President Barack Obama vetoed a joint resolution that would have overturned a National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) rule to modernize representation-case procedures.
The legislation, if not vetoed, would have made it harder for working Americans to join unions.
“One of the freedoms of folks here in the United States is that if they choose to join a union, they should be able to do so,” Obama said at the White House when announcing the veto. “And we shouldn’t be making it impossible for that to happen.”
The president issued a Memorandum of Disapproval to explain his veto, on March 31, writing that the resolution would have “[blocked] modest but overdue reforms to simplify and streamline private sector union elections.”
The NLRB adopted the “representation case procedures” rule in December as a way to increase efficiency, transparency, and fairness in the representation process.
The rule, going into effect April 14th, allows for electronic filing and transmission of election petitions and notices, as well as increases the information available to employees and employers about their rights during the voting process.
To read more about the new NLRB rule, click here.
