March 20, 2009

2 Misunderstandings About Labor Law

To the Editor:

"Labor Bill Would Make Organizing Unions Easier" (The Chronicle, February 20) perpetuates two common misunderstandings about current federal labor law.

The first is the statement that "Under current law, the employer must hold a secret ballot election. ..." Aside from the fact that it is the National Labor Relations Board which conducts any election, it is not true and never has been that there must be an election. An employer may legally recognize a union that