The Organizing Process Flashcards

1
Q

The ____ and job conditions within a company may be used by employers to predict the likelihood of their employees desiring unionization.

A

Work

Explanation:

Work and job conditions is a general category used to describe how the conditions of an employee’s work and the tasks they are required to do may influence their desires to become part of a union. When the employees are unhappy with these conditions, they are more likely to seek union help.

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2
Q

__________ refers to when employees feel that they are not making an important contribution to the end product of their work. Especially in jobs requiring little skill or knowledge, workers gain little or no satisfaction from their work.

A

Alienation

Explanation:

Feelings of alienation in the workforce tend to leave workers feeling dissatisfied and it has been theorized that it may lead workers to seek collective action, such as joining a union.

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3
Q

_______ consciousness refers to the theory that workers join unions in an attempt to secure their jobs. This revolves around the idea that workers are concerned the jobs are Difficult to obtain and retain. These concerns prompt them to join a union to provide job security.

A

Scarcity

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4
Q

Employees’ ______ beliefs and desires tend to influence the likelihood that they will desire unionization of their workplace.

A

Social

Explanation:

A person’s views on unions tend to influence whether they desire union help when work conditions become intolerable. Someone with negative views towards unions may avoid unions and try alternative methods first.

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5
Q

Employees’ attitudes towards unions may be influenced by the attitudes of their parents, or may be strongly affected by previous __________ with a union.

A

Experience

Explanation:

A negative experience with a union may make an employee less likely to join a union the next time. A negative attitude towards unions held by a worker’s parents may influence the worker to also feel negatively towards unions.

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6
Q

Workers may feel a need for affiliation or belonging, as well as a need for ______ that may be fulfilled through alliance with a union. Unions may satisfy these needs via affecting a worker’s sense of identity and their self-esteem.

A

Status

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7
Q

The degree to which social affiliation with a union benefits a worker depends to the extent to which the union increases prestige or _________ of the worker. Workers in jobs that are unlikely to provide prestige or advancement may actively seek to join a union in order to achieve a sense of prestige or status.

A

self-esteem

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8
Q

The likelihood of a union being formed depends strongly on the attitudes of the _________. They need to consider whether their job-related goals will be satisfied through joining a union.

A

Employees

Explanation:

Employees who feel that their goals will be achieved by joining a union are more likely to support the union. On the other hand, employees who do not share these beliefs and are forced to join a union, tend not to support the union.

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9
Q

The extent to which a _______ campaigns against the integration of a union into their organization can strongly influence its employees’ beliefs about the union.

A

Company

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10
Q

A strong _________ campaign may influence employees to think that a union within such a company would not be accepted and thus would not be beneficial.

A

anti-union

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11
Q

Work _______ refers to factors related to the work environment, such as job dissatisfaction and work Conditions, which influence an employee’s decision.

A

context

Explanation:

Work context may influence whether an employee chooses to join a union or not. Such influences also include pay, benefits, and supervisory effectiveness and style. Dissatisfaction with work context may cause an employee to be inclined to join a union.

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12
Q

________ considerations, such as wage levels at similar work places, the unemployment rate in the industry, and growth rates may all influence an employee’s desire to join a union.

A

Economic

Explanation:

If economic considerations are pressing for an employee, they will aim to determine whether joining a union will ease the burden. This would influence their decision about whether a union should be in their workplace or not.

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13
Q

The extent to which an employee believes that a union will achieve their desired outcomes, such as improving work and pay conditions, is referred to as union _______________.

A

Instrumentality

Explanation:

When considering whether or not to join a union, an employee may consider a union’s ability, or likelihood, of achieving the employee’s desires in regards to work context and economic considerations.

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14
Q

The organization of a union within a workplace tends to be initiated by the _________, which is contrary to many employers’ beliefs.

A

Employees

Explanation:

Unionization tends to start with an employee’s dissatisfaction causing them to look for ways to solve their problems. While employers tend to believe it is the unions that approach employees, it tends to be dissatisfied employees who approach the unions.

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15
Q

The term “_______” refers to union organizers applying for jobs with non-union employers with the aim of organizing the employers’ workforce.

A

Salting

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16
Q

________ is a labor union tactic involving the act of getting a job at a specific workplace with the intent of organizing a union. A person so employed is called a “salt”. The salt may be paid by the union or may be a volunteer.

A

Salting

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17
Q

Rather than creating job dissatisfaction, a union organizer begins to form a union for the already existing dissatisfied employees in order to begin __________ action.

A

Collective

Explanation:

The union organizer responds to an expression of interest from dissatisfied employees and thus they enter a workplace that already has job dissatisfaction. They then begin collective action to solve this dissatisfaction via formation of a union.

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18
Q

Companies are beginning to try to convince their employees that work related problems can be solved __________. However, union organizers are becoming more sophisticated and knowledgeable in regards to the interests and problems of employees, causing the companies to expend more effort.

A

Internally

Explanation:

Union organizers are beginning to better understand the interests, job expectations, and concerns of employees, making them better able to relate to employees and convince them that their problems will be best resolved through joining a union. As a result, companies are required to spend more effort convincing their employees that they do not need a union and that their problems can be solved by the company.

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19
Q

An important consideration for both union organizers and company management is the fact that individual employees may ______ in their needs.

