Authors Dr. Dave Kamper 🌹
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The @AlphabetWorkers have formed what is called a "minority union." Quick thread on what that means:
A cornerstone of US labor law is the principle of "exclusive representation" - if you collect authorization cards from the employees and win an election, you...
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...get to represent all the employees you sought to represent. As the exclusive rep, the employer has to work with that union and that union only on any issue of wages, hours, terms and conditions of employment. In turn, the union has a legal Duty of Fair Representation (DFR)
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... to not discriminate against the people it represents if they choose not to join the union.
The big problem: labor law is so weak in the US, employers violate it all the time with no consequences, and therefore obtaining exclusive rep status is really hard.
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However, a legal theory floated by law professor Charles Morris in his 2005 book, The Blue Eagle at Work, suggests that the law also allows unions WITHOUT exclusive representation.
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The National Labor Relations Act, after all, in its vitally-important Section 7, says workers have the right to collectively bargain. It doesn't say that right only exists when there is an exclusive representative.
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A cornerstone of US labor law is the principle of "exclusive representation" - if you collect authorization cards from the employees and win an election, you...
1/
We're Alphabet workers. We\u2019ve been organizing for over a year, & we\u2019re finally ready to share why.
— Alphabet Workers Union (@AlphabetWorkers) January 4, 2021
This morning, we're announcing #AWU, the first union open to *all* workers at any Alphabet company.
Every worker deserves a union\u2014including tech workers.https://t.co/m2Qmjwz32V
...get to represent all the employees you sought to represent. As the exclusive rep, the employer has to work with that union and that union only on any issue of wages, hours, terms and conditions of employment. In turn, the union has a legal Duty of Fair Representation (DFR)
2/
... to not discriminate against the people it represents if they choose not to join the union.
The big problem: labor law is so weak in the US, employers violate it all the time with no consequences, and therefore obtaining exclusive rep status is really hard.
3/
However, a legal theory floated by law professor Charles Morris in his 2005 book, The Blue Eagle at Work, suggests that the law also allows unions WITHOUT exclusive representation.
3a/
The National Labor Relations Act, after all, in its vitally-important Section 7, says workers have the right to collectively bargain. It doesn't say that right only exists when there is an exclusive representative.
4/