‘Virtual Leafleting’ Used in Dispute

Pioneering a tactic it calls “virtual leafleting,” a labor coalition has placed banner ads that appear on computer screens when potential customers search for AHL Services Inc., a company involved in a labor dispute at Los Angeles International Airport. The ads, which will run for three months at a cost of $9,000, provide a link to a union-supported Web site that details the group’s months-long effort at LAX. The Service Employees International Union, Local 1877, in conjunction with the AFL-CIO, has been seeking to organize about 900 baggage handlers and screeners employed by Argenbright Security, a subsidiary of Atlanta-based AHL Services. In September, the coalition staged an unofficial election at the airport, in which a large majority of workers who voted favored the union. However, Argenbright has not recognized the results, and has insisted on a federally supervised election. Labor activists claim the company is using the lengthy federal process to delay a vote. The ads, purchased through Yahoo, appear on the screen during a search using keywords that would lead a user to AHL Services’ home page, or to a marketing subsidiary, Gage Marketing Support Services. Gage provides outsourcing services for e-commerce. Union officials said visits to the campaign’s Web site grew from 20 a week to 300 in the week since the ad began. However, AHL spokeswoman Celeste Bottorff said the ads, which began appearing a week ago, have had no impact. “We haven’t had any client comment on it, nor has it made a bit of difference,” she said.