616-742-3999, F According to forms filed with the Labor Department in connection with several anti-union campaigns over the past decade, Brown and Smith have worked under Philip Wilson, CEO of LRI. During the winter, The Hershey's Company hired six union-avoidance firms to block organizing efforts at its chocolate factory in Stuarts Draft, Virginia. Gamekeepers Turned Poachers: Several prominent consultants have claimed to have worked working for unions, including some of Smiths close associates. persons or entities involved in the matter and that the firm is willing to consider Leaked files from IRI Consultants, a union avoidance firm, obtained by Vice's Motherboard show the disturbing lengths to which companies will go in order to derail workplace organizing. . 574-237-1125, F 20.Stefan Marculewicz and Brent Wilton, Employer Freedom of Opinion and Expression Within the Context of Union OrganizingA Fresh Perspective from the ILO, Littler, November 10, 2010, available at littler.com/publication-press/publication/employer-freedom-opinion-and-expression-within-context-union. And that's made employers extremely vulnerable to unionization. Study with Quizlet and memorize flashcards containing terms like 1) The term labour-management relations refers to: A) the process of labour- management contract negotiations and . Between 2000-2009, he was an assistant and associate professor of comparative employment relations at the London School of Economics and Political Science. 4 (December 2006), pp. Union Avoidance. It's not only Morgan Lewis: Amazon has links to other leading union avoidance firms and experts: Amazon has connections with several other leading anti-union law firms. . Amazon Campaign Demonstrates Urgent Need for PRO Act. The leaked records include a spreadsheet of anecdotal personal information the company had gathered . By agreeing to remain silent, an employer effectively may deny workers information, opinions and ideas they have a right to receive . A union flyer was posted on one of your facility's employee bulletin board last night. . Among other campaigns, while working under LRI, Brock helped defeat a union campaign at the Trump International Hotel in Las Vegas in 2014 and is currently running a major anti-union campaign at the largest hospital in Maine. With ANHS, we make sure you stay union-free. . 2. kill organized labor in aviation. Your labor relations training was excellent, providing our supervisors with useful information and practical tools to help reduce the risk of potential union organizing at our nonunion operations The chief result of the hearings, under the guidance of chief counsel Robert Kennedy, resulted in the enactment 1959 Labor-Management Relations and Disclosure Act (LMRDA), which targeted unions, not union-busting firms. . In 2019, Google hired IRI Consultants, a union avoidance firm, "amid a wave of unprecedented worker organizing at the company," as Vice's Motherboard put it in January 2021, while reporting on leaked files from IRI that provided a disturbing picture of how far Google may have strayed in its . The full picture of Amazon's spending isn't expected to come to light until well after the election has ended, but two union-avoidance consultants have already filed forms describing some of the work their firms are doing for Amazon. Littler attorneys have suggested using the OECD complaints process . The refusal was no surpriseemployers have turned down the NCP in every U.S. OECD complaintbut Nissan invoking the ILO was surprising. You might hear your bosses call this "union avoidance," but it basically just means "Union busting, in a suit." Three: Delay, delay, delay Under the National Labor Relations Act of 1935, it is illegal for employers to intimidate, retaliate against, or ask workers whether they support a union drive. John Logan is Professor and Director of Labor and Employment Studies at San Francisco State University. Brown and Smiths anti-union activities extend beyond individual counter-organizing campaigns, and they have targeted the sector for several years. Human Rights Watch has criticized captive meetings as a form of legal intimidation, which are unlawful in many developed democracies. The NLRB found that the company had committed numerous and egregious unfair labor practices during its anti-union campaign in a 2017 NLRB election. 8.Littler Mendelson, International Practice Group, available at https://www.littler.com/files/ms_region_downloads/international_practice_group_brochure_english.pdf. Union avoidance law firms have advocated using the OECD Guidelines on Multinational Corporations to attack global union federations, cautioned corporations against signing international framework agreements that limit their union avoidance options, and argued that, under ILO jurisprudence, employers have not just a right but an obligation to campaign against unionization and collective bargaining. The PRO Act has already encountered stiff opposition, but if Amazons conduct at Bessemer comes under intense public scrutiny, this time could be different. July 9, 2018 Will escalating , June 27, 2018 This morning the U.S. Supreme Court , The formation of unions is problematic to the overall structure , December 5, 2017 As anticipated, President Trumps new General , For the first time in 8 years, reason may return , Submerged beneath several feet of media chaff about General , The Bureau of Labor and Statistics released its 2016 Union . Littler attorneys have argued that, under international law, employers not only have a right, but also have an obligation to oppose unions: ILO jurisprudence requires them to speak out against unionization, otherwise workers will be denied access to information they need to make an informed choice: [I]t may be a violation of international law for employers to be limited in their right to freedom of expression and opinion . Employees see no way to address their issues beyond inviting outside help to disrupt your business. In 2018, Littler employed over 1000 attorneys in the United . 