Illicating Signatures Under False Pretence Illegal?

[Orcbert]

Quick backround: The business I work for has been on the top 100 companies to work for from Forbes since the list came about. We recieve top pay in our industry and great benefits. We are (and don't want to be) a unioned company.

The other day a large group of people were outside the building aggresively coming up to people or stopping cars as we left trying to get signatures on peitions for eased restrictions on immigration. We have a large latino work force so this is something most would support.

The more savey people actually started reading the petition (which those collecting signatures didn't like) and found that what people actually were signing were a demand to unionize the place I work at. They would need a certain % of signatures from those working here and they could force a meeting with management about starting up a union.

Now it is obviously immoral and unscrupulous, but is it actually illegal? I'm not sure if anyone has insight into this.

[Tradewind]

I don't know about the legality, but I'm pretty sure this is one of those "read before you sign" things.

[Kalyyn]

Report it. Better safe than sorry. These are obviously terrible people who deserve to be punished. So yeah, see what the law can do for you.

[Deleted]

Could you have just taken those signatures and driven off?

[Orcbert]

I'm letting management work on this. The security is top notch. I was just curious if anyone knew the actual legal ramifications of what they are doing. I'm pretty sure you could just rule the signatures they gathered invalid but they could go to their homes with their personal info they put down and bug them about joining a union there. (this has been done before, not a consipiracy theory)

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Could you have just taken those signatures and driven off?

I wasn't there that day. I'm getting the story from my coworkers and managers.

[Sunseeker]

Yes it generally is. But all it will do is illegitimize the petition, though you'd probably need everyone who signed wrongly to sign a legal document attesting to the fact that they were lied to and that they are no longer in support of the petition.

[Woceip]

Unfortunately, this is a very common tactic used by unions. As TradewindNQ mentioned, it comes down to the reading before you sign. There have been instances of even shadier tactics, such as signing the bottom of a sheet where the top has been covered up by something innocent. Unions will even ask you to sign a card saying you want more information. That card is you agreeing you want them in.

Hell, there was even a ruling that union employees could apply for work at a company for the explicit purpose of convincing employees how amazing a union would be (while still drawing a paycheck from the union they work for) and not have to declare that they worked for the union as part of their work history and references, a practice known as 'salting'.

Don't get me wrong, at one point unions were absolutely necessary to prevent employees being taken advantage of to an extent I consider criminal. Today, however, they are more and more about money, something your company has and they want. Especially as more and more businesses have realized that if they treat their employees well, communicate and encourage employee engagement, the rewards are far more than the slave driver mentality.

[Halicia]

Unfortunately, this is a very common tactic used by *any organized group paid to collect signatures*

Fixed this for ya.

Same thing happened for a 'pro marriage' group collecting signatures a while back. They got paid to chill outside in parking lots and would tell senior citizens that Obama was trying to take away their social security. Needless to say, their petition had nothing to do with social security.