Forming a union at a non-union workplace

I want to form a union at a non-union workplace

The National Labor Relations Act (NLRA) protects the right of employees to form or join a union or refrain from doing so. To protect this right, the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) conducts secret-ballot elections among employees to determine whether they wish to be represented by a union. If a union receives a majority of the votes cast in an election, it is certified as the employees’ bargaining representative and must be recognized by the employer as the exclusive bargaining agent for the employees in the relevant workgroup. Failure to bargain with the union at this point is an unfair labor practice.

To start the process, you must file an election petition with your local NLRB office. Along with the petition, you will need to show that at least 30% of the employees support your election petition, which is usually done with authorization cards or a petition signed by your coworkers. An NLRB agent will then make sure that an election in your particular workgroup is appropriate and take steps to set the time, date, and place of a secret-ballot election. Elections may be in-person, by mail, or a combination of both. If the union receives a majority of the votes cast at the election, the NLRB will certify the union as your exclusive collective-bargaining representative.

Step-by-Step Guide to Forming a Union

Workers seeking to form a union at their workplace should talk to their co-workers to build support about issues they are facing. Often workers do this through forming an organizing committee. Workers can contact an established union for support and guidance or they may seek to organize their own independent union.

A group of workers seeking to organize a union should gather union authorization cards/petitions from their co-workers to show support for forming a union. Union authorization cards are documents that workers sign expressing their support for union representation.

Once organizers collect signed cards or petitions from their co-workers, there are generally two paths to follow to form a union:

Majority signup / Voluntary recognition

  1. Contact a union organizer or start your own union

  2. Have a majority of your co-workers sign union authorization cards

  3. Ask your employer for voluntary recognition

  4. If your employer recognizes the union, you can begin bargaining

  5. If your employer refuses to recognize the union

    You can file a petition for an election with the NLRB or you may be able to strike for recognition.

NLRB Election

  1. If your employer refuses to recognize the union

    You can file a petition for an election with the NLRB or you may be able to strike for recognition.

  2. Have at least 30% of co-workers sign union authorization cards

  3. File a petition for a union election with the NLRB

  4. If the union wins 50% + 1 of votes cast

    Your employer must bargain in good faith over working conditions.

Contact Your NLRB Regional Office for More Info

Additional Resources

Questions? We’re here to help

The National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) is a federal agency that protects your right to join together with other employees to improve your wages and working conditions, with or without the help of a union. For assistance, please call:

1-844-762-NLRB (1-844-762-6572)

Spanish assistance is available.

Callers who are deaf or hard of hearing who wish to speak to an NLRB representative should send an email to relay.service@nlrb.gov. An NLRB representative will email the requestor with instructions on how to schedule a relay service call.

In addition to NLRB-conducted elections, federal law provides employees a second path to choose a representative. You may persuade an employer to voluntarily recognize a union after showing majority support by signed authorization cards or other means. These agreements are made outside the NLRB process. However, after voluntary recognition, the employer and/or the union may notify the NLRB Regional Office that voluntary recognition has been granted.

Need more information?

The elaws (Employment Laws Assistance for Workers and Small Businesses) Advisors are a set of online tools developed by the U.S. Department of Labor to help employees and employers understand their rights and responsibilities under federal employment laws.