Washington, DC – On March 14, CDW sent a letter to House and Senate appropriators urging them to protect secret ballot elections in union representation elections by maintaining a bipartisan policy rider that prohibits the NLRB from implementing electronic voting in representation elections. The letter also urges Congress to condition any increase in NLRB funding on additional riders that will rein in the Board’s actions.

The following quote can be attributed to CDW Chair Kristen Swearingen:

“Congress, the NLRB, federal courts, and stakeholders have all recognized that secret ballots in union representation elections are the best means for ensuring workers can freely vote their conscience and for guaranteeing secure and credible elections.

“Electronic voting, on the other hand, would break with NLRB precedent, increase the risk of coercion and fraud in representation elections, and waste the NLRB’s limited resources. That’s why the policy rider was established decades ago and why Congress has repeatedly included it  in appropriations packages year after year. Congress should maintain the rider again and protect workers, election credibility, and Board resources.

“Moreover, during this administration, the NLRB has routinely pushed for vast expansion of its authority and wasted taxpayer resources on long-shot, radical policy changes. Congress should use the appropriations process to rein in the NLRB’s behavior and force the agency to focus its resources on more appropriate efforts.”