What Your Vote Means Under the RLA

 By: The Committee for Change

As part of our goal to make the election process as clear as possible, here is information on how votes are tallied in a Railway Labor Act election, as provided to us by legal counsel specializing in union elections.

In a National Mediation Board-run election under the Railway Labor Act, a majority (50% plus 1) of eligible voters must vote for representation for there to be a representative certified. A "vote for representation" means a vote for any labor organization or individual, and it does not matter whether the organization or individual receiving the vote is actually on the ballot.

So long as a majority of eligible voters cast votes for representation, then the labor organization or individual that receives the majority of the votes cast becomes the representative. 

For example, if there are 100 eligible voters, then 51 of those voters must cast votes for representation. This could be 20 votes for Union A, 19 votes for Union B, and 12 votes for Union C. In that scenario, Union A with the majority of the votes cast for representation would be certified by the NMB.

The bottom line is that we all must vote in the upcoming election! We are all working hard to contact all active and furloughed mechanics so we can secure our future by making sure everyone is informed.