Trends in Union Corporate Campaigns - US Chamber of Commerce
Trends in Union Corporate Campaigns - US Chamber of Commerce
Trends in Union Corporate Campaigns - US Chamber of Commerce
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EXECUTIVE SUMMARY<br />
This brief<strong>in</strong>g book summarizes the phenomenon known as the<br />
“corporate campaign” and identifies current trends <strong>in</strong> campaign<br />
strategy and tactics. Among the pr<strong>in</strong>cipal observations and f<strong>in</strong>d<strong>in</strong>gs<br />
are the follow<strong>in</strong>g:<br />
• The corporate campaign was <strong>in</strong>vented by the New Left <strong>in</strong><br />
the 1970s, and by the 1990s was <strong>in</strong> widespread use by the labor<br />
movement. To date, unions have waged nearly 300 campaigns<br />
aga<strong>in</strong>st employers, primarily, though not exclusively,<br />
to facilitate organiz<strong>in</strong>g.<br />
• <strong>Corporate</strong> campaigns employ “power structure analysis” to<br />
identify and exploit vulnerabilities <strong>in</strong> the critical stakeholder<br />
relationships on which all companies depend. This broad<br />
strategic approach is then implemented through tactics that<br />
range from highly sophisticated f<strong>in</strong>ancial and governance<br />
<strong>in</strong>itiatives to street theater and even psychological warfare.<br />
• Typically, the role <strong>of</strong> the corporate campaign today is to force<br />
management to accede to union demands for “card check and<br />
neutrality”—a process by which the union certification procedures<br />
adm<strong>in</strong>istered by the National Labor Relations Board<br />
(NLRB) are effectively circumvented. A recent <strong>in</strong>novation here<br />
is the substitution <strong>of</strong> non-NLRB elections for card check, which<br />
has been coupled with a widen<strong>in</strong>g attack on the NLRB itself.<br />
• The use and conduct <strong>of</strong> corporate campaigns has evolved<br />
over time. Some recent trends:<br />
◆ <strong>in</strong>creas<strong>in</strong>g and highly strategic use <strong>of</strong> shareholder resolutions<br />
and proxy vot<strong>in</strong>g to pressure directors and senior management;<br />
<strong>Trends</strong> <strong>in</strong> <strong>Union</strong> <strong>Corporate</strong> <strong>Campaigns</strong><br />
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