Staff Form Union at Tompkins Community Action & File for NLRB Election

Staff at Tompkins Community Action (TCA) have successfully completed a major milestone toward official recognition of their union which will represent all staff for the purposes of collective bargaining with management. On November 16th a petition was filed with the National Labor Relations Board in Buffalo asking for an NLRB conducted election. This petition was filed with support from an overwhelming majority of staff at the agency.

The election will be conducted at 2 TCA sites on Thursday, January 3rd, from 6 a.m. to 9 a.m. and then from 3 p.m. to 6 p.m. All non-supervisory staff are encouraged to vote in this election.

“This is about dignity, respect and trust.” said Tompkins Community Reaction (TCR) organizing committee member Gayle Alderman. TCR organizers consistently express that the agency as a whole will be strengthened by staff having the ability to bargain collectively.

The organizing committee has chosen to adhere to the guidelines laid out in the National Labor Relations Act of 1935. This law ensures that union elections are free of threats or coercion on either side and are supervised and certified by a neutral and independent federal agency, the NLRB.