Employment & Environment: Union & Employee Relations

Question 1

Employment & Environment:
Union & Employee Relations
Intro

Answer 1

National Labor Relations Act of 1935
- right to form, join, or assist unions
- right to bargain collectively
- right to engage in concerted activities
Labor Management Relations Act of 1947
- prohibiting union coercion of employees and secondary boycotts
Labor Management Reporting and Disclosure Act 1959
- responded to corruption in unions by protecting workers from unfair treatment by unions
National Labor Relations Board
- enforces NLRA

Question 2

Employment & Environment:
Union & Employee Relations
NLRA Coverage

Answer 2

NLRA Coverage

• all employers involved in interstate commerce
• exempt: Independent contractors, Government employees, managerial and supervisory employees, airline and rail employees covered by other statutes

Question 3

Employment & Environment:
Union & Employee Relations
Right to Organize

Answer 3

• once 30% sign authorization cards, may petition for election to create a union
• NLRB monitors election
• employers must avoid committing unfair labor practices which would result as automatic certification of union

Question 4

Employment & Environment:
Union & Employee Relations
Employer Unfair Labor Practices

Answer 4

Employer Unfair Labor Practices

• interfering with organizing efforts: not bribe or threaten
• dominating or interfering
• discriminating against union member
• refusing to bargain collectively

Question 5

Employment & Environment:
Union & Employee Relations
Union Unfair Labor Practices

Answer 5

Union Unfair Labor Practices

• coercing employees
• requiring employees not to do business with non-union companies that union is trying to organize
• refusing to bargain collectively
• engaging in an illegal strike or secondary boycott

Question 6

Employment & Environment:
Union & Employee Relations
Lockout

Answer 6

• Employers may bar workers from organizing, sometimes in anticipation of a strike.
• illegal if intent is: destroy union, punish workers for organizing, avoid good faith responsibilities
• Federal Law prohibits “closed shops” (agreement to hire only members of a union)
• Federal Law does not allow states to enact “right to work” laws that prohibit
  
  • “Union Shops” agreements requiring new employees to join within specified time or
  • “Agency Shops” agreements allowing employees not to join, but to pay fees to union
• Employers may take bankruptcy to discharge obligation under collective bargaining agreement

Question 7

Employment & Environment:
Union & Employee Relations
Collective Bargaining

Answer 7

• negotiations between management and union
• once certified, management cannot bargain with anyone else over: wages, hours, and other conditions
  NLRA imposes a duty of good faith on both sides
• cant withhold information or make “take it or leave it” offers
• good faith does not include obligation to reach an agreement
  Unions may Strike to Support Their Rights
• must be supported by majority of members
• once collective bargaining agreement, give 60 days notice to employer
• secondary strikes against third parties are illegal
• must picket just the relevant part of sight
• no right to picket entire property
  Characteristics of Collective Bargaining
• union agrees not to strike, and employer not to lock
• employer agrees to submit disagreements and grievances to arbitration
• matters such as pay scales, seniority, overtime pay, insurance, and vacations
  Replacement Workers
• during strike employers may hire “replacement workers”
• following settlement, must reinstate workers