Breakaway CUNA Mutual Employees Set BackIn Union Bid

MADISON, Wis. - (02/09/06) -- Federal authorities have notified agroup of CUNA Mutual employees they will not sanction their effortto form their own separate bargaining unit within the company'smain employees union, the Office and Professional Employees Union,local 93. Jean Harrelson, a spokesman for the breakaway group, saidthey have appealed the ruling to the National Labor RelationsBoard, putting the rare union separation bid in limbo. What wereally don't know is whether the NLRB will consider us'professionals', Harrelson told The Credit Union Journal, of thegroup of Information Technology workers seeking separate statusfrom the union's main bargaining unit. Harrelson said there isstill interest in forming the separate unit but some of theinterest has waned in the wake of recent CUNA Mutual lay-offs whichhave raised questions of the efficacy of the union. I don't know ifthere's any value in it any more, she said.