Vermont Labor Relations Board Upholds Right of Unions to Expel Union Officers for Rival Organizing Activity

The Vermont Labor Relations Board has dismissed a charge alleging that the Vermont State Employees Association committed an unfair labor practice by expelling from union office a member who was involved in a rival organizing campaign. In a case of first impression, the VLRB adopted the position held by the National Labor Relations Board that the Labor Board may not interfere in a union's internal affairs unless the union's actions "affect a member's employment status and relationship as an employee with his employer" or "impair any policy embedded in" State labor law.

The case arose when Michael Davidson, a VSEA union office holder, became involved in a petition to decertify the Union in favor of a rival labor organization. Acting pursuant to the Union's Articles of Association, which state that a member's offices automatically become vacated if the individual becomes a member of a rival labor organization, VSEA President Shelley Martin notified Davidson of her intent to notify the Board of Trustees that his positions had become vacant. Davidson argued that he had not become a "member" of the other union but otherwise failed to deny his involvement in the decertification activity. He was thus automatically expelled from office.

Davidson filed a ULP charge alleging that the Union interfered with his protected right to file representation petitions with the VLRB and retaliated against him for doing so. (Davidson also alleged that the VSEA retaliated against him for filing another ULP charge, but the Board found no evidence to support that allegation.) Ultimately, the VLRB held that the VSEA had every right to enforce its non-discriminatory and properly adopted rule, which reflects a legitimate union interest in removing from office those who would actively work against the interests of the Union.