AV protest in a union suit

From ANIMAL PEOPLE, November 1997:

BOSTON––New England AntiVivisection
staff, upset by the resignations
due to alleged stress of five colleagues since
mid-April, recently petitioned the National
Labor Relations Board stating their wish to
form a union, which requires the stated
interest of 30% of the work force; obtained
authorization to vote on whether to unionize;
voted to proceed, despite reported opposition
from the NEAVS board, and are now
the first unionized staff in animal protection
advocacy, under the title Workers for
Animal Rights. Electing Karl Gossot shop
steward, the union was at deadline drafting
a list of issues to be discussed in negotiating
a collective contract.

Gossot, claiming the board unfairly
denied him a pay raise that his supervisor
recommended, has filed a grievance against
NEAVS with the NLRB.
NEAVS has been under joint
direction of board factions associated with
People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals
and the Fund for Animals since 1988. The
two factions have fought over control of
NEAVS since mid-1996.
Both PETA and the Fund could be
vulnerable to unionization, having large
staffs and low wage scales, with few fringe
benefits. Also vulnerable might be Friends
of Animals, recently hit with a labor relations
complaint filed by the District of
Columbia Department of Human Rights and
Minority Business Development on behalf of
former special investigator Carroll Cox.