Referred to the Subcommittee on Employer-Employee Relations.
Congressional Research Service
Official summary
Version 00 · Introduced in House · Jul 26, 2000
Democratic Rights for Union Members Act of 2000 - Amends the Labor-Management Reporting and Disclosure Act of 1959 to require a labor organization to provide information on the Act to: (1) each new member within 90 days after the member has joined the labor organization; and (2) all members periodically in a manner which the Secretary of Labor determines will promote a fuller understanding of the member's rights and judicial remedies under the Act. Directs the Secretary to: (1) investigate any written complaint of a member alleging that the organization has violated such requirement; and (2) without disclosing the identity of the complainant, bring a civil action for relief upon finding probable cause to believe that such violation has occurred and has not been remedied.Allows a trusteeship (for authorization control of a union) to be authorized only after a fair hearing either before the executive board or another body provided by the constitution and bylaws of the labor organization. Allows a temporary trusteeship to be established where such immediate action is necessary.Requires a labor organization to show by clear and convincing proof that the continuation of the trusteeship is necessary for an allowable purpose in order to prevent it, 18 months after authorization, from being presumed invalid in specified proceedings under the Act and having its discontinuance decreed. Authorizes the court, if the labor organization makes such a successful showing for continuation, to dismiss the complaint or retain jurisdiction of the cause on such conditions and for such period as it deems appropriate.Requires, upon dissolution of a trusteeship, the previously elected officers of the local union to be reinstated or a new election to be held promptly. Directs a court to supervise such an election if it has ordered it after dissolving a trusteeship.Gives all bona fide candidates for office in a labor organization the right to be provided, upon request, with a copy of the membership list.Requires elections at least once every four years, by secret ballot among members in good standing, of officers of intermediate bodies, such as general committees, system boards, joint boards or joint councils who engage in negotiation, administration, or enforcement of collective agreements, or exercise control over the finances or other major functions of local unions. Allows officers of other intermediate bodies to be elected by representatives of such members who have been elected by secret ballot.Prohibits qualifications for office in a labor organization from excluding a majority of the members.Authorizes a court to declare an election void upon a finding that a violation of election procedural requirements under the Act may have substantially understated or overstated the support of one of the candidates for office in a labor organization to the point that the democratic purposes of the election were undermined. (Replaces the current criterion that such violation may have affected the election outcome.)
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Source last updated: Mar 23, 2026. Consult Congress.gov for the current record.
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