The unionization plan for Hannam Chain in LA is expected to fail.
The Los Angeles branch of the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB), an independent federal agency, announced on October 13 that it opened the ballot box and counted the votes on the pending unionization of Hannam Chain’s Los Angeles branch, with 15 votes in favor and 28 votes against.
The NLRB said that under its rules, challenged ballots, which both sides claim are invalid, will not be counted, so the final results will take some time. A total of 22 ballots were challenged before the vote was counted. “The challenged ballots will not be counted until next week, when labor and management will have to come to an agreement on how to count them,” said the NLRB official who conducted the vote count.
NLRB spokesperson Kayla Blado explained the process, saying, “Once the results are finalized, both sides have five days to file objections.”
Based on the Korea Daily’s observation of the vote counting process, it appears that about half of the objections were filed by the union during the review process, meaning that even if the remaining half of the votes were counted as yes votes, they would not be enough to overturn the number of no votes.
Under NLRB rules, more than half of all votes cast must be in favor of unionization. On August 3, 65 employees participated in the unionization vote, which required 33 votes in favor of unionization, meaning that Hannam Chain LA will continue to operate without a union.
Two attorneys from the Barnes & Thornburg law firm representing Hannam Chain, including Soo Y. Park, were present at the counting, and three representatives from the union side, including Jose Hernandez, president of the California Retail & Restaurant Workers Union (CRRWU), who led the effort to unionize Hannam Chain, Alexandra Suh, treasurer and president of the Korean American Workers Alliance (KIWA), and one KIWA employee, observed the counting process.
The NLRB also made the counting process publicly available online, where officials from both sides could access and watch.
Hannam Chain Chairman Kee Whan Ha said, “We will continue to treat our employees’ feelings better,” in response to the results of the unionization vote, which were released on October 13.
In a phone interview after the votes were counted, Ha said, “I have always been like a family with Hannam Chain employees. I try to provide them with the best benefits and welfare. I always emphasize to my managers to treat employees fairly and be careful with their words,” he said, adding, “I am grateful that the voting results show that employees recognize our efforts.”
“The most important thing is to continue to make Hannam Chain a great place to work for our employees.”
Commenting on the outcome of the vote, Soo Y. Park said, “I think we are satisfied with the outcome. We still have to see the final result as there are still challenge votes to be counted, but I don’t think it will change much.”
“I think this result shows the will of the employees,” she said, “and we will proceed well in the remaining process.”
On the other hand, CRRWU President Jose Hernandez emphasized that “the company is doing everything it can to prevent us from organizing a union. Regardless of the outcome, we will continue to fight.”
Meanwhile, Hannam Chain is appealing the NLRB’s ruling on October 2 that dismissed a complaint against the California Retail Restaurant Workers Union (CRRWU) alleging fraud and intimidation.
Hannam Chain LA filed a complaint in August alleging fraud and intimidation during the voting process, but the NLRB dismissed the complaint on October 2, citing insufficient evidence.
The NLRB seized the ballot boxes after Hannam Chain’s complaint and put the vote count on hold pending the outcome of the investigation.
“If you read the ruling, it said that they dismissed the Hannam Chain’s complaint because there was evidence of cheating, but only once,” said Park. “Even if you cheat once, violation is a violation. Through the appeal, we will once again make CRRWU’s misconduct known.”
BY NICOLE CHANG [chang.nicole@koreadaily.com]
