Q: What are my basic labor law rights as a worker in the US working in the private sector?

• The right to form or join a union.
• The right to bargain collectively for a contract that sets wages, benefits, hours, and other working conditions.
• The right to discuss wages, working conditions or union organizing with co-workers or a union in certain settings.
• The right to act with co-workers to improve working conditions by raising complaints with an employer or a government agency.
• The right to strike.

Q. Who enforces these laws?

The National Labor Relations Board (NLRB), an independent federal agency.

Q. Why else should I care about the NLRB?

* It is the agency that conducts union representation elections.
* It investigates and remedies unfair labor practices

Q. How are the leaders of the NLRB determined?

The President of the United States appoints and the Senate confirms who sits on the Board, the adjudicative body that decides labor law cases. Because of this, it is imperative we know where our presidential candidates stand in regard to labor. (if you want to see what that means in the bigger picture, look at what the Bush NLRB did -- or -- didn't do).

Q. More than 50% of us voted yes for our union -- a year ago, what's the hold up?

The answer to this question can fill a 300 page book of how corporations use tactics against us for getting our legally voted for union. The long story short is that our labor laws are old and need reform because as they stand now, employers can hold up voting for eons through legal filings and appeals -- many of which are useless but, by law, need to be reviewed by the NLRB and sometimes the courts. Likewise, unions can of course make filings during the same period, but most choose not to until the elections are done because of the "hold up" these filings create.

When a company files objections to the results of a representation election through ULPs or other avenues, they generally do so with the NLRB's regional office. The regional office will investigate. If a violation is believed to exist, the region will take the case before an Administrative Law Judge or a Hearing Officer who will conduct a hearing. The decision of the Administrative Law Judge or Officer may be reviewed by the Board. Many Board decisions are reviewable by United States Courts of Appeals.

And that back and forth takes a really long long time, in fact, there are no time limits on how long that can go on for. Many companies facing an organizing drive by its employees just love that ... they have the cash to hire up union-busting lawyers who know how to play this system in and out. So, when the company seems to be simmering its fight directly on the workers, it is not uncommon for them to be amping up the back and forth fight with the Administrative Law Judges because they know that the more they appeal, the longer it will take for workers to get their union and/or their first contract.

Q. What about the Department of Labor?

The United States Department of Labor administers and enforces more than 180 federal laws and regulations (other than the National Labor Relations Act) that cover a great deal of workplace activities for more than 125 million workers! As part of the Presidential Cabinet, the Secretary of Labor, who oversees the massive DOL, is nominated by the President and confirmed by the Senate. (if you want to see what that means in the bigger picture, look at what the Bush DOL did -- or -- didn't do).

The laws enforced by the DOL offer important protections in the areas of:

* Wages and hours
* Workplace safety and health
* Workers' compensation
* Employee benefits
* Time off for family and medical leave
* Plant closings and layoffs

Each area above can include one law or regulation or many -- each are outlined on the DOL website: www.dol.gov.

At the end of the day, it is incumbent upon us, whether we're union now or not yet, to know the basics of the laws that cover us as working people.