ANALYSIS: Unions Had Momentum at NLRB—Then Came Coronavirus

Unions had a head of steam going on the organizing front before the National Labor Relations Board announced March 19 that it would suspend all election activities until at least April 1 due to the coronavirus pandemic.

NLRB data show that unions filed 411 petitions for representation elections through March 14. In the same time period of 2019, the board received only 324 representation petitions. That’s quite a turnaround in an arena where union organizing activity has steadily fallen year after year.

In fact, those 411 union petitions signify labor’s fastest start in five years, according to Bloomberg Law’s ...