Washington Teamsters are applauding state lawmakers who voted in favor of SB 5778, legislation that bans employers from forcing workers to attend captive audience  meetings. Captive audience meetings are a repressive practice whereby companies inundate their staff with anti-union propaganda and lies in order to intimidate them out of exercising their right to organize.

“Unions are fundamentally about economic democracy, which is why we need to make the process of organizing as democratic as possible by putting an end to this autocratic practice,” said Rick Hicks, Teamsters Western Region International Vice President and President of Teamsters Joint Council 28. “We know that when workers aren’t subject to threats, false promises, intimidation, and misinformation, they support unions. This bill goes a long way towards creating a more just process for those who seek union representation.”

“Employers are allowed to exercise their speech when it comes to union organizing. Their workers deserve those same rights,” said Paul Dascher, Secretary-Treasurer of Local 117. “We’d like to thank all of the lawmakers who sponsored this legislation – especially Senate President Pro Tempore Karen Keiser, who authored SB 5778, and Rep. Mary Fosse, who authored the House companion legislation HB 1940. We encourage Gov. Inslee to sign SB 5778 into law as expeditiously as possible.”

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