Caney Fork Co-Op Unionizes Despite Hiring of Major Unionbusting Firm

by plasticscreen, posted in News & Current Events

Linemen, mechanics and meter readers employed by Caney Fork Electric Co-Operative voted to unionize last month. According to the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) the tally of ballots began Tuesday, May 16. The tallied ballots were certified Wednesday, May 24. Caney Fork had hired ALG HR Solutions, however, the LM-20 form required by the NLRB reveals Phillip B. Wilson, President and General Counsel of Labor Relations Institute (LRI) listed as the person through whom the agreement with Jason Blain, President of ALG HR Solutions was made. LRI is considered one of the most “aggressive” union avoidance consultant firms in the nation, likely a reason why Amazon has worked with them repeatedly in attempts to prevent unionization by employees.

Wilson has been LRI President and General Counsel since 1998. LRI boasts they are “the ONLY major labor consulting firm run by a labor attorney.” A press release from LRI notes they specialize in “maintaining the union-free workplace.” LRI offers multiple services including campaign consulting and specialty items like anti-union buttons and T-shirts to the type of opposition research commonly found in political elections. The website advertises LRI’s ability to find the “‘smoking gun’ argument needed to persuade employees the union local seeking to represent them is not all it claims to be.” They also deploy “opposition research” in attempt to thwart union campaigns.

 Union-avoidance consultancy, or “union busting” as labor advocates refer to it, is a lucrative industry. In 2021 alone, Amazon paid around $4.3 million to union avoidance firms. That number nearly tripled to $14.3 million in 2022. UPS paid $2,625 per day during a heat wave to prevent strikes from UPS drivers demanding air conditioning. Cemex paid over $1 million to LRI in 2018. These numbers are likely far lower, however, because there are multiple loopholes to avoid reporting and there is no criminal charge or even a financial penalty for non-compliance in reporting. 

In Wilson’s book on union avoidance, he describes some of his favorite anti-union bumper sticker slogans: “The one I like best says, ‘I don’t brake for union organizers!'” LRI brags they “literally wrote the book in countering union organizing campaigns.” LRI also offers messaging strategies “crafted by labor relations and labor law specialists.”

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Professor John Logan is a labor historian who has taught at Berkeley and the London School of Economics. He has referred to LRI as “one of the nation’s oldest and most active union avoidance firms.” 

A December 2019 report from the Economic Policy Institute found employers are charged with violating federal law in 41.5% of union election campaigns. About a third of such campaigns see employees being illegally coerced, threatened or retaliated against or illegally disciplined for supporting unionization. Howard Schultz, Starbucks CEO, excluded workers at organizing stores from new employee benefits, for instance.

According to the Economic Policy Institute, about $433 million per year was spent on labor relations consultants between 2018 and 2021 by corporations hoping to avoid unionization. Some consultants are paid $350 per hour or thousands of dollars per day by firms attempting to keep workers from organizing. These figures don’t even include per diem and other fees sometimes included.

“One of our researchers looked at Caney Fork’s financials,” said Bob Funk of LaborLab. “They’re doing just fine,” Funk later shared the balance sheets for September 2022 showing an 8.6% profit margin. 

 Full-time and regular part-time linemen, apprentice linemen, staking engineers, warehouse, collectors and substation employees at Caney Fork’s McMinnville, Sparta and Smithville locations will be eligible to join the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW) Local #429.

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