Lawyers Committee United Letter to Supporters

Dear LC United supporters,

Because of our unwavering commitment to transparency and integrity in this organizing process, and to clarify several recent mischaracterizations of our efforts by Kristen Clarke and the Executive Management (“Management”) of the Lawyers’ Committee, we want to offer the following statement to our supporters:

In an egregious show of bad faith Management backed out of their commitment to voluntarily recognize our union. They have again reinforced why staff need a union as they have once again broken a promise to staff. They left us with the choices of agreeing to an anonymous election on their term, or going to the conservative National Labor Relations Board. The union Organizing Committee (OC) forcefully and honestly hit back at Management, and called them on their trumpery to their faces. The OC made it clear that Management is not going to outmaneuver the union, now or during contract bargaining.

The staff of the Lawyers’ Committee came together because we believe a union will make the Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law a better place to work. A union does not preclude cooperation between the bargaining unit and Management - rather, it strengthens the voices of the talented and hardworking staff that already make the Lawyers’ Committee great. Certifying our union through card check (voluntary recognition) is the fastest step to allow the important work of improving our workplace to begin. In order to open a productive line of communication with management and move toward bargaining, we need our union recognized now.

Management claims that our delay in responding played a part in their decision to break their agreement with us. Let us be clear: building consensus with our full membership takes time, and we don't have the luxury of doing it during work hours. We value the input and consensus of our members, so we took the time to educate our membership on the process and make sure they were aware of the remaining steps towards voluntary recognition. We are proud of our process because it reflects our values and we remain eager to move ahead with card check as soon as possible, which Management already agreed to back in April, so that our union can be recognized. 

Management is also currently trying to seize the moral high ground on issues of racial equity, which is simply absurd. Staff have been raising issues of racism, transphobia, and homophobia in the workplace for years with no action from Management. In response to Management’s refusal to listen to staff concerns and take action, we, the staff of the Lawyers’ Committee, formed a union - LC United - to ensure that we have a voice, a seat at the table, and have real power to make progress and change in our workplace. Now Management is claiming that they are stepping in, in order to protect people’s rights by delaying the union process. In reality, by delaying the union process and refusing voluntary recognition, Management is denying staff our right to unionize.

This type of union-busting tactic is unbecoming of an organization that claims dedication to values of racial justice, economic justice, and civil rights. When management engages in the process with good faith, they show respect to their employees and their decision to organize. It is right-wing groups that oppose card check as part of their efforts to make it harder for employees to unionize. These groups know that the NLRB election process is anti-worker and favors employers, especially during Republican administrations. As a result, anti-union employers are able to prevent employees from achieving union recognition. It is disappointing that a leading civil rights organization has chosen to join these ranks of anti-union, anti-worker organizations.

We, the bargaining unit, have decided that unionizing is the best way forward, and already conducted a democratic process to unionize through authorization cards, of which a supermajority of staff signed. Unionizing is our legal right. We urge Management to reconsider this egregious action, respect our legal right to unionize and recognize the union now.

In solidarity,

LC United Organizing Committee