3 Discussions and 2 weekly summary

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Learning Outcomes

Reflect upon reasons that employees join unions
Describe the process by which unions organize employees and gain recognition as their bargaining agent
Outline the challenges faced by HR managers when union representation is voted into a company
Discuss the bargaining process and the bargaining goals and strategies of a union and an employer
Describe a typical union grievance procedure and explain the basis for arbitration awards

Labor Relations Process

Workers desire collective representation
Union begins its organizing campaign
National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) representation process begins
NLRB: Agency responsible for administering and enforcing the Wagner Act
Collective negotiations lead to a contract
Contract is administered

Figure 14.1 - The Labor Relations Process

Why Employees Unionize

Union shop: Provision of the labor agreement that requires employees to join the union as a requirement for their employment
Primary reasons
Economic needs - Dissatisfaction with wages, benefits, and working conditions
Dissatisfaction with management - Managerial practices regarding promotion, transfer, shift assignment, or other job-related policies are administered in an unfair or biased manner

Why Employees Unionize

Social and leadership concerns - Employees whose needs for recognition and social affiliation are being frustrated
Union steward: Employee who as a non paid union official represents the interests of members in their relations with management

Union Avoidance Practices

Pay
Promote more employees from within
Conduct cultural audits
Offer job rotations and training programs
Share information with employees
Have desirable working conditions

Organizing Steps

Employee/union contact
Employees and union officials meet up to explore the possibility of unionization
Initial organizational meeting
To identify employees who can help the organizer direct the campaign
To establish communication chains that reach all employees

Organizing Steps

Formation of in-house organizing committee
Authorization card: Statement signed by an employee authorizing a union to act as a representative of the employee for purposes of collective bargaining
Election petition and voting preparation
Organizer seeks a government-sponsored election filing representation petition with the NLRB
Contract negotiations
Represent struggle between the union and employer

Aggressive Organizing Tactics

Political involvement
Neutrality agreements
Organizer training
Corporate campaigns
Information technology

Employer Tactics Opposing Unionization

Stressing favorable employer-employee relationship experienced without a union
Emphasize current advantages in wages, benefits, or working conditions the employees enjoy
Emphasize unfavorable aspects of unionism
Strikes, payment of union dues, and special assessments
Initiate legal action when union members and leaders engage in unfair labor practices

How Employees Become Unionized

Bargaining unit: Group of two or more employees who share common employment interests and conditions and may reasonably be grouped together for purposes of collective bargaining
In disputes, the NLRB determines appropriate bargaining unit on the basis of a similarity of interests among employees within the unit

NLRB Representation Election

Pre-election hearing
Held prior to the election with the employer and union seeking to represent the employees
Important issues
Verification of the authorization cards
NLRB’s jurisdiction to hold the election
Determination of the bargaining unit
Date of the election and the voting choice(s) to appear on the ballot

NLRB Representation Election

If union wins the majority of votes in the election
NLRB certifies the union as the exclusive bargaining unit representative with which the employer must bargain
Exclusive representation: Legal right and responsibility of the union to represent all bargaining unit members equally, regardless of whether employees join the union or not

Types of Unions

Craft unions: Represent skilled craft workers
Industrial unions: Represent all workers employed along industry lines
Employee associations: Represent various groups of professional and white-collar employees in labor-management relations

Public Unions

Differences between public and private sector collective bargaining
No national boards governing public sector labor relations
Public sector collective bargaining falls within the separate jurisdiction of each state
Diversity exists among the various state laws

Impact of Unionization on Managers

Wages and benefits are higher in union organizations compared to similar nonunion organizations
Unions have a significant effect on the prerogatives exercised by management in making decisions about employees
Unionization restricts the freedom of management to formulate HR policy unilaterally and challenges the authority of supervisors

Bargaining Process

Collective bargaining process: Negotiating a labor agreement, including the use of economic pressures by both parties
Preparing for negotiations
Includes assembling data to support bargaining proposals and forming the bargaining team
Gathering bargaining data
Economic data are gathered in the areas of wages and benefits

