When working men and women are free to decide whether to join a union, it helps the economy, improves business and promotes democracy, witnesses testified today before the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB).

Kimberly Freeman Brown, executive director of American Rights at Work, told the board’s hearing on proposed changes in the way union representation elections are conducted that unions help the economy.

When workers do choose to form a union, it makes the workplace safer and more productive. At a time when many everyday American are struggling to get by, any measure that gives workers a real chance to protect their safety and economic interests and have a voice on how best to perform their jobs can’t come soon enough.

Dean Baker, co-director of the Center for Economic and Policy Research, backed up Brown’s view, saying the main reason we’re in an economic downturn is that we don’t have enough spending income. Because there is plenty of evidence that union membership raises incomes, it would be good for the economy to not have unnecessary delays in allowing workers join unions.

A union also is good for business, said Brian Bixby, a dealer at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas, and a member of Transport Workers Local 721. Even though management tried everything in the book to prevent a union win at his casino, workers voted for the union.

When the dealers joined the union, their jobs became less stressful and that benefits the casino, he said. Dealing is a stressful job and having a voice makes the job less stressful, he added. Being more relaxed allows the dealers to better communicate with the customer who would be more likely to return to the casino the next time. People become attached to dealers, and having a good experience will encourage them to come back to the casinos, he said.

Baker, Bixby and Brown were among the witnesses on the last day of the NLRB’s two-day hearing.

Not only is a better union election process good for the economy, it’s a civil rights issue, said Lexer Quamie of the Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights (LCCR). She told NLRB members that the ability of workers to have full participation in the process of joining a union is an important right of a democratic society.

Yet employers are still intent on denying workers their rights. Sarita Gupta, executive director of Jobs with Justice (JwJ), said in many cases, workers’ desire for a union is so stymied by delays and stalling tactics that employees never get to vote. Employers exploit these delays to intimidate workers, she said.

An extra couple of weeks or three or four may not seem like much to a casual observer, but for a worker who is going through the daily captive audience meetings, one on ones and other anti-union process, it’s really intense and tends to intimidate workers from exercising their right to vote on whether to form a union.

Cornell University professor Kate Bronfenbrenner delivered the final word at the hearing, telling the board that employers routinely lay out a gauntlet of threats, interrogation, surveillance, bribes and promises to thwart workers’ desire for a union. She said her research shows that employers have more than enough time before an election petition is filed to communicate with their employees and the board’s proposed changes are long overdue.