EFCA Light on the way?

Breaking: EFCA Light? NLRB Seeks Electronic Voting Information

As we’ve been reporting for months, if unions can’t get the Employee Free Choice Act through legislation, they will try to do it through administrative means. This evening the NLRB posted the following Request for Information (RFI-NLRB-01):

“The National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) is seeking industry solutions regarding the capacity, availability, methodology and interest of industry sources for procuring and implementing secure electronic voting services both for remote and on-site elections.” (emphasis ours)

The RFI continues:

“The NLRB’s requirements are for the acquisition of electronic voting services to support conducting secret-ballot elections to determine representation issues.  Specifically, the Agency requires a proven solution that supports mail, telephone, web-based and/or on-site electronic voting; that includes the necessary safeguards to ensure the accuracy, secrecy, observability, transparency, integrity, accountability, and auditability of Agency-conducted elections; and that has demonstrated experience in protecting similar type elections from both deliberate misconduct and simple error.  With respect to electronic voting capabilities, the Agency specifically requests information, to the extent available, relating to what safeguards, if any, could be implemented to ensure that votes cast remotely were free from distractions or other interferences, including undue intimidation or coercion.  The Agency also requests, to the extent available, information relating to experience regarding the level of participation achieved through remote electronic voting technology (vs. traditional on-site elections, whether manual or electronic).” (emphasis ours)

Make no mistake. If unions can’t get rid of the current election process through legislation, they will rely on the NLRB to do it for them.