Chapter 9 collective bargaining and labour relations

Question 1

Role of Unions and labour relations

Answer 1

Unions:
Organizations formed for the purpose of representing their members’ interests and resolving conflicts with employers

Labour relations:
Emphasizes skills that managers and union leaders can use to cultivate effective labour-management cooperation, minimize costly forms of conflicts (e.g. strikes), and seek win-win solutions to disagreements

Question 2

Labour relations decisions : 3 levels

Answer 2

Labour relations strategy
- Management—how to work with unions or develop (or maintain)
non-union operations

Negotiating collective agreements
- Decisions about pay structure, job security, work rules, workplace safety, and other issues

Administering collective agreements
- Day-to-day activities which may involve handling disagreements

Question 3

Types of Unions & affiliations

Answer 3

Craft Unions

Industrial Unions

Union locals

Labour congresses

Question 4

Unionism in Canada

Answer 4

• First national labour organization formed in 1873
• Labour activities escalated in early 1900s (Winnipeg General Strike)
• Collective bargaining recognized in 1937
• Collective bargaining for federal government employees in 1967
• Unions were highly visible champions for workplace safety & maternity benefits in 1960s & 1970s
• Membership peaked in 1994 (36.1% of employees)
• Unionization much higher in public sector than private sector

Question 5

Overall decline in Union membership

Answer 5

Change in the structure of the economy
- Job growth in non-unionized service industries

Management efforts to control costs
- Global competition brings pressure to reduce higher-paid unionized workers

Human resource practices
- Employers more proactive in offering what unions have sought
Government regulations e.g. workplace safety

Question 6

Impact on company performance

Answer 6

Decrease productivity?
- Due to work rules and workload limits set by union contracts
- Production lost to union activities e.g. strikes

Increase productivity?
- Reduce turnover
- Seniority-based pay systems encourage cooperation vs. competition among employees
- Employer may be forced to improve management practices

Question 7

Goals of management, labour unions, and society

Answer 7

Management Goals :
Increase the organization’s profits.

Keep labor costs low and increase output.
- Limit increases in wages and benefits.
- Retain control over work rules and schedules.

Maintain flexible operations to meet competitive challenges and customer demands.

Labor Union Goals :
Obtain pay and working conditions that satisfy members

Give members a voice in decisions that affect them

Membership is linked to better compensation and benefits

Social unionism: Attempts to influence social and economic
government policies e.g. universal prescription drug coverage

Regular flow of new members is essential to survival

Labor Union Goals (con.) :
Rand Formula: mandatory payment by all workers

Checkoff provision: employer, on behalf of the union, automatically deducts union dues from employees’ paychecks.

Membership security
- Closed shop
- Union shop

Societal Goals :
Union activities take place within context of society.

Societal values drive laws/regulations that affect unions.

Society’s goal for unions is to ensure that workers have a voice in how they are treated by their employers

Question 8

Unfair labour practices

Answer 8

Management :
- Interfering in the formation of a union or contributing financially
- Discriminating based on union membership or because employee exercises rights
- Intimidating or coercing an employee to join/not join

Unions :
- Trying to bargain when the union is not the certified agent
- Persuading employees during working hours or at the workplace
- Illegal strikes
- Failing to represent employees fairly

Question 9

Collective bargaining

Answer 9

Collective bargaining is the negotiation between union representatives and management to arrive at an agreement defining conditions of employment

Bargaining structure differs
- Range of employees and employers covered

Negotiations go through various stages

Question 10

Typical collective agreement provisions

Answer 10

Rights of parties
- e.g. recognition of union security; management rights to test

Organization of work
- e.g. technological change; distribution of work

Labour relations
- e.g. grievance procedures; joint committees

Education and training
- e.g. leaves; apprenticeships

Conditions of work
- e.g. work schedules; overtime; job security; pay; benefits

Question 11

Bargaining over new contacts

Answer 11

1. Preparation for bargaining is important.
   - Establish objectives for contract, review old contract, gather data, predict likely demands, establish cost of meeting demands.
2. Union and management present proposals.
3. Each side considers proposals.
4. Union and management attempt to reach agreement.
   - When bargaining unsuccessful, work stoppages can ensue.

Question 12

When bargaining breaks down

Answer 12

Strike: Collective decision by union members not to work or to slow down until demands or conditions are met

Lockout: Closure of a place of employment or refusal of the employer to provide work to compel employees to agree to demands or conditions

Question 13

Alternatives to strictes & lockouts

Answer 13

Mediation :
- Least formal and most widely-used
- Mediator facilitates the process
- No formal authority for resolution

Conciliation :
- Report on reasons for the dispute
- May recommend settlement but parties may decline

Arbitration :
- Most formal intervention
- Determines a binding settlement

Question 14

Collective agreement administration

Answer 14

Goes on day after day, year after year and includes:
- Carrying out the terms of the agreement
- Resolving interpretation conflicts or violation of the collective agreement

Grievance procedure
- Process for resolving union-management conflicts over interpretation or violation of collective agreement
- May ultimately result in arbitration

Question 15

Grievance procedure

Answer 15

Step 1 :
- Employee discusses problem with supervisor
- Union steward and employee decide whether problem was resolved
- Union steward and employee decide whether contract was violated

Step 2 :
- Written grievance is submitted to production superintendent, another line manager, or industrial relations representative
- Steward and manager discuss grievance
- Management puts response in writing

Step 3 :
-Union appeals grievance to top line management ans seniors industrial relations staff
- Additional local or international union officers may ne involved
- Decision resulting from appear is put into writing

Step 4 :
Union decides whether to appeal unresolved grievance to arbitration
- Union appeals grievance to arbitration for binding decision

Question 16

Labour-Management cooperation

Answer 16

Wider acceptance that greater cooperation is beneficial vs. adversarial

May feature:
- Employee involvement in decision making
- Self-managing employee teams
- Joint labour-management committees
- Sharing of financial and business information
- Reducing the language complexity