We just went through the same process here at Shedd Aquarium.  The
International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers were invited in by a
staff member and therefore were legally entitled to put the matter to a
vote.

The institution spent quite a bit of time on this.  There were seminars
offered about unions and the law, and all employees were invited to
attend.  The president met with that department and worked with managers
throughout the building on keeping as much information out as possible.


The end result was that the union withdrew its petition for the vote
when it was apparent this would not succeed (if the vote had failed they
could not try to organize for a set period of time - without a vote
their options were still open).

I hear another Chicago museum is facing a similar challenge.  Brookfield
Zoo has been unionized for around 20 years now.  When one union is
approved there is quite a bit of pressure for other groups within the
institution to unionize as well.

Are unions a good thing or a bad thing?  I honestly don't know.  I know
there were some serious concerns among the engineers, electricians and
the like here that prompted them to turn to a union.  They have since
negotiated (apparently successfully) with the administration here after
the threat to unionize was gone.  Would they have gotten that attention
if they had not attempted to unionize?  Perhaps not (and probably not as
soon).  Would they have lost quite a bit of individual and collective
autonomy if the unionization attempt had succeeded?  Surely.

An interesting parallel is the current national legislative effort to
reform HMOs.  One of the proponents of the version that would allow
individuals to sue HMOs said it was not the suits themselves that were
important, but the threat that suits might occur that would push HMOs
towards better behavior and responsive service.

Linda Wilson
Visitor Studies & Evaluation
Shedd Aquarium, Chicago IL 60605
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