614-628-1433. Thus, just as Nathan Sheffermans LRA spawned anti-union consultants and firms that dominated the business in the 1960s and 1970s, so too has LRI acted as a breeding ground for new union avoidance experts over the past two decades. In 2018, Google dropped its long-time slogan, "Don't be evil" from its code of conduct. Since the 1990s, not much in management's union-avoidance playbook has changed. 15.Littler Mendelson, The U.S. NCP and Developments on Extraterritoriality, available at https://www.slideserve.com/sean-fox/stefen-marculewicz. For this to happen, much depends on the employees day-to-day relationship with their immediate supervisor. Seaton is a well-known union-avoidance consultant, otherwise known as a "persuader" or, more accurately, a union buster. In response, large union avoidance law firms have not only internationalized their operations, but also proposed using global standards offensively against labor organizations, and attempted to use ILO jurisprudence to argue that employers have a rightand even an obligationto oppose unionization. Barnes & Thornburg is involved in the U.S. Chamber of Commerce's executive legislative committee in Washington, D.C. We monitor what's happening on the legislative and regulatory front, and we communicate these developments to our clients regularly. Other important benefits derived from our employee relations consulting program include: Companies that listen to employees and train their supervisors to develop good working relationships can reduce interest in union membership and deter union organizing efforts. The Center for Individual Employees: In addition to running the RWP consulting firm, Brown is president of the Center for Individual Employees (CIE), a 501c(3) non-profit legal defense foundation. CIE, which claims to be active in all 50 states, is a legal defense foundation that provides free legal services to workers against unionization Although the organization is secretive about its funders, we know that CIE received $18,000 from the anti-union, billionaire Koch Brothers in 2017. The countrys 11 largest national passenger airlines all have unionized pilots, as do shipping carriers such as UPS and FedEx. Leaked files from IRI Consultants, a union avoidance firm, obtained by Vice's Motherboard show the disturbing lengths to which companies will go in order to derail workplace organizing. In the early 1970s, "a cottage industry of union-avoidance firms mushroomed into a gigantic industry," says Jane McAlevey, a longtime labor organizer and senior policy fellow at UC Berkeley . . Tracking the union avoidance firms behind anti-union campaigns is intentionally made difficult by firms that subcontract out work to other firms that hire independent contractors to avoid federal reporting requirements laid out by the Department of Labor and shield themselves from public scrutiny. Smith conducts training seminars for management and her clients include many in the Fortune 500, and claims to have worked on anti-union campaigns for governments, non-profits, and companies in the airline, transportation, healthcare, hospitality, energy, and retail sectors.[iv]. The company claims it can't afford to raise workers' pay but spends millions on anti-union consultants. Consultants . In fact, research shows that even a few supervisors with poor interpersonal skills can be the cause for instigating union organizing campaigns, grievances, litigations, and other costly disruptions. Univar USA. . These firms include IRI Consultants, recently hired by Google, and the anodyne-sounding Labor Relations Institute, which the report says is one of the nation's largest union-avoidance firms. Often the easiest way to solve a problem is to avoid it entirely, and avoiding a union is no different. Union avoidance; The partners responsible for this area of practice include William M. Tambussi and Susan . In more recent campaigns, the firm has offered employers a 50% refund in its fees if the union wins[iii] One could not invent better examples to illustrate that, under the current union certification process, the employer and not the employees gets to decide on whether a workplace becomes unionized. And he is why we will all be looked upon as pariahs if the Union is decertified. An effective union avoidance strategy involves a number of other components, including: F Five of Ogletrees fifty-three law offices are overseas; it publishes a global labor relations newsletter, and it recently expanded its cross-border practice to include global labor standards and corporate codes of conduct.4 Ogletrees expanding international focus has been client-drivena direct response to demands from corporations for its labor services in multiple countries. The NLRBs recently implemented quickie election rule has many repercussions for employers. . Whether you choose one-on-one mentoring, group training, or The Union-Free Privilege Academy, our union avoidance management consultants tailor seminars and workshops to meet the specific needs of your organization. Best Lawyers 2022 "Best Law Firms" List. Captivating Workers: Captive meetings mandatory group anti-union meetings which employees can be fired for refusing to attend have been a central feature of Amazons anti-union campaign at Bessemer. With centuries of combined labor relations experience, our consultants equip you with the knowledge you need. When you start to notice the early warning signs of union organization, its too late. Reassure the Board of Directors and Shareholders. 