Temporary Labor Status Contested
Temporary workers should be allowed to join unions in the workplaces where they are assigned, the AFL-CIO argued Monday before the National Labor Relations Board.
The NLRB is holding hearings to review labor rules that currently make it virtually impossible for temporary workers to sign up with the unions that negotiate on behalf of full-time workers.
“We are hopeful that the board will take this opportunity to clarify the standard that it uses in these settings and to provide a measure of hope for workers of these types that they will be able to exercise their rights under the labor law as other workers do,” said Larry Engelstein, an AFL-CIO attorney.
Temporary workers form a large part of the work force. More than 2 million people worked as temporary employees in technical, clerical and professional positions last year.
Business groups argue that allowing temporary workers to join unions would undermine flexibility employers need to remain competitive. They also accuse unions of seeking changes in law to bolster their ranks.
“The board ought not to concern itself with union survival, but should be concerned exclusively with protecting employees,” the Labor Policy Association, a business lobbying group, argued.
If the organizing rules were relaxed, they still wouldn’t apply to all temporary workers. For example, clerical help assigned to an office for a few weeks are classified as “casual workers” and would not be covered.
But labor argues that such workers as agency nurses or construction workers who perform the same tasks as their full-time colleagues for extended periods should be granted equal bargaining rights.
Business groups warn that would be too burdensome.
“The unique character and value of the temporary work force would be threatened by union attempts to standardize terms and conditions of employment for all employees,” the U.S. Chamber of Commerce argued in a brief.
The board is hearing arguments in three related cases. A decision isn’t expected for several months.