Bargaining Process

Internal data relating to grievances, disciplinary actions, transfers, promotions, overtime, and former arbitration awards are useful in formulating and supporting the employer’s bargaining position
Employer’s bargaining strategies and tactics
Union proposals and management responses to them
Listing of management demands, limits of concessions, and anticipated union responses
Development of a database to support management bargaining proposals and to counteract union demands
Contingency operating plan should employees strike

Bargaining Process

Negotiating the labor agreement
Bargaining zone: Area in which the union and the employer are willing to concede when bargaining
Good faith bargaining
Requires meetings to be held at reasonable times and places to discuss employment conditions
Requires that the proposals submitted by each party be realistic
Both parties must sign the written document containing the agreement reached through negotiations

Bargaining Process

Categories
Mandatory subject
Permissive subjects
Illegal subjects
Interest-based bargaining
Problem-solving bargaining based on a win-win philosophy and the development of a positive long-term relationship

Figure 14.2 - Bargaining Zone and Negotiation Influences

Management and Union Power in Collective Bargaining

Bargaining power: Power of labor and management to achieve their goals through economic, social, or political influence
Union bargaining power
Exercised by striking, picketing, or boycotting the employer’s products or services

Management and Union Power in Collective Bargaining

Management bargaining power
Hiring permanent replacement workers
Continuing operations staffed by management
Locking out employees
Resolving bargaining deadlocks
Unions and employers uses mediation and arbitration to resolve their bargaining deadlocks
Mediation - Voluntary process that relies on the communication and persuasive skills of a mediator
Arbitrator: Third-party neutral who resolves a labor dispute by issuing a final decision in disagreement

Labor Agreement

Formal binding document listing the terms, conditions, and rules under which employees and managers agree to operate
Issue of management rights
Management rights clause - Management’s authority is supreme in all matters except
Ones expressly conceded in the collective agreement
Areas where its authority is restricted by law

Labor Agreement

Union security agreements: Where an employer and the union agree on the extent to which the union may compel employees to join the union and how the dues will be collected
Union shop - Provides that any employee who is not a union member upon employment must join the union within thirty days or be terminated
Agency shop - Provides for voluntary membership

Figure 14.3 - Collective Bargaining Process

Administration of the Labor Agreement

Bulk of labor relations activity comes from daily administration of the agreement
No agreement could possibly anticipate all the forms that dispute takes
On signing the agreement, each side interprets ambiguous clauses to its own advantage
Differences are traditionally resolved through the grievance procedure

Negotiated Grievance Procedures

Grievance procedure: Formal procedure that provides for the union to represent members and nonmembers in processing a grievance
Grievance mediation
Way to resolve employee grievances
Listed as a formal step in the grievance procedure preceding arbitration

Figure 14.4 - Five-Step Grievance Procedure

Grievance Arbitration

Rights arbitration
Arbitration over interpretation of the meaning of contract terms or employee work grievances
Fair representation doctrine
Unions have a legal obligation to provide assistance to both members and nonmembers in labor relations matters
Submission agreement
Statement of the problem to be resolved

Arbitration Award

Formal written document given to both sides
Parts
Submission agreement
Facts of the case
Positions of the parties
Opinion of the arbitrator
Decision rendered

Factors Used in Deciding Cases

Wording of the labor agreement
Submission agreement as presented to the arbitrator
Testimony and evidence offered during the hearing
Arbitration criteria against which cases are judged

Contemporary Challenges to
Labor Organizations

Reasons for decrease in union membership
Shift from traditional unionized industries to high technology industries
Growth in the employment of part-time and temporary workers
Growth in small businesses, in which unionization is more costly and difficult to perform
Globalization of the workforce particularly among low wage employers

Contemporary Challenges to
Labor Organizations

Globalization and technological change
Offshoring: Work that was previously carried out in one country is moved to another country
Employers need to pay more attention to the relevant stakeholders such as unions, employees and communities in which they operate
Job loss in America is not due to offshoring, but rather due to technological changes