Jonathan Upright

Jonathan Upright Communications Workers of America Winston Salem, N.C.

Jonathan Upright

Last March, when retail sales consultant Jonathan Upright was faced with a severe reduction in benefits and a new pay structure that would cut his commissions at his job at an AT&T retail center in Winston Salem, N.C., he asked himself: “What if there was something we could do to fight back?”

Worried about making ends meet on the new pay scales, he and his co-workers decided to form a union with the Communications Workers of America (CWA).

But new rules from the Bush National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) could unravel what Upright and his co-workers have sought to accomplish. In forming a union with CWA, they joined through a national neutrality and card-check agreement with AT&T, which means two things: Managers will not interfere with workers trying to form a union, and if a majority of workers in the state sign up on cards, AT&T will voluntarily recognize the union.

But under the NLRB's new rules, if a majority of workers choose a union through majority sign-up, the employer is required to post an NLRB notice that tells the workforce how 30 percent of them can petition for an election to undo the majority-supported recognition—even if bargaining has already begun.

Neutrality and card-check makes the often grueling process of forming a union more expedient and fair for workers. Although many workers struggle for years to form a union, it only took about a month to sign up a majority of the AT&T Retail Sales consultants in North Carolina. Within a week, the cards were submitted and verified by the American Arbitration Association, and AT&T recognized the union.

Upright and his co-workers are looking forward to the higher, union-negotiated pay scales that will take effect soon. So why change what works, he asks? “It doesn’t make any sense that a small group of people could undo what the majority of us want. The difference between union and nonunion at this center is black and white. We could go back to making less money and getting fewer benefits, but I don’t know why anybody would want to.”