The Government Conducts an Election for you, on the job

General Information

Prior to any election conducted by the NLRB there will be posted at the place of your work a Notice of Election issued by the NLRB to inform you of:

• The date, hours, and place of the election
• The payroll period for voter eligibility 
• A description of the voting unit of employees
• General rules as to conduct of elections. 

There is a sample ballot on the Notice of Election which, except for color, is a reproduction of the ballot you will receive when you vote. You should read the Notice of Election so that you will be familiar with the ballot.

The Voting Place

In the voting place will be a table, a voting booth, and a ballot box. At the table there will be observers for the union and the employer and a representative of the NLRB, each of whom will be wearing an official badge. The observers' badges will have "Observer" on them. The NLRB representative will wear an "Agent" badge.
The Agent is in charge of the election. If you have questions, talk only with the Agent.

The Voting Procedure

1. Go to the voting table, standing in line if necessary.
2. Give your name, and clock number if you have one, to the observers. The observers will find your name on the voting list and tell the Agent your name has been found. If any questions are asked, talk only with the Agent. Do not argue with the observers.
3. After your name has been checked off, go to the Agent to obtain your ballot.
4. Go into the vacant voting booth. Mark the ballot with one X only. Do not sign the ballot. Fold the ballot to hide the mark and leave the voting booth taking your ballot with you.
5. Put your ballot in the ballot box yourself.
6. Do not let anyone else touch it.
7. Leave the polling place.

You will notice that only the Agent handled the blank ballots and only you handled your marked ballot. Once your marked ballot is in the ballot box it becomes mixed with all other ballots in the box and cannot be identified. No one can determine how you have voted.

Challenged Ballots

    Questions sometimes arise about eligibility of certain persons. Any observer or the NLRB representative can challenge an individual's right to vote. This challenge, however, must be for good cause and not for personal reasons; for example, a name may not appear on the eligibility list because of a clerical error. If your vote is challenged, take your ballot into the booth, mark it, fold it to keep the mark secret, and return to the voting table. The Agent will give you a challenged ballot envelope on the stub of which are written your name and clock number and the reason for the challenge. You put the ballot in the envelope. You seal the envelope, and you deposit it in the ballot box.
    You will note that while your name is on the stub of the envelope it is not on the ballot. Secrecy of your vote is maintained because if challenged ballots must be counted and if later investigation reveals challenged voters are eligible to vote, the stub containing the name and clock number of the individual voter is first torn off and discarded. All challenged ballot envelopes are then mixed together. The ballots are then removed and counted by the Board Agent. By this method secrecy is maintained.

Rights of Employees

You are entitled to vote your free choice in a fair, honest, secret-ballot election. The National Labor Relations Board is the agency of the United States Government which protects that right as well as other important rights guaranteed by the National Labor Relations Act.
    Under Section 7 of the National Labor Relations Act, employees have the right:

• To self-organization
•  To form, join, or assist labor organizations
•  To bargain collectively through representatives of their own choosing
•  To act together for the purposes of collective bargaining or other mutual aid or protection
•  To refuse to do any or all of these things. However, the union and employer, in a State where such agreements are permitted, may enter into a lawful union-security agreement requiring employees to pay periodic dues and initiation fees. Nonmembers who inform the union that they object to the use of their payments for nonrepresentational purposes may be required to pay only their share of the union's costs of representational activities (such as collective bargaining, contract administration, and grievance adjustment).

    The National Labor Relations Board wants all eligible voters to be familiar with their rights under the law and wants both employers and unions to know what is expected of them when it holds an election.
    When an election is held, the Board protects your right to a free choice under the law. Improper conduct, such as described on the next page, will not be permitted. We expect all parties to Board elections to cooperate fully with this Agency in maintaining basic principles of a fair election as expressed by law. The National Labor Relations Board as an agent of the United States Government does not endorse any choice in the election.

Protection of Your Rights

The Board applies rules to keep its elections fair and honest. If agents of either unions or employers interfere with your right to a free, fair, and honest election, the election can be set aside by the Board. Where appropriate the Board provides other remedies, such as reinstatement for employees fired for exercising their rights, including backpay from the party responsible for their discharge.

The following are examples of conduct which interfere with the rights of employees and may result in the setting aside of the election:

• Threatening loss of jobs or benefits by an employer or a union
• Promising or granting promotions, pay raises, or other benefits, to influence an employee's vote by a party capable of carrying out such promises
• An employer firing employees to discourage or encourage union activity or a union causing them to be fired to encourage union activity
• Making campaign speeches to assembled groups of employees on company time within the 24-hour period before the election
• Incitement by either an employer or a union of racial or religious prejudice by inflammatory appeal
• Threatening physical force or violence to employees by a union or an employer to influence their votes

The National Labor Relations Board protects your right to a fair election and a free choice

Albany, NY 12207-2350
 Albuquerque, NM 87102-2181
 Anchorage, AK 99513-3546
 Atlanta. GA 30323-3301
 Baltimore. MD 21202-4026
 Birmingham. AL 35203-3323
 Boston, MA 02222-1072
 Brooklyn, NY 11201-420
Buffalo, NY 14202-2387
 Chicago, IL 60608-5208
 Cincinnati, OH 45202-3721
 Cleveland, OH 44199-2088
 Denver, CO 80202-5433
 Des Moines, IA 50309-2116
 Detroit, MI 48226-2569
 El Paso, TX 79901-7020
 Fort Worth. TX 76102-6178
 Grand Rapids, MI 49503-3022
 Hartford, CT 08103-3599
Hato Rey, PR 00918-1720
 Honolulu, HI 96850-4980
 Houston, TX 77002-2649
 Indianapollis, IN 46204-1577
 Jacksonville, FL 32202-4412
 Las Vegas, NV 89101-8637
 Little Rock, AR 72201-3505
 Los Angeles, CA 90017-2803
 Los Angeles. CA 90024-3682
 Memphis. TN 38104-3627
 Miami, FL 33130-1608
 Milwaukee, WI 53203-2211
 Minneapolis, MN 55401-2291
 Mission, KS 66202-2408
 Nashville, TN 37203-3818
 Newark, NJ 07102-2570
 New Orleans, LA 70112-3723
 New York, NY 10278-0104
 Oakland, CA 94612-3017
Peoria, IL 61602-1104
 Philadelphia, PA 19106-4404
 Phoenix, AZ 85004-2212
Pittsburgh, PA 15222-4173
 Portland. OR 97201-5878
St. Louis, MO 63101-1214
 San Antonio, TX 78205-2040
 San Diego, CA 92101-2939
 San Francisco, CA 94103-1735
 Seattle, WA 98174-1078
Tampa, FL 33602-5824
 Tulsa, OK 74103-4263
 Washington, DC 20037-1560
 Winston-Salem, NC 27101-3986

Street addresses and telephone numbers are located in the telephone directory under the United States Government, National Labor Relations Board.

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