Final exam Flashcards
What are the 3 legal requirement for collective agreement
most comply with employment related legislation in the employer’s jurisdiction
- Cannot agree to any terms and conditions that discriminate against protected grounds
- Negotiated terms or clauses in a collective agreement referred to as articles
How does the collective agreement impact all the parties
management: limits certain things less flexibility
union: can’t go back in forth once its signed
government: influences prices to consumers
What are the 5 mandatory terms that are required by law to be in the collective agreement
- union recognition: management recognize union as the legal representative
- no strikes or lockouts when agreement is in place
- arbitration of disputes (what is the grievance and arbitration process)
- duration of term (minimum 1 year)
- union dues check off: clearly mentioned that management will take dues from paycheck
what is included in union recognition
Employer recognizes the union as the bargaining agent for employees in the bargaining unit
- Usually specifies the location and jobs included, whether part-time included, or those not included
What is a grievance
allegation that the collective agreement or an employment statute has been violated, as well as what remedy is sought
What are the 3 types of grievances and an example of each
individual grievance: one employee alleges there has been a violation of the collective agreement or a statute. example: employee isn’t paid over time
Group grievance: group of employees allege violation of the collective agreement or a statute. example: manager doesn’t inform employees of vacation policy
policy grievance: either the union or the employer alleges that the other party violated the collective agreement. Example: management distributes policy about cell phone use at work
What are mandatory and directory time limits and which do management/union prefer?
mandatory means you must file a grievance in a specified time period and management wants this because after the time is up the grievance is gone
directory time limits serve as a guide for when someone should file grievance by, but they’re not hard limits. union wants this because it gives them more flexibility.
What are rights arbitration and interest arbitration
right arbitration is when there is a grievance filed, the third party looks at the evidence then makes a binding decision
interest arbitration is during the negotiation process if the 2 parties cannot agree on something the arbitrator makes a decision
define grievance procedure and how many steps are there usually in it
is a series of steps in which union and employer representatives at progressively higher levels meet to try to resolve the dispute. usually 3 or 4 steps in it
define arbitration
is a dispute resolution method in which management and union representatives present evidence and arguments to a third party who then makes a binding decision
what are the 4 types of arbitrators
a) single arbitrator
b) arbitration board that includes employer nominee, union nominee and neutral chairsperson c) single arbitrator – names of arbitrators listed in collective agreement d) single arbitrator (permanent umpire): one person appointed to hear all grievances for a specified period of time
what is expedited arbitration
is an alternative arbitration process that provides for a faster result. this means that they might have shorter time limits for the hearing and for when a decision can be made
what is the minimum length for the duration of an agreement
1 year
What does management/union prefer in term lengths
management prefers long contract length because they can plan their business and financials with more certainty if its longer term
union wants shorter terms because things could change in the environment that they’d want to negotiate better terms for their members
Why does the union want there to be a clause about management deducting dues from employees
because management can easily do this if they’re already deducting money from employee’s pay like CPP and EI and tac deductions, it’s a lot more difficult and bigger admin cost for union if they have to deal with getting the money themselves
What are 6 examples of voluntary terms to the collective agreement
management rights
union security
seniority
hours of work
overtime
discipline
wages
what are management rights
management retains the authority to manage the organization except as otherwise provided in the collective agreement
define reserved or residual rights theory
any rights not specifically laid out in the collective agreement are to be considered management rights
What will management vs union want written about management rights
- Management will want it very clear and specific clearly written about what their rights
-union will want it more vague and ambiguous so they can argue against it
what will management want for probationary employees
employer may try to have language that gives it sole discretion over probationary employees
define bargaining unit work
collective agreement may place restriction on having bargaining unit work done by a non-bargaining unit employee. If you do certain amount of unionized work, you will be converted to the union.
What is union security
measures taken by the union in collective bargaining to help “secure” the ongoing presence and influence of the bargaining agent in a unionized work setting.
mainly deduction of union dues and also if you’re required to become union members
define a rand formula/agency shop
a collective agreement term requiring the deduction of union dues from all employees in the bargaining unit, even for those employees who decide not to formally join the union.
define the 6 types of union security
agency shop
close shop
union shop
modified union shop
maintenance of membership
open shop
define close shop
An individual must be a union member before being hired; new employees are hired through the union.
define union shop
New employees do not have to be union members to be hired but must become union members within a specified number of days.
define maintenance of membership
Employees are not required to join the union as a condition of employment, but all workers who voluntarily join must maintain their membership for the duration of the agreement as a condition of employment.
