Originally presented on June 30, 2009
10:30 a.m. to Noon (Pacific)

Order Option       Price   CD Recording Only       $219

"We will pass the Employee Free Choice Act." President Obama recently made this statement to AFL-CIO leaders in a videotaped address, according to the March 4 edition of the The Wall Street Journal.

Scary stuff for employers.

The Employee Free Choice Act (EFCA) would mean the most aggressive, sweeping changes to the U.S. labor rules since the National Labor Relations Act was passed more than 70 years ago.

Many observers predicted that the current economic crisis would force Congress to delay action on this bill—but that's increasingly starting to look like wishful thinking. Union officials have released statements from Nobel-winning economists and other business experts supporting EFCA, and they're ready to spend millions of dollars and volunteer hours this spring pressuring Congress to pass the legislation. And, of course, President Obama is clearly behind the bill.

Major business groups are lobbying hard against EFCA on Capitol Hill, but union-friendly members of Congress have already drafted substitute legislation containing parts of EFCA to introduce quickly in case the entire bill doesn't go through. So EFCA, in some form, is likely coming soon to a workplace near you.

Why should you worry? For employers large and small, EFCA is very bad news:

• It paves the way for union organizers to expand quickly into new workplaces by collecting signed cards without your knowledge (instead of holding a formal secret-ballot election).
• If 50 percent or more of your workers sign those cards, boom: You're unionized. No more campaigns, no more voting—signatures alone will be enough to get the job done.
• EFCA also gives federal arbitrators the brand-new authority to impose labor contracts in your workplace if you fail to reach agreement with union locals within 120 days of the union's formation.

Join us on June 30 for a very frank, practical discussion of EFCA and the dangers it poses for your workplace—specifically for California employers. Our speaker—a former NLRB field attorney based in San Francisco who's now an experienced management-side labor lawyer—will share strategies for preparing in advance for this legislation and safeguarding your workforce against unfair union organizing tactics.

You'll learn what you can (and cannot) do to protect your organization without running afoul of the law—and why you must prepare right now to keep your workplace union-free.

YOU AND YOUR COLLEAGUES WILL LEARN:

• How EFCA promises to eliminate traditional union organizing campaigns and secret-ballot elections if it becomes law
• Why President Obama's recent pledges to union leaders and other Capitol Hill developments have greatly increased the bill's chances of passage this year
• The current legal dos and don'ts of resisting union organizing drives in California—and how this new legislation would change those rules
• Your options under EFCA if union organizers succeed in gathering signatures from at least half of your workers, including whether you'd still be able to force a secret ballot after the signatures are collected
• Other troubling provisions within EFCA that threaten California employers—for example, the use of federal arbitration boards to dictate terms if you can't agree on a contract with the leaders of your new union
• The steps you can lawfully take right now to teach your workers about the dangers of unions, without violating NLRB rules in the process

About Your Speaker:

Maria Anastas, Esq., is a partner in the San Francisco offices of Ogletree, Deakins, Nash, Smoak & Stewart PC. She provides legal support, strategic advice, training, and communications guidance to employers during traditional union organizing drives and corporate campaigns. She represents employers before the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB), negotiates collective bargaining agreements for employers, provides contract administration advice, and defends employers during grievances and arbitration hearings. A former NLRB field attorney, Anastas has been named "One of the Top 100 Labor Lawyers in America" by the Labor Relations Institute. She earned her law degree at Tulane University.

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