to Bloomberg BNA’s annual report, while the number of elections held decreased slightly, the percentage of those elections won by unions increased slightly. The Board conducted 1,377 elections in 2013, down slightly from 1,385 in 2012. Unions won 882 of those elections, up from 877 wins in 2012. The union win rate of 64.1…

The Steelworkers Union filed suit against chemical distributor Brenntag Northeast, Inc. seeking medical monitoring for its members after a 2012 workers compensation ruling found that a 30-year employee had developed a progressive neurological disorder following exposure to chemicals at work. The complaint alleged that the company knew of the dangers posed by the solvent and…

In D.R. Horton, a group of employees sued the Company for alleged wage and hour violations. The Company sought to dismiss the lawsuit because the employees had previously signed mandatory arbitration agreements prohibiting them from instituting concerted or class action lawsuits against the Company. The Board ruled in favor of the employees holding that mandatory…

Whether front line supervisors and working foremen are exempt from bargaining units is always a contentious issue during union election campaigns. They perform much the same work as rank-and-file employees, but have some managerial functions. Whether they meet the National Labor Relations Act’s Section 2(11) definition of a supervisor is evaluated on a case-by-case basis.…