FAQS
What will my ballot look like?
For Attorneys, you will receive a ballot with two questions:
1. “Do you wish to be included with nonprofessional employees in a unit for the purposes of collective bargaining?”
2. “Do you wish to be represented for purposes of collective bargaining by United Auto Workers, AFL-CIO, Local 2325?” The choices on the ballot will be "Yes" or "No".
Please vote YES on both questions by marking an “x” in the yes box
For Non-Attorneys, you will receive a ballot with one question:
“Do you wish to be represented for purposes of collective bargaining by United Auto Workers, AFL-CIO, Local 2325?” The choices on the ballot will be "Yes" or "No".
Again, please vote YES by marking an “x” in the yes box
What does it mean to belong to a union? what is collective bargaining?
Without a union, workers have little power over their pay and working conditions. Employers do not have to bargain with individual workers and can change pay and other working terms or fire workers at will.
Collective bargaining is a process, recognized and protected by federal law, that equalizes the power relationship between employees and their employer.
When workers join together to collectively bargain they empower themselves and level the playing field with their employer. All workers have the legal and human right to join a union. With a union, employees have a legal right to bargain with their employer and to have the resulting agreement placed in an enforceable contract.
Who can be in a union?
In a legal services office, lawyers, social workers, administrative staff, and organizers are eligible to be in a union together: a “wall-to-wall” union. So far our union includes paralegals, coordinating paralegals, senior paralegals, staff attorneys, coordinating staff attorneys, senior staff attorneys, and fellows. This may expand, but supervisors, directors, and other managers cannot be members.
Are fellows eligible to be part of the union?
Yes.
How is NYLAG management going to react to our unionization effort when we go public?
There is no way to know how NYLAG management is going to react until we actually “come out” about our efforts to unionize. However, we anticipate some push back. Though illegal, management may even engage in “union-busting” activities. This means that they may try to pick off individuals to reduce the amount of support for the union. They may offer union members nominal managerial roles to make them no longer eligible for union membership, for instance. They may tell us that having a union will ruin our “family” work environment.
The thing for all of us to keep in mind is that we are not trying to cause trouble or “rabble-rouse.” Our goal is the same as the goal of management: we want to provide the highest quality legal representation possible to our clients. By approaching the negotiation process not as something antagonistic, but something designed to fine tune NYLAG’s internal policies for the benefit of our clients, management will have no choice but to take us seriously.
Can I get in trouble at work for union activity?
No. Collective action is protected under federal labor laws. All NYLAG employees have a legal right to join a union, talk to co-workers about joining a union, pass out union information and sign up co-workers for a union, and join with coworkers to seek better workplace conditions.
It is against the law for an employer to interfere with, restrain, or coerce workers exercising their collective bargaining rights, such as by questioning them about their support for the union, using threats or promises to discourage support for the union, or disciplining or firing workers for joining or supporting the union. It is also against the law for an employer to refuse to bargain with the union chosen by its employees.
Will having a union negatively impact my relationship with my manager?
Your relationship with your manager is yours alone. If you have a strong relationship with your manager, participating in collective bargaining should have no effect on that.
By signing a Collective Bargaining Agreement, haven’t we tied our hands? What if something comes up and we want to make a change?
The fact is, our hands are tied now. We do not have the power to make changes to our working conditions, nor do we have the power to bring about new policies and procedures that benefit our clients. The contract can always be renegotiated, and our contract can be as flexible as we want it to be. If new issues arise, like changes in funding or new contracts from the City, Management is required to negotiate with us.
But what if I like my job?
There is no reason that should change. A unionized workplace is not necessarily a contentious one. Even in the healthiest and most cooperative work environments, unions provide their members with training, salary, and employment protections and guarantees that help them to grow as employees and provide the best services possible for their clients.
Our goal is the same as the goal of management: we want to provide the highest quality legal representation possible to our clients. We plan to approach the negotiation process not as something antagonistic, but something designed to fine tune NYLAG’s internal policies for the benefit of our clients and ourselves. Your job satisfaction should only improve.
If NYLAG unionizes and becomes part of a national union (the UAW), does that mean that the national union gets to dictate our negotiations?
No! Being part of a national union gives us the benefit of their experience, expertise, and resources, but we—and only we!—get to determine what we stand for and what kind of contract to negotiate. The only required term is the membership dues.
Will there be membership dues?
Dues for union membership will be 1.44% of our annual salaries. Our plan is to make sure that any salary increase that we negotiate as a part of our contract covers that amount so that no one loses any part of their salary by becoming a member of our union. Dues are used merely to cover the cost of having a strong union, including paying for this website, legal fees, staffing, equipment, and supplies.