Worker RESULTS Act

Bill Number

S. 3117

Origin Chamber

Senate

Congress

119th Congress, Session 1

Policy Area

Labor and Employment

Status

Introduced

Latest Action

2025-11-06: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions.

Last Updated

2025-11-19T15:39:39Z

AI-Generated Summary

Purpose of the Legislation

The Worker Reforming Elections for Speedy and Unimpeded Labor Talks Act (Worker RESULTS Act) aims to update rules for union elections and certification under the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA). It seeks to promote faster resolution of labor disputes, ensure employee choice through secret ballots, limit delays in elections, and allow easier challenges to unions that fail to bargain effectively, while restricting certain union agreements.

Key Provisions

• Certification and Election Bars:
• Prohibits new union elections in a workplace until a collective bargaining agreement (CBA) is in place after a union wins certification.
• If the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) finds a newly certified union is not bargaining in good faith (meaning negotiating sincerely toward an agreement), it triggers a 90-day "decertification window" starting 60 days after the finding, during which employees can petition to remove the union. The NLRB must notify employees at least 45 days before this window opens.
• After the first CBA takes effect, elections can only occur when no CBA is active or during specific 90-day "window periods" every two years (extended to 180 days before and 90 days before expiration for health care employers).

• Secret Ballot Requirement:
• Mandates that unions be selected only through secret ballot elections overseen by the NLRB, replacing any prior methods like card-check authorization (where workers sign cards to designate a union without a full vote).

• Quorum for Certification:
• A union can only be certified if it wins a majority of votes in a secret ballot election where at least two-thirds of all employees in the bargaining unit (the group of workers covered) participate.

• Removal of Delays and Bars:
• Eliminates the "settlement bar," preventing the NLRB from delaying elections due to settlements of unfair labor practice charges (complaints about illegal employer or union actions during organizing).
• Limits NLRB authority to dismiss or restrict election petitions only in specific cases outlined in the law.
• Ends the "successor bar," allowing elections in workplaces acquired by a new employer without delay based on the prior owner's union contract.

• Handling of Unfair Labor Practice Charges (Blocking Charges):
• Parties filing charges to block an election must submit a detailed "offer of proof" (including witness names and testimony summaries) to the NLRB regional director, without sharing it with opponents.
• Ballots are generally opened and counted promptly after voting, even if charges are pending.
• For specific serious charges (e.g., threats to workers or employer domination of a union), ballots are impounded (held uncounted) for up to 60 days; if no complaint is issued, they are counted. Certification waits for final resolution of the charge.
• The NLRB cannot dismiss an election petition based on a charge without a formal evidentiary hearing (a trial-like process) to determine if the charge has merit.

• No-Raid Agreements Banned:
• Makes it an unfair labor practice for unions to enter "no-raid" agreements, where one union agrees not to organize or represent workers already covered by another union.

• Protected Speech:
• Allows employers, unions, or individuals to inform workers about their new rights under these rules without it being considered an unfair labor practice (illegal interference).

Significant Changes to Existing Law

• Stricter Election Standards: Introduces mandatory secret ballots and a two-thirds quorum requirement, replacing looser majority rules and non-vote certification methods, making it harder for unions to gain or keep status.
• Reduced Barriers to Decertification: Creates new windows for challenging unions during early bargaining or contract cycles, contrasting with prior laws that barred challenges during active contracts for up to three years.
• Limits on NLRB Discretion: Removes or narrows several NLRB doctrines (informal rules) like blocking charges, settlement bars, and successor bars, which previously allowed more delays; now requires evidence and hearings for dismissals.
• Union Restrictions: Newly prohibits no-raid pacts, expanding unfair labor practice rules that previously focused more on employer actions.

Potential Impacts

• On Government Agencies: The NLRB will face stricter limits on delaying or dismissing petitions, potentially increasing its workload for hearings and notifications, but reducing administrative discretion in election timing.
• On Citizens (Employees): Workers gain clearer paths to vote secretly, decertify unresponsive unions, and receive notices about their rights, but higher quorum and bars may make initial unionization harder, affecting job protections and wages tied to collective bargaining.
• On Employers: Businesses benefit from faster elections, easier union challenges, and no delays from acquisitions or settlements, potentially lowering organizing success rates and bargaining leverage for unions.
• On International Relations: Minimal direct impact, though changes could influence U.S. trade negotiations involving labor standards by altering domestic union strength.

Main Stakeholders Affected

• Employees: Directly impacted as voters in elections; provisions empower them to challenge unions more easily but raise hurdles for forming them.
• Employers: Gain tools to resist or end union representation, including during business changes like acquisitions.
• Labor Unions: Face increased difficulty in certification, maintenance, and expansion due to election bars, quorum rules, and bans on no-raid deals.
• National Labor Relations Board (NLRB): Must enforce new processes, handle more formal hearings, and provide employee notices, shifting from broader interpretive authority.

Notable Legal, Constitutional, or Political Implications

• Legal Implications: Reinforces secret ballots as a core democratic process in labor law, potentially reducing disputes over authorization methods but inviting lawsuits over NLRB determinations of "good faith" bargaining (a fact-based assessment of negotiation efforts).
• Constitutional Implications: Aligns with First Amendment protections for free speech by shielding information about worker rights; however, higher quorum and decertification windows could raise questions about equal protection or associational rights if seen as unduly burdening union formation (though likely upheld as regulatory).
• Political Implications: Shifts balance toward employer interests by curbing union power, reflecting debates on worker choice versus collective rights; may polarize labor policy, with supporters viewing it as pro-democracy and critics as anti-union.

This summary was generated by AI and may contain inaccuracies. Refer to the official source document for the authoritative text.

Sponsor

Sen. Cassidy, Bill [R-LA]

Cosponsors (1)

Sen. Tuberville, Tommy [R-AL]

Recent Actions

• 2025-11-06: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions.
• 2025-11-06: Introduced in Senate

Bill Versions

• Worker Reforming Elections for Speedy and Unimpeded Labor Talks Act — issued 2025-11-06 — PDF (11 pages)