Senate to vote Wednesday on reversing controversial NLRB rule

The Senate will vote Wednesday on a GOP-backed motion that would undo a controversial National Labor Relations Board rule that makes it easier for workers to hold union elections. 

Republicans are using the Congressional Review Act that allows lawmakers to undo regulation through a motion of disapproval, which needs a majority vote in both chambers. The motion can’t be filibustered or amended, which will help it bypass Democratic opposition. 

{mosads}If the bill gets to his desk, however, the White House says President Obama will veto it.

Republicans say the rule is unfair to business. If it goes into effect next month, it would shorten the amount of time employers have to prepare for union elections, from 38 days to 11 days. 

“This rule makes it harder for business to meet their obligations in good faith,” Sen. Lamar Alexander (R-Tenn.) said from the Senate floor. “It denies employees the time they need to be able to make informed decisions and it undermines the fair and timely process for union elections.”

Republicans said that by hurting business the regulation would also hurt workers and do little to bolster the middle class.  

“It’s just dagum wrong. … It’s a solution in search of a problem,” Sen. Johnny Isakson (R-Ga.) said during a speech. “Let’s remember who the middle class really is. Let’s remember who small business really is. Let’s remember why we have unions and why we have National Labor Relations Board. We have it for fair and equitable treatment of labor law.” 

Democrats, however, argue that their Republican counterparts are siding with special interests over average Americans. 

“I am stunned that we have the Republican majority fighting to keep the system rigged against American workers,” Sen. Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.) said during a Senate floor speech. “My friends on the other side of the aisle have once again taken up the cause of special interests.” 

Sen. Al Franken (D-Minn.), who said he is a member of three unions, added that the rule takes a “small but important step” toward strengthening “the voices of regular Americans in the workplace.”

Schumer said the NLRB rules will help prevent delays in union elections and reduce “frivolous” lawsuits.