+ What is a union authorization card?

A union authorization card is a legal and binding document that, when signed, gives the union the right to speak and bargain for you with Genesis regarding your wages, hours, benefits and other terms and conditions of employment. If the union gets enough signed authorization cards, it can demand that Genesis recognize it as your representative without a secret ballot election.

+ What should you know about union authorization cards and online solicitation?

• Union organizers are not required to explain the law to you. They don't even have to tell you that what they want you to sign is a legal document.

• Despite what a union salesperson or someone else may tell you, signing an authorization card is not just a way to get more information sent to you.

• You have the right to refuse to sign a card or in any way support a union.

• Union organizers have been known to make misrepresentations, false statements, empty promises and even threats to get workers to sign cards. Threats or coercion from anyone attempting to get cards signed are unlawful.

• Organizers have also been known to pressure and harass workers at home, at work, on their personal telephones and via text and email messages to get them to support hiring the union.

• Your signature on this legal and binding document is final. If you change your mind, the union organizer is under no obligation to return the union authorization card.

+ What could a union authorization card look like?

While a union authorization card may appear to be pretty simple at first glance, there is much more to it when you explore further. Take a look below at what this sample card really is all about.



1. Union organizers may say that signing a card is to get you more information or the opportunity for an election. But look closely, nowhere on the card does it say that. By signing, as the card states, you are giving the union the right to represent you and speak for you. Although they probably won't tell you, the union might also try to use the cards to become your representative without a secret ballot election.

2. Your signature, handwritten or electronic, on this legal and binding document basically commits you to things you may not fully be aware of. If you change your mind and want the card back, which happens in many cases, the union organizer is under no obligation to return the card. You are basically signing a blank check to the union to use as they please without any guarantee of the outcome.

3. A signed authorization card is typically valid for one (1) year from the date signed. That means the union can decide when and how they will use the card for quite a while. For instance, if they don't get the support they initially hoped for, they could reuse the card months later without asking you if you have changed your mind or still support the union.

4. By obtaining your personal contact information on the card, a union organizer would be able to communicate with you while you're at home. It might be literature in the mail, emails, or bothersome phone calls. It might be annoying text messages at varying times or mass email distributions. Or, it might be union supporters or organizers coming to your home in person, trying to get information about Genesis, or pressuring you to give them names and addresses of your fellow associates they could visit. These are common union tactics.

5. The union may ask for your job classification and rates of pay so the organizer can get a picture of how much Genesis pays. No matter how much Genesis pays associates, you can bet the organizer will promise more! Remember, the Union cannot guarantee higher wages. If they make this promise, ask for it in writing.

+ Do unions use other forms of solicitation to get evidence of associate support?

• Unions can gather evidence of support using other forms of documents, such as petitions or even sign-in sheets.

• Another common practice is for the union to try to get associates to register support of content they see online or that they receive via social media.

• The National Labor Relations Board has said that an associate's electronic signature is just as binding as an actual signature, and can be obtained by associates simply clicking "agree" or "submit" in response to something they've seen online.

+ What happens if you sign a union card or petition?

Signing a union authorization care or petition (whether in-person or virtually) is the first step toward unionization. Right now, your signed authorization card or petition would be added to any other signed cards or petitions, and if the union gets enough signatures on a petition or signed cards, it could demand Genesis recognize it as the bargaining agent for all the associates in a certain unit or units. Under this scenario, you could become unionized without a secret ballot election. This means that signing a union authorization card is not just about getting more information—it can lead to the union representing you and your co-workers in collective bargaining even without a secret ballot election.

If the company declines to recognize the union -- or if at least 30% of the associates in the bargaining unit have signed cards -- the union can file a petition for representation with the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB). A secret ballot election would be held allowing associates to vote on whether or not they want to be represented by the union. If there is a vote, you can vote against having a union even if you signed an authorization card. If more than 50% of associates in the targeted bargaining unit sign authorization cards, the union can demand that Genesis recognize it as the associates’ representative without a secret ballot election.