Rep. Deal Leads Effort In Expressing Objection To Changes In Union Election Procedures

Press Release

U.S. Congressman Nathan Deal, R-Ga., led an effort, joined by 31 Members of the House of Representatives, in submitting the following letter to Chairwoman Doughtery and members of the National Mediation Board (NMB) expressing strong objection to changes to union election voting procedures which would unravel 75 years of labor law affecting airline and railroad personnel.

The proposed rule change would allow union elections to be decided by only a majority of workers who cast ballots, not a majority of all employees within a bargaining unit. Since the creation of the National Mediation Board in 1934, employees who do not vote in unionization decisions are counted as "no' votes. Under this "majority rule' procedure, a union must be approved by a full majority of all employees in a workgroup. This politically-motivated proposal under consideration would tilt airline and railroad representation elections in the favor of organized labor by allowing a small minority of a work group to impose union representation among the majority.

With Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport's presence in Georgia as well as the home of the world's largest airline, Delta Air Lines, the Ninth Congressional District and the state as a whole, remains home to many flight crew personnel who will be directly affected by this damaging attempt to promote union interests through regulatory fiat.

"As a right-to-work state, Georgia remains uniquely poised to promote a regulatory and economic environment to attract new industry and to create new opportunities for Georgia's workforce," said Deal. "This important distinction must be maintained, but if finalized, this rule will force thousands of Georgians across our state to accept union representation which they do not want as a result of Washington politics."

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