The NMB Election Rule Change of 2010 Revisited: What Difference Has It Made?

This article explores the changes that occurred after the 2010 passage by the National Mediation Board (NMB) of the Railway Labor Act representation election procedures. This decision changed a long-standing practice of certifying a union as representative only if a majority of eligible employees in the relevant craft or class voted for representation. The new rule meant that the NMB would decide an election’s outcome based on the majority of valid ballots cast. The author uses empirical NMB election data to determine the impact of this rule change. Topics include union win rates, the level of employee participation in elections, and the incidence of “raids” on incumbent unions. The author focuses on the consequences of the rule change in the airline industry, where the union win rate has increased substantially. Another point of discussion is concerns by critics that the rule change would result in low participation rates and destabilizing effects on labor relations. The author also notes that the decertification procedure increased with the rule change, which partially offset the rule’s effects in the railroad industry. A final section anticipates the impact of further rule changes when the political situation changes.

• Availability:
  • Find a library where document is available. Order URL: http://worldcat.org/oclc/31144651
• Supplemental Notes:
  • Alternative Title: The NMB Election Rule Change of 2010 Revisted: What Difference Has It Made?
• Publication Date: 2017

Language

• English

Media Info

• Media Type: Print
• Features: References; Tables;
• Pagination: pp 20-38
• Serial:
  • Journal of Transportation Law, Logistics and Policy
  • Volume: 84
  • Issue Number: 1
  • Publisher: Association for Transportation Law, Logistics and Policy
  • ISSN: 1078-5906
  • Serial URL: http://www.atlp.org/journal.html

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Aircraft industry; Aviation; Employees; Labor relations; Labor unions; Laws and legislation; Railroads; Regulations
• Identifier Terms: National Mediation Board; Railway Labor Act
• Subject Areas: Aviation; Law; Railroads; Safety and Human Factors;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 01660601
• Record Type: Publication
• Files: TRIS
• Created Date: Feb 20 2018 9:32AM