Four years ago, Michael Alcorn worked at the first Trader Joe's store to unionize. He opposed the move but hoped for the best after the vote passed. That optimism faded quickly, he says, as union organizers installed themselves into leadership undemocratically and focused bargaining on pronoun pins, gender-affirming care, and abortion coverage—not on wages or benefits.
When Alcorn and many coworkers sought to decertify the union, the Biden-era National Labor Relations Board blocked the vote. He now works at a different store but remains bitter. "The board's job is to protect workers like me, and it failed," he wrote in a recent piece.
With the Senate's confirmation of new NLRB members a month ago, the board now has a 3-1 Republican majority. Alcorn argues their first priority should be ending the "blocking charge" loophole that let unions delay decertification elections indefinitely.
Under federal law, workers can petition for elections to form or dissolve unions. But the Biden NLRB allowed unions to file charges alleging employer misconduct—often years old—to freeze the process. As Alcorn notes, "The workers' right to a decertification election is simply taken away." The petition sits idle while the charge winds through investigation, which can take years. The union remains in place, and the question of representation is decided by everyone but the workers.
Alcorn's own case at the Hadley, Massachusetts store illustrated the problem. He and coworkers gathered 46 percent support—well above the 30 percent threshold—but the union filed charges over issues like dress code and alleged threats, many predating the original election. The NLRB halted the vote. "This is not due process," he says. "It is a trap door built into the rules to give more power to union leaders at the expense of the workers they claim to represent."
Alcorn co-signed a petition for rulemaking earlier this year asking the board to close the loophole. The fix, he says, is simple: let elections proceed and resolve charges separately, so paperwork can't substitute for a vote.
The new majority should also revisit other Biden-era policies. The old board restricted employers from holding all-hands meetings to discuss unionization, while union organizers could still reach workers at home or by phone. Alcorn argues workers should hear from both sides before voting. He also criticizes the Cemex decision, which allowed union certification even if workers voted against it when employers committed unfair labor practices during an organizing drive. "I find it difficult to accept that American workers could be organized without their vote counting at all," he said.
Workplace democracy is personal for Alcorn. He has seen how it functions—and how it fails. Union leaders should earn the right to represent workers and respect their right to remove them. The current system, he argues, tilts the field against worker choice.
Workers nationwide are waiting for a fair process. The NLRB must ensure that what happened to Alcorn and his coworkers never happens again.
Michael Alcorn is a Trader Joe's employee and a visiting fellow at the Institute for the American Worker.
