The Hill recently reported that the NLRB has requested information from federal government contractors on how it could implement electronic voting in union elections.
Under its current approach, the NLRB conducts elections either in person or by mail. When conducted in person, an NLRB agent brings a portable voting booth and paper ballots to a particular location (usually, the employer’s place of business). The booth is set up and employees vote in person, in the presence of the NLRB agent and non-supervisory employee observers.
The alternative is for a mail ballot election. In an election conducted in this fashion, the NLRB mails a ballot to the home address of each eligible voter. The voter marks the ballot and returns it to the NLRB in an envelope that protects the secrecy of the ballot.
The NLRB’s request for information indicates that the electronic voting would be in support of secret ballot elections. It also sought information about safeguards that could be implemented to ensure that votes were cast without "undue intimidation or coercion." As did the NLRB’s adoption of the mail ballot option a few years ago, the request for information has sparked concern from employer groups.
Labor professionals should be aware of this change, but immediate action is not likely necessary. First, the NLRB’s action is only an initial step. To implement electronic voting as a real world approach, additional administrative steps will need to be taken. Second, if the mail ballot experience is any guide, the electronic voting mechanism will add another option for the conduct of a union election. Even with the mail ballot option, the NLRB continues to conduct secret ballot elections in person.