Union organizing
Unions get new members (and new income) by "organizing" groups of workers -- convincing them to bring the union into their workplace to speak for them with management.
The National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) oversees the process of union "organizing," which usually involves the following steps:
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The union targets an organization. The union then decides what groups of non-supervisory workers they want to try and organize.
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Union organizers contact targeted workers any way they can: Facebook, Twitter, email, home visits, etc. They listen to the workers' complaints and tell them the union can solve their problems.
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The union asks workers to sign a card or petition saying they want the union to represent them.
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The union may ask management to recognize the union without a vote. If management agrees, all of the targeted workers become unionized! If management refuses, the union asks the NLRB to hold an election.
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The NLRB holds a vote. Everyone in the targeted group is eligible to vote by secret ballot, whether or not they signed a card or petition.
Important: the law says unions have to follow certain procedures when they are trying to organize a group of workers. But the law does not say unions have to tell workers the truth. Instead, it's up to the workers to find out the facts.
WHAT THE VOTE MEANS:
If a majority of those who actually vote say "yes" to the union, the union wins the election. That means all of the workers in the group become represented by the union, even if they voted "no" against the union or didn't vote at all.
If the vote is tied or a majority of those who actually vote say "no" to the union, the union loses the election. That means none of the workers in the group become represented by the union and another vote involving this same group of workers can't be held for one year. But after a year, the same union or some other union can try again to organize this worker group.
Because this process is complicated and can be confusing, it's important to know THE FACTS about how it works.