define open shop
Union membership is not required to obtain a job or to continue employment.
define seniority and describe some impacts it could have for an employee
the amount of time an employee has been with the employer
vacation
layoff, bumping
job vacancies
define bargaining structure
refers to who bargains with who, usually management vs union
Does one union always bargain with one management
usually but not always. Sometimes it’s one management with multiple unions, or one union that applies to multiple employers in the area
What is the difference between centralized and decentralized bargaining
Centralized bargaining: negotiations covering more than one location, union or employer. Example colleges, nurses
Decentralized: negotiations between one employer, one location, one union. For example, one private college for employees of that private college.
what is industry bargaining
a form of centralized bargaining – one set of negotiations for all employees in an industry
In canada, is bargaining typically centralized or decentralized? what are 4 factors that affect the bargaining structure?
- In Canada, structure is mainly decentralized due to:
- labour relations provincially regulated for most places
- labour boards have frequently certified smaller, separate bargaining units
- economic factors
- bargaining structure varies by province and industry
How does the bargaining structure impact collective bargaining (7 ways)
- the way negotiations take place
- bargaining power (centralized has more power)
- the likelihood of strikes or lockouts (centralized more likely to strike because they have way more people the agreement applies to and therefore more priorities to satisfy)
- cost of negotiation (centralized cost less bc one agreement applies to multiple locations)
- union management relationship (if they have good relationship easier to reach agreement)
- the bargaining priorities when different groups of employees are involved
- the use of tactics like whipsawing and pattern bargaining (centralized can get rid of pattern bargaining)
what are the 4 sub-processes of negotiations
- Distributive (or positional) bargaining: determining how limited resources will be divided. Creates a conflict dynamic. 90% cases this negotiation process. One party will win, one will lose.
- Integrative bargaining: parties’ objectives are not in conflict, and both can gain. Focus is on problem solving and the interests of the parties. Not common. Win-win situation.
- Attitudinal structuring: relationship between the parties and what they do to change it. Management-union relationship always conflict. Getting out of the conflicting attitude of the process, purposely making concessions to get out the conflict relationship.
- Intraorganizational bargaining: activities within each side to build consensus. Bargaining within the group. Asking what the members of management and members of union want from their representative.
what are the 5 types of union-management relationship
- Conflict: low trust, adversarial bargaining
- Containment-aggression: suspicion, mutual antagonism. Parties always try to contain.
- Accommodation: some respect and trust between parties
- Cooperative: mutual trust, willing to work together
- Collusion: coalition between union and employer. Making some unethical activities. For example, management giving special favor to union leaders so they don’t go in favor to the employees.
what are 4 factors that can determine the union-management relationship
- External factors, including economic, legal, technological
- Personality of leaders
- Beliefs and values of leaders
Experience with collective bargaining
Explain the steps in the negotiation process
notice to bargain: stat freeze begins, union or management sends this in and union submits charter of demands
establishments of bargaining teams: who will make up the management team and union team
preparation of demands to back up why they are asking for/offering the things they are
then they meet to to negotiate. If they can’t reach agreement they’ll go to conciliation or mediation process. If they still can’t reach agreement they will either go through arbitration process or strike/lockout.
what are the 2 outcomes of strike/lockout
agreement or impasse
Factor affecting union demand
experience with the collective agreement
any grievances that have come up from bargaining unit members
any arbitration decisions
input from union members and national/international union
economic forecasts
agreements from other employers in the industry
Factors affecting management demand
. Experience with the collective agreement
2. Grievances and arbitration decisions
3. Feedback from managers
4. Strategic business plans
5. Economic forecasts
6. agreements from other employers in the industry
what are the 3 stages to negotiations in the meeting step
stage 1: establishing the negotiation range: each side presents concerns, positions, explanations.
Stage 2: search phase: longest phase, where parties use various tactics in moving towards agreement. Phase covers:
* non-monetary issues (usually considered first) vacation, disability, no direct financial involvement * monetary issues direct financial involvement
Stage 3: crisis phase: strike or lockout is imminent if no concessions made, and no agreement reached. Parties try to reconsider their offer. Really depends on if either side can afford it
What does duty to bargain in good faith mean
Both union and employer must make a “reasonable effort to enter into a collective agreement
does good faith bargaining include hard bargaining and surface bargaining
can include hard bargaining but not surface bargaining
define hard bargaining
when you bargain in strong way you don’t want to compromise anything, not unfair because you’re trying to protect the financial benefit of the organization