101. After all, you cant lose a union election that doesnt happen. implications of communicating with Barnes & Thornburg LLP and agree to the In 2015, American Apparel hired the union-avoidance firm Cruz & Associates and paid at total of $462,343; During 2015-2016, New York, New York Hotel & Casino paid union-avoidance consultants at Balance Incorporated . Last month, we discovered that, starting in January, Amazon had hired two prominent anti-union consultants, Russell Brown and Melissa Smith of Florida-based Road Warrior Productions (RWP), to assist with its campaign against the RWDSU. CHICAGO. You have a powerful labor relations team of experienced union avoidance consultants in your corner. Ogletree Deakins is the nations second largest management-side law firm specializing in union avoidance. necessary.17. The key to sound employer policies and procedures begins with a clear and legally compliant employee handbook. Between 2014 and 2017, Littler Mendelson advised Nissan during a ferocious three-year anti-union campaign in Canton, Mississippi, where many workers were African-American. But union avoidance firms and law . Should you choose to contact an attorney at Barnes & Thornburg LLP (via Labor relations consultants specializing in union avoidance activities have been operated in the United States since at least the 1940s. In testimony before the House of Representatives, one Littler attorney stated that global union federations have become increasingly active in the United States and on behalf of their U.S. member unions to further organizing efforts . With top of the line labor . Amazons Huge Expenditure on the Bessemer Anti-Union Campaign: Amazon is paying a small fortune for its anti-union consultants. These firms often provide so-called union vulnerability assessments, which are usually based . Do you want to receive more valuable insights directly in your inbox? Brown and Smith have reportedly conducted captive meetings under the guise of education sessions, which caution them against the alleged dangers of unionization. . Kumho Tires: Numerous and Egregious Anti-Union Practices: Brown and Smith also conducted an anti-union campaign at Kumho Tires in Macon, Georgia, between 2017-2019. But several U.S. union avoidance firms have recently sought overseas markets for their expertise. . Brown, Smith and James Edwards, general counsel of both CIE and RWP, were deeply involved in the anti-union campaign (After the Flexjet decertification election, the chairman of Cleveland-based carrier, Ken Ricci, stated: This is a historic moment not only for our company but also for the industry as a whole, since no other pilot group has elected to remove representation by organized labor. Brown also celebrated the historic election as the first time in the 80-year history of the Railway Labor Act that pilots have chosen a direct relationship with their employer rather than have a labor union interfering as a third party., Union activists agreed that Brown and Smith had played a critical role in the decertification campaign. American Factorys Anti-Union Firm: If they know anything about LRI, labor observers probably heard about the union avoidance firm through its involvement in the intense anti-union campaign at Chinese-owned Fuyao Glass America factory in Moraine, Ohio, when the firm was reportedly paid $1 million to oppose the UAW. provided for informational purposes only and should not be considered legal A Modern-Day LRA The Labor Relations Institute (LRI) Consulting Connection: Based in Broken Arrow, Oklahoma, Phillip Wilsons LRI Consulting Services, LLC is one of the nations oldest and most active union avoidance firms in the nation. October 15 - 16, 2019. Don't wait to take back the control you've worked so hard to achieve. Our team has also helped companies avoid hundreds of campaigns across the country, including UAW, Steelworkers, Teamsters, CWA, IBEW, UFCW, UNITE-HERE, IAM, AFTRA, SEIU, The Laborers, GMPP, Sheet Metal Workers, 1199, just to name a few. Also, it should be noted that when companies wait to fix problems until after a campaign begins, the union is quick to take credit for any improvements, telling employees look, were already forcing the company to make changes, just wait until after the election.. Open communication between employer, employees is crucial for maintaining a healthy working environment. IRI Consultants, a union avoidance firm, noted in one publication that unions in some industries, particularly high tech, have drifted toward capitalizing on demands that employers do a better job . The result is a more capable management team and a more effective workforce. as confidential. It is also helpful for the entire company to nourish a sense of community and make everyone feel theyre on the same team. Crushing Unions With Consultants, "Explainer Videos" and "Heat Maps". . This includes our Leadership Effectiveness Analysis, which helps your managers identify and leverage their strengths. John Logan is Professor and Director of Labor and Employment Studies at San Francisco State University and a visiting scholar at the University of California-Berkeley Labor Center. Despite switching sides on union campaigns, Smith claims she wants to support and give a voice to working people. For those organizations with a non-union workforce, Hutchison Group can help to discreetly determine your vulnerability to potential union organizing and reduce your risk of having to endure a union campaign. As a result of the growing importance of MNCs, both in the United States and worldwide, American unions such as the Service Employees International Union, United Food and Commercial Workers and others have participated in global organizing campaigns.2 Conducted with the assistance of UNI Global Union, International Transport Federation, and other global union federations, these multifaceted campaigns have stressed corporate violations of core ILO conventions and have utilized soft law instruments such as the United Nations Global Compact and the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) Guidelines for Multinational Corporations. Araby is all too aware: "Union avoidance firms are a growing presence in the cannabis industry; the big union-busting law firms like Morgan Lewis and Littler Mendelson, as well as others, see . January 18, 2023. A proposed rule change would expose such anti-union expenses the last thing the union busters themselves want. 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