WASHINGTON, DC – Today, Donald Norcross (D-NJ), Judy Chu (D-CA), and Brendan Boyle (D-PA) introduced the No Tax Breaks for Union Busting Act to end the ability of corporations to deduct union busting expenses from their taxes.

Co-sponsored by more than 100 members of Congress, the legislation will ensure that American taxpayers no longer subsidize anti-union company activities that violate workers’ legally protected right to organize.

“Corporations should not be rewarded with tax breaks when they spend money to silence workers and infringe on the fundamental right of workers to organize,” said Rep. Norcross. “Every worker deserves a free and fair choice to join or form a union, and it’s time that our tax code reflects that. The No Tax Breaks for Union Busting Act will end corporate handouts for union-busting campaigns, make our tax code fairer, and give workers the level playing field they deserve. I look forward to working with my colleagues to pass this legislation into law and end subsidies to corporations who engage in anti-union and anti-worker efforts.”

More information on the bill can be found here.

"By allowing corporations to deduct union-busting expenses from their taxes, the playing field becomes much more unfair to the lone union worker,” said Rep. Boyle. "All too often we find corporations shrouding anti-union dollars under the phony guise of "business expenses" when filing taxes. This legislation will place corporate campaign spending in its proper taxation category and will work toward levelling the playing field when it comes to the relationship between employees and corporations."

Under the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA) of 1935, it is the official policy of the United States government to encourage collective bargaining and protect workers’ freedom of association.

“The right to organize is not just protected by law, it is the official policy of the U.S. government to encourage workers to exercise this right. It's invigorating to see workers across the country take advantage of that right in recent years—to demand living wages, safer work conditions, and improved benefits. However, our tax code allows bosses to claim lucrative tax breaks for spending hundreds of millions of dollars annually to disrupt pro-union action and organizing. The No Tax Breaks for Union Busting Act would not only end taxpayer subsidies for these anti-union efforts, but would give workers the fair shot they deserve to form a union,” Rep. Chu said. 

Despite the clear intent of Congress that workers have the right to organize, corporations regularly interfere in unionization efforts – including using tactics that violate the NLRA. In fact, employers are charged with violating labor laws in roughly four out of 10 organization elections, spending an estimated $340 million a year on union-busting campaigns. These expenses are currently tax deductible and bosses regularly write them off as everyday business expenses.

“For as long as our union has been fighting for our members, there have been bad-faith employers who will go to extraordinary lengths to stop workers from coming together for better pay, benefits and protections on the job,” said SMART General President Michael Coleman. “It is beyond ridiculous that corporations can deduct such union-busting activity from their taxes – disenfranchising their workers and getting a tax break in the process. SMART commends Congressman Norcross, Congressman Boyle, Congresswoman Chu and their colleagues for reintroducing the No Tax Breaks for Union Busting Act, and we urge the House and Senate to quickly send this legislation to President Biden’s desk.” 

“Supporting and passing the ‘No Tax Breaks for Union Busting Act’ is the right thing to do. Corporate union-busters and so-called labor consultants should not be lining their pockets with taxpayer money by trying to deny rights to workers paying those taxes. It’s embarrassing that legal opportunities like this to exploit the system exist in America. It’s also a deafening reminder that we must build better, stronger labor laws in this country. This bill helps achieve that. We need even more like it to create a truly democratic process for workers exercising their collective bargaining rights,” General President of the International Brotherhood of Teamsters Sean O’Brien said.

The No Tax Break for Union Busting Act would end taxpayer subsidies for corporations’ anti-union behavior by classifying corporate interference in worker organization campaigns like political speech rather than an “ordinary and necessary” business expense. Additionally, this bill would require corporations to report anti-worker interventions to the IRS and grant the Department of Treasury greater enforcement authority to hold them accountable for using company money to interfere in protected worker activities.

“Giving tax breaks for union busting adds insult to injury. Corporations spend millions to prevent workers from joining together to demand what we are due - family-supporting wages, good benefits, and reasonable work schedules. For the U.S. Government to subsidize these attempts to silence working people is unconscionable. Congress must do everything in its power to crack down on union busting and ensure that all workers who want to form a union have a chance to do so,” Communications Workers of America President Claude Cummings said.

“Simply put, the U.S. government should not be subsidizing corporate attacks on American working families. That’s why the USW supports the ‘No Tax Breaks for Union Busting Act.’ On paper, workers have the right to join unions in this country. In reality, however, company owners often spend millions on lawyers and other high-priced consultants to run union-busting campaigns, based on fear, intimidation and falsehood, to deny them their legal rights. Companies even break the law on a regular basis in their effort to deny workers the right to bargain collectively. Worse yet, these same corporations have for years been able to write off these anti-union costs as business expenses, reducing their tax burden and thereby putting a heavier burden on workers and their families. Both houses of Congress should quickly pass this bill and send it to the president for his signature. It’s time to give workers a fair chance and end the practice of our own government underwriting union busting,”USW International President Tom Conway said.

"Workers who engage in collective action and organizing drives deserve to have the chance to make their voices heard," said AFL-CIO President Liz Shuler. "As we've seen a wave of union drives across the country, we've also witnessed a wave of companies using union busting tactics to stop their workers from organizing. We should not be subsidizing intimidation and bullying tactics, and this legislation would put an end to it. Companies that engage in union busting shouldn't reap financial benefits, they should pay penalties for this anti-democratic behavior."

Common anti-worker interventions that are tax deductible include so-called “captive audience meetings,” where employers hold mandatory meetings during work hours and pressure workers against voting for unionization; hiring expensive “union avoidance” firms to lead union-busting campaigns; threatening to withhold benefits from pro-union workers; firing pro-union workers; and closing workplaces that appear to be pro-union or that have recently voted to form a union.

“This legislation is so important to stopping the public subsidizing of union-busting campaigns. Companies should not be incentivized by the tax breaks they get when they keep their employees from exercising their collective bargaining rights,” said Robert Martinez Jr., International President of the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers (IAM). “It’s truly unfair that companies can simply write-off the millions they use to try to coerce workers from having a collective voice in the workplace.” 

The bill is endorsed by the following organizations: Teamsters, AFL-CIO, United Steelworkers (USW), Communications Workers of America (CWA), United Mine Workers Association (UMWA), America Federation of State, County, and Municipal Employees (AFSCME), Alliance for Retired Americans, Sheet Metal, Air, Rail, Transportation (SMART), International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW).

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