June 14, 2017

The Honorable Virginia Foxx
Chairwoman
Committee on Education and the Workforce
U.S. House
Washington, DC 20515

The Honorable Robert C. Scott
Ranking Member
Committee on Education and the Workforce
U.S. House
Washington, DC 20515

Re: Employee Privacy Protection Act (H.R. 2775), Workforce Democracy and Fairness Act (H.R. 2776), Representation Fairness Restoration Act (H.R. 2629) and Employee Rights Act (H.R. 2723)

Dear Chairman, Ranking Member & Members of the U.S. House Committee on Education and the Workforce,

On behalf of the Workforce Fairness Institute (WFI), an organization devoted to educating workers, their employers, employees and citizens about issues affecting the workplace, we write today in strong support of two recently introduced pieces of legislation: Employee Privacy Protection Act (H.R. 2775) and Workforce Democracy and Fairness Act (H.R. 2776).

The Employer Privacy Protection Act assures worker privacy is protected, which has been put at risk by the Obama-era National Labor Relations Board (NLRB). We are very pleased that H.R. 2775 would enact safeguards for employees so that their personal information cannot be used improperly by union organizers.

As it stands now, labor organizers have access to far too much employee information, such as workers’ names, phone numbers, email addresses, home addresses, and work schedules and locations. By allowing employees the ability to determine which contact information is shared by their employer and their preferred method of communication, this legislation will once again give workers the power over their personal information.

Further, the Workforce Democracy and Fairness Act would roll back the NLRB’s decision in 2015 to codify ambush elections, which unnecessarily expedites labor elections affording workers as few as 11 days to determine whether to support or oppose a collective bargaining unit.

By protecting workers’ rights and setting the minimum time for labor elections at a reasonable 35 days, employees will have sufficient time to ask questions and receive answers concerning the union election process. Additionally, employers are provided 14 days to prepare their case to an NLRB election representative, which also gives them the necessary time to appropriately engage concerning workplace organizing efforts.

H.R. 2776 also addresses the NLRB’s ruling in Specialty Healthcare, an egregious decision handed down in 2011 that allowed for the formation of so-called micro-unions. Micro-unions are disruptive to workplaces and make it harder for employers to run their businesses, while allowing labor organizers to place immense pressure on workers.

For the record, the Workforce Fairness Institute would also like to raise the importance of several additional pieces of legislation, including the Representation Fairness Restoration Act and Employee Rights Act.

Specifically, the Representation Fairness Restoration Act would overturn the aforementioned micro-union decision requiring labor organizers to win elections with a majority of the workforce voting in favor of forming a collective bargaining unit. Union organizers should not be allowed to hand-pick and sort sub-groups of employees more favorable to representation. These allowances do not benefit workers and certainly don’t benefit our nation’s job creators.

The legislation discussed in this correspondence are necessary to give power back to workers after eight years of unilateral actions by an activist and biased NLRB working on behalf of Big Labor. The scales in America’s workplaces have been grossly tipped in favor of union bosses, and against America’s workers and business owners.

We strongly support the Employee Privacy Protection Act and Workforce Democracy and Fairness Act, and urge each bill receive a prompt vote from the members of the U.S. House Committee on Education and the Workforce.

Sincerely,

Heather Greenaway
Workforce Fairness Institute

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The Workforce Fairness Institute is an organization committed to educating voters, employers, employees and citizens about issues affecting the workplace. To learn more, please visit: https://www.workforcefairness.com.

To schedule an interview with a Workforce Fairness Institute representative, please contact Ryan Williams at (202) 677-7060.

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AZ Daily Sun--Coconino Voices: PRO Act legislation would hurt local businesses

— 05.13.2021 —
By: Julie Pastrik Arizona businesses and workers have had an incredibly challenging year given the economic slowdown that followed in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic. However, local businesses and industries across the state are resilient and on the road to a strong recovery that will mean more jobs for Arizona workers and increased economic development to strengthen our communities. That is, as long as Congress does not move forward with potentially devastating legislation that would hurt local employers and employees alike while impeding our state’s economic recovery. Unfortunately, some members of Congress seem determined to do just that by pushing through the Protecting the Right to Organize (PRO) Act. As harmless as the name may sound, the PRO Act would have serious repercussions for local businesses, particularly smaller ones, while undermining long-standing rights for employees and threatening the growing gig economy that has helped provide much-needed income for so many during this time. Arizona is fortunate to have leaders like Senators Mark Kelly and Kyrsten Sinema, who have both refrained from joining the vast majority of their Democratic colleagues in cosponsoring the PRO Act. In a slap in the face to Arizona workers, the PRO Act removes one of the most fundamental rights a worker has when it comes to voting in elections to determine whether to unionize: the secret ballot. Instead, workers could be forced to sign union authorization cards in front of other employees, their employer, or union organizers. This bill would also destroy workers’ right to privacy by allowing unions access to personal information, including their home address and personal phone number. If that doesn’t open the door to union intimidation and harassment, I don’t know what does. As if that was not bad enough, the PRO Act would create major new challenges for Arizona businesses, making it harder for them to create jobs, expand in their communities, and even keep their doors open. It would redefine what it means to be a “joint employer” under national labor law, greatly complicating existing relationships between franchisors and franchisees as well as between business owners, contractors, subcontractors, and vendors and suppliers. At the same time, it would interfere with attorney-client confidentiality and make it much more difficult for small businesses to secure a legal advice on labor issues. Particularly harmful during these times, the PRO Act would apply a failed policy from California to national labor law by using the “ABC” test to determine whether a worker is an independent contractor or employee. This makes it much harder to qualify as an independent contractor, threatening the freedom and flexibility that tens of thousands of Arizonans find in independent contracting and gig economy work. Ultimately, the PRO Act is bad public policy that only works for union leaders to inflate their falling ranks while threatening workers’ rights, undermining small businesses, and jeopardizing a growing part of our economy. This is not a good solution for Arizona, and Senators Sinema and Kelly should stay firm and not cosponsor this misguided legislation.
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