Eric Matos, an airplane technician at Lufthansa Technik’s facility at Rafael Hernandez International Airport in Aguadilla, Puerto Rico, has secured the right for himself and about 200 colleagues to vote on whether to remove the International Association of Machinists (IAM) union from their workplace. This follows a decision by the General Counsel of the National Mediation Board (NMB) in Washington, DC, which rejected IAM officials’ attempt to block the election. The vote will be conducted by mail between August 21 and October 16, 2025.
Matos is receiving free legal assistance from attorneys with the National Right to Work Foundation as he and his coworkers seek to hold a decertification election. Under NMB rules, workers can trigger such an election if at least half of those covered by the union submit a petition requesting it. Matos submitted signatures from a majority of his colleagues.
The technicians are governed by the Railway Labor Act (RLA), which covers labor relations in air and rail industries. Under this law, unions can require payment of dues or fees as a condition of employment even in places like Puerto Rico that do not have Right to Work protections. As a result, employees must remove union representation entirely if they wish to avoid mandatory dues.
“The union has only seen us as a dollar sign from the very first day and they know very well that having us intimidated and divided while feeding us misinformation is an open path for them to obtain that dollar,” said Matos.
Despite the petition supported by most technicians, IAM officials argued for blocking the vote and sought immunity from decertification efforts for one year by extending what is known as the “certification bar.” This bar typically prevents new attempts to remove a union within two years after it is established; extensions are rarely granted by federal authorities.
National Right to Work Foundation attorneys responded in May 2025 with arguments that allegations made by IAM—concerning alleged improper pay raises—had not been tested in court and therefore could not justify blocking an election. The NMB agreed with this view and denied both requests from IAM officials.
In its ruling, the NMB stated: “[B]arring extraordinary circumstances, the Board does not take action on allegations of interference until the end of an election voting period.” The decision further explained that even when interference is found after an election, remedies do not include blocking votes or extending certification bars before elections occur.
Mark Mix, President of the National Right to Work Foundation, commented: “The NMB was right to reject union bosses’ attempt to prevent Mr. Matos and his colleagues from exercising their right to vote on the IAM’s presence in their workplace.” He added: “While this case has worked out in the Lufthansa technicians’ favor, this case shows the kind of legal tactics and maneuvers that union bosses will attempt to frustrate the will of the workers they claim to ‘represent,’ just so they can collect forced union dues.”
Mix also called for broader reforms: “The Trump Administration, which is still staffing its federal labor agencies, needs to focus on eliminating barriers to worker free choice, whether those exist in policies at the NMB or at other federal labor boards, like the National Labor Relations Board.”
