Early Days of Ambush Rule Alter Labor Landscape

A new rule from the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) that compresses the schedule between the filing of a petition to unionize and conducting a union election has in its first six weeks altered the labor-organizing landscape.

Since the “ambush rule” took effect April 14, the average span of time from petition-filing to election has been 25 days, according to a review of NLRB’s case handling dockets by Littler’s Workplace Policy Institute. That compares to an average of 38 days in 2014.

The quickest turnaround from petition to election has been 10 days.

The rule appears to also have generated more interest in the process. Between April 14 and May 8 of this year, Littler reports the filing of 209 petitions to the NLRB. In the same time period in 2014 and 2013, the number of petitions filed were 167 and 146, respectively.

In an article in the National Law Review in January, attorney Tim McConville said the NLRB rule “signals the Board’s most aggressive use ever of regulatory power to accomplish objectives advocated by organized labor.”

He wrote that private-sector employers should be prepared to see more union-organizing activity: “The old adage that an ounce of prevention is better than a pound of cure will become more and more relevant.” S