Tuesday, November 29, 2011

U.S. Senator Johnny Isakson (R-GA)
Floor Statement on National Labor Relations Board

Mr. President, I come to the floor of the Senate for the fifth time in the last 3 years to discuss this administration's relentless pursuit to modify and change the labor laws of this country that have served us well for in excess of 70 years. A particular instance that is going to take place tomorrow causes me to come one more time to discuss this subject.

A few days before Thanksgiving last week, the National Labor Relations Board posted a notice that they would meet at 10 a.m. on Wednesday morning to discuss passing a rule that will change a 75-year precedent in labor law, a rule that will reduce the time period between the filing of a petition for a union organization and a vote to as little as 10 days.

Historically, in our country, it has been an average of 38 days from the filing of the petition to the vote as to whether to organize. For no cause or reason, other than unleveling the playing field, NLRB has decided to rush this rule through in an ambush-type of event. If we pull the facts back and look, it is quite easy to see what they are trying to do.

Craig Becker, who is on the National Labor Relations Board as a recess appointment of the President of the United States, was denied approval in the confirmation process in the Senate. The President chose to appoint him in a recess appointment which expires at the end of this December. Therefore, in the waning hours of his service on the Board, at a time in which the majority has a 2-to-1 vote, they are going to rush through a change in an amendment to the labor laws in the United States of America that have served us for 70 years. It is not right. It is not fair. At a time of high unemployment and distress in our economy, the worst thing to do is change the rules of the game that have served the country so well.

I will fire a warning shot also. I think there is something else that will probably happen before the end of the year, and that is there will probably be a posting of a rule to make microunionization possible. It has already been discussed by the NLRB. It is a process whereby we could take separate departments in the same company and let them unionize one at a time. Take a Home Depot, for example, or a Kroger grocery store. Let the butchers unionize and then let the bakers unionize and then let the detergent salesmen unionize and then let the janitors unionize and let the shop end up having 15, 20, 25 different union organizations in the same store. That has never been able to be possible and it is not right. It should be across the board within the company.

So I come to the floor to let everybody know at NLRB that I know what is going to happen tomorrow morning. I know it is a rush to judgment and it is a bad judgment and it is a mistake. We have great labor laws in this country. In fact, if we take this petition and change it down to 10 days, we are not recognizing the fact that of all the elections that have taken place in the last couple years, the unions have won 67 percent of the time. There is no problem with the organization laws, and there is no reason to compress the time from the filing of the petition to the vote. Fair is fair. A company that has an organization petition filed against it ought to have a reasonable period of time to assess the grievances that are advertised against them rather than compressing the vote period and having a rush to judgment.

I hope tomorrow the NLRB will recognize that a rush to judgment is wrong. It is not good for the country, it is not good for our economy, and it is not good for the American people. I will oppose it and do oppose it today, as I will oppose microunionization should they attempt to do the same before this year is out.