Employee Management Flashcards
Common law of employment
The body of case law in which courts interpret employment contracts and the legal principles taken from those cases that guide the interpretation of employment contracts
Implied contract terms
Terms judges read into employment contracts when the written contract does not expressly deal with the matter
Collective agreement
An employment contract between an employer and a union that sets out the terms of employment for a group of the employer’s employees represented by the union
Labour arbitrator
A person assigned to decide disputes (grievances) about the meaning, interpretation, and application of a collective agreement governing employees in a unionized workplace
Constructive dismissal
When an employer commits a fundamental breach of the contract such as by unilaterally changing a key term of the contract, the employee can treat the breach as a termination
Summary dismissal
When a nonunion employer terminates an employee without notice because the employee has committed a serious breach of the contract
Wrongful dismissal
A lawsuit filed in a court by an employee alleging that he or she was dismissed without proper contractual or reasonable notice
Statutory rights
Legal entitlements that derive from government legislation
Progressive discipline
Application of corrective measures by increasing degrees
Positive, or nonpunitive, discipline
A system of discipline that focuses on early correction of employee misconduct, with the employee taking total responsibility for correcting the problem; Based on the concept that employees must assume responsibility for their personal conduct and job performance
4 Typical Steps of Progressive Discipline
1) Verbal warning; 2) Written Warning; 3) Suspension with pay; 4) Discharge
3 Steps of Positive Discipline
1) Conference to find a solution to the problem (supervisor should refrain from reprimanding employee); 2) If not resolved, a second conference to determine why the first solution did not work; accompanied by a written reminder; 3) If second conference failed to change outcome, third step is to give the employee a one-day decision-making leave (paid leave); employee must decide whether to remedy the problem or to depart the organization
Alternative dispute resolution (ADR)
A term applied to different types of employee complaint or dispute resolution procedures
Step-review system
A system for reviewing employee complaints and disputes by successively higher levels of management
Stages of Step-Review Appeal Procedure
Employee to Supervisor to Department Head to HR - to Top Management
Peer-review system (Complaint committee)
A system for reviewing employee complaints that utilizes a group composed of equal numbers of employee representatives and management appointees, which functions as a jury because its members weigh evidence, consider arguments, and, after deliberation, vote independently to render a final decision
Open door policy
A policy of setting grievances that identifies various levels of management above the immediate supervisor for employee contact
Ombudsperson
A designated individual from whom employees may seek counsel for resolution of their complaints
Mediation
The use of a neutral third-party to reach a compromise decision in employment disputes
Mediator
A third party in an employment dispute who meets with one party and then the other to suggest compromise solutions or to recommend concessions from each side that will lead to an agreement
Ethics
A set of standards of conduct and moral judgments that help determine right and wrong behaviour
Labour relations process
A logical sequence of four events: 1) Workers desire collective representation; 2) The union begins its organizing campaign; 3) Collective negotiations lead to a contract; 4) The contract is administered
Industrial Relations Disputes and Investigations Act
Specified the right of workers to join unions, allowed unions to be certified as bargaining agents by LRBs, required management to recognize a certified union as an exclusive bargaining agent, required both parties to negotiate in good faith, outlined unfair labour practices, and created a mandatory two-stage compulsory conciliation process
Union shop
Provision of collective agreement that requires employees to join the union as a condition of their employment
Authorization Card
A statement signed by an employee authorizing a union to act as his/her representative for the purposes of collective bargaining
6 Steps of Organizing Process
- Employee/union contact; 2. Initial organizing meeting; 3. Formation of an in-house organizing committee; 4. Application to a labour relations board; 5. Issuance of a certificate by a labour relations board; 6. Election of a bargaining committee and contract negotiations
Card-Check
A method where the union is certified to represent workers if the union submits to the LRB authorization cards on behalf of a majority of workers (e.g. 55%) in an appropriate bargaining unit
Mandatory Ballot (Two-step)
A method where the union is certified to represent workers if the union obtains authorization cards from a certain number of workers (40% in Ontario) to obtain a vote, then the LRB orders a vote of the employees in the bargaining unit, which the union must win. Not-casting a vote doesn’t harm the union here.
Bargaining unit
Group of two or more employees who share common employment interest and conditions and may reasonably be grouped together for the purposes of collective bargaining
Unfair Labour Practices
Specific employer and union illegal practices that deny employees their rights and benefits under the federal and provincial labour law (e.g. altering working conditions, intimidation/coercion/threats, strike breakers; for unions; striking, threatening workers; not fairly representing employees)
Management rights
Decisions regarding organizational operations which management claims exclusive rights
Craft unions
Unions that represent skilled craft workers
Industrial unions
Unions that represent all workers - skilled, semiskilled, unskilled - employed along industry lines
Employee associations
Labour organizations that represent various groups of professional and white-collar employees in labour-management relations
Union (shop) steward (aka Equity Deputy)
Employee who as a nonpaid union official represents the interests of the members in their relations with management; usually elected by members in their own department; “a person in the middle”
Business Agent
Normally a paid labour official responsible for negotiating and administering the collective agreement and working to resolve union members’ problems
Compulsory binding arbitration
Binding method of resolving collective bargaining deadlocks by a neutral third party; most common for police officers, firefighters, and other jobs in which strikes cannot be tolerated
Final offer arbitration
Method of resolving collective arbitration disputes whereby the arbitrator has no power to compromise but must select one or another of the final offers (Baseball arb)
Collective bargaining process
Process of negotiating a collective agreement, including the use of economic pressures by both parties
Bargaining Zone
The area within which the union and the employer are willing to concede when bargaining
Attitudinal structuring
Tactics to change the attitudes of the parties towards each other, often with the objective of persuading one party to accept the other side’s demands
Interest-based bargaining (IBB)
Problem-solving bargaining based on a win-win philosophy and the development of a positive long-term relationship
Bargaining power
The power of labour and management to achieve their goals through economic, social, or political influence
Interest arbitrator (interests of two parties)
Third-party neutral who resolves a labour dispute by issuing a final decision in the disagreement
Grievance procedure
Formal procedure that provides for the union to represent members and nonmembers in processing a grievance
Rights arbitration (rights under the CB)
Arbitration over interpretation of the meaning of contract terms or employee work grievances
Arbitration awards
Final and binding award issued by an arbitrator in a labour-management dispute
