On March 25, 2008, the Senate approved HB 2974, a House bill which will enable a union to become the bargaining representative of agricultural workers when it obtains authorization cards from a majority of unit employees, without a secret ballot election. Now that the bill has been approved by both the House and the Senate, it will be sent to the Governor for her signature or veto. If it is vetoed by the Governor, the Legislature may attempt to override the veto during the regular legislative session which ends on May 1, 2008.
The text of HB2974 is at: http://www.capitol.hawaii.gov/session2008/bills/HB2974_HD1_.htm
Although HB 2974 will largely affect only agricultural workers, it establishes a harmful precedent for employers in general. To organize a company, unions obtain authorization cards in which an employee signs a card designating the union as the employee’s collective bargaining representative. In many cases, authorization cards are obtained through the use of peer pressure or other coercive methods, and employees often do not understand the purpose or effect of the signed authorization card. Currently, state law allows agricultural employers to request a secret ballot election even when a union has presented the employer with authorization cards from a majority of employees. The secret ballot election procedure facilitates a vote which reflects the true desires of employees.
HB 2974 will allow unions to organize agricultural workers without a secret ballot election. Moreover, the bill contains an expedited procedure for initial contract negotiations which are intended to pressure employers into agreeing to union demands. If the parties in negotiation for a first contact do not reach agreement within 90 days after bargaining starts, either party may request conciliation, and if conciliation is ineffective, an arbitration panel selected by the Hawaii Labor Relations Board shall establish the terms of the parties initial agreement (which will be effective for 2 years). Thus HB 2974 takes the unprecedented step of having an arbitration panel write the contract terms for the parties.
Even though HB 2974 will only affect agricultural workers (and other private employers outside the jurisdiction of the National Labor Relations Act), it sets the stage for further incursions by unions into the rights of both employers and employees. Interested employers should write to Governor Lingle to ask for a veto of HB 2974, and should also write to their legislators to express their opposition to HB 2974.
