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New Report Finds Increase in Union-Busting TacticsMay 22, 2009 - Posted by Antoine Morris An increasing number of private sector employers are adopting union-busting tactics that include coercion, intimidation, and retaliation to discourage workers from forming union, according to a new report by American Rights at Work and the Economic Policy Institute that analyses data of employer behavior during union elections from 1999 to 2003. During this period, employers threatened to fire workers 57 percent of the time, compared to 29 percent during the mid-1980s, and actually fired employees 29 percent of the time, up from 18 percent in the mid-1980s. Employers also threatened to cut wages and benefits 47 percent of the time to delay elections. In addition, 60 percent of employers compelled their workers to attend one-on-one sessions with supervisors, where workers are often harassed because of their involvement in union campaigns. Immigrant workers are particularly vulnerable to union busting. In about half of all the cases studied where a majority of the workers were undocumented immigrants, employers threatened to notify Immigration Customs and Enforcement of their status. Employers used this threat in 41 percent of cases with recent legal immigrants as well. To help strengthen the right to organize, the report says, Congress should pass the Employee Free Choice Act, which requires employers to recognize a union once a majority of workers sign a card authorizing its creation and imposes stiff penalties and fines for employers that repeatedly violate the law. The Employee Free Choice Act is currently pending in Congress. Related PostsCivil and Human Rights Coalition Says Senators Should Be 'Ashamed' for Blocking Jobs Bill - 10/12/11
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