Late Friday members of the House passed H.R. 658 The FAA Reauthorization and Reform Act. They also rejected a number of pro-union amendments to the bill including that proposed by Rep. Steven LaTourette (R-OH) which would have struck section 903 of the bill. Section 903 restores RLA unit majority voting standards and has received heavy union attention and opposition. The section is not expected to survive as the bill goes back through the Democrat controlled Senate. (The Senate passed FAA legislation earlier this year but without provision for restoring majority voting standards.) The White House issued a statement earlier this week threatening to veto any bill that overturned last year’s pro-union NMB ruling. Last year the National Mediation Board ruled that a minority of employees can impose their will for unionization on a majority of their coworkers overturning the 75 year precedent set by the RLA. The FAA Reauthorization and Reform Act restores the RLA voting precedent under which a majority of the bargaining unit must vote for unionization.
