Union vote postponed at San Rafael Guide Dogs for the Blind

[Omaha Steve]

http://www.mercurynews.com/breaking-news/ci_14922510

By Jennifer Upshaw Swartz
Marin Independent Journal
Posted: 04/20/2010 03:31:57 PM PDT
Updated: 04/20/2010 03:31:58 PM PDT

SAN RAFAEL — Bay Area union organizers will have to wait when it comes to their bid to organize workers at Guide Dogs for the Blind, the San Rafael-based educational center for the visually impaired.

Last month, the National Labor Relations Board indefinitely postponed an organizing vote set for March 26 among the organization's 47 instructors and others in the training department after Guide Dogs officials sought to expand the pool of those eligible to vote to 98. Guide Dogs employs 286 people, including workers at its campus in Oregon. Of those, 208 work in San Rafael.

Managers at the nonprofit organization say they are following the law, but organizers and pro-union employees say they are trying to bust a union that hasn't even been formed yet.

"We have no legal right nor would we try to stop an election," said Nancy Gardner, president and CEO of Guide Dogs. "We felt everyone impacted should have a voice.

"We would prefer to be nonunion. We have not engaged in any union-busting tactics," she said. "We are honoring the law and following the NLRB. We think we can resolve these issues without having a third party come in and it would be much more instructive."

Bill Klinke, an organizer with the Office and Professional Employees International Union Local 29, said workers "feel the employer wasn't addressing their issues. It's very frustrating. It's frustrating to the supporters. Over 70 percent signed cards. I think they should have been recognized at that point.

FULL story at link.