A

differ

Explanation:

Although working within the same company, the job-related needs, interests, concerns, and goals of each employee may differ. Therefore, when convincing employees to join or not to join a union, union organizers and management need to take this point into consideration.

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20
Q

The general method for a union to achieve exclusive bargaining agent status is to organize a secret ballot representation ________.

A

election

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21
Q

The ______________________ considers secret ballot elections the best method to use when establishing a union. However, there are alternative methods.

A

National Labor Relations Board (NLRB)

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22
Q

The _____________ Choice Act would allow the use of publicly signed authorization cards instead of the secret ballot to certify unions.

A

Employee Free

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23
Q

Also known as ___________, the Employee Free Choice Act (EFCA) if passed would eliminate secret ballot elections for unionization. Under current law, workers have a chance to vote for or against unionization in a secret-ballot election that is federally supervised. Under Card Check, if more than 50% of workers at a facility sign a card, the government would have to certify the union, and a secret ballot election would be prohibited even if workers want one.

A

Card Check

24
Q

The union pre-election campaign tends to go through several processes such as identifying the target organization, determining employee interest, setting up an organizing _________, and building interest among the employees. During this time, union organizers attempt to convince workers to adopt the union.

A

committee

Explanation:

Rather than just handing out information prior to getting employees to vote on whether to unionize the work place, a pre-election campaign involves trying to determine the interest of the employees, and trying to raise this interest to a majority.

25
Q

The most effective techniques used by union organizers to convince workers to support unionization include one-to-one contact, peer contact and persuasion, and ____________ communication.

A

well-written

Explanation:

While there are a range of techniques that can be used by organizers while campaigning, research has shown that these techniques are more effective than others.

26
Q

In order to begin the process (i.e. an election) required to determine whether the ________ of employees desire a union, a petition must first be filed.

A

majority

27
Q

A ________ is usually filed by the person who is likely to represent the employees during bargaining. Petitions are filed in order to show support for an election on unionization. This tends to follow a refusal by the employer to support unionization.

A

petition

28
Q

Following receipt of a petition for union formation, the National Labor Relations Board first establishes whether it has jurisdiction. Following this, they then begin to organize conditions for an ________ by negotiating with the company and union.

A

election

Explanation:

When both a company and union agree on voting conditions, a consent election is held. However, if one party disagrees on the conditions, a formal hearing is required to make the decisions.

29
Q

When various positions are grouped together and contain two or more employees who share common employment interests and conditions, they may form an appropriate __________ unit.

A

bargaining

30
Q

The ______ determines what constitutes an appropriate bargaining unit. They take into account employee rights and try to protect them as best as possible.

A

NLRB

31
Q

__________ units play a large role in determining the impact of unionization on a company. Several small units may mean a company is required to negotiate several times a year. On the other hand, one nationwide unit may lead to nationwide strikes or slowdowns.

A

bargaining

Explanation:

Bargaining units also affect employees and unions. The type of bargaining unit can influence whether a union wins an election, and can also influence whether employees will have their own union or whether they will be part of a larger union.

32
Q

In cases when the NLRB is unable to decide upon the composition of the appropriate bargaining unit, employees take part in an ________, which will highlight their interests.

A

election

Explanation:

In some cases of appropriate bargaining unit determination, the employees elect what option they would like best. For example, a group of electricians within a steel plant may wish to belong to an electrician’s union as opposed to the steelworker’s union. In this case, all electricians within the steel plant will vote to decide whether they will belong to the electrician’s union, the steelworker’s union, or no union.

33
Q

The ____________ doctrine was a rule implemented by the NLRB that potentially increases the twelve-month statutory limitation on elections to three years.

A

contract bar

Explanation:

According to this rule, agreements that are fixed at three years or less may bar any representation election for the life of the agreement. This ensures that unions and companies who have established multiyear labor agreements can maintain a reasonable period of stability in the relationship without interruption.

34
Q

In order to proceed with an election, eligibility of ______ must be established. In general, employees who are on the payroll prior to an election, and are employed in the unit on the date of the election are allowed to vote.

A

voters

Explanation:

In cases where an employee is not employed in the unit on the date of the election–for example, employees who are sick, on leave, or on strike–the NLRB usually makes an exception and these people are allowed to cast their vote.

35
Q

Once an election has been approved by the NLRB, an employer must comply with the _________ rule and supply the names and addresses of all the eligible voters within the company to the union.

A

excelsior

Explanation:

The excelsior rule is implemented to ensure that the union has the same right of access to employees as an employer has. Failure for a company to comply with this rule may imply an act of bad faith.

36
Q

There tends to be a high voter turnout for union representation elections. This is most likely due in part to the __________ voting procedure, in addition to the idea that many voters feel this election may directly impact their lives.

A

convenient

37
Q

_____________ elections tend to be held on company property making it convenient for employees to cast their vote.

A

Representation

38
Q

The outcome of a representation election is based on the majority. Therefore, at least 50 percent plus one more vote determines the _______ of the election.

A

outcome

Explanation:

Similar to democratic elections, the outcome is based on what the majority of the voters desire. Employees who decide not to cast a vote must also consent to the outcome.

39
Q

While employers are required to bargain with the exclusive bargaining agent, they can ________ to bargain with other unions trying to represent the employees.

A

refuse

40
Q

While the employer has a flexible obligation in which they are not required to bargain with all unions attempting to represent employees, the __________ bargaining agent is required to equally and fairly represent all employees regardless of their union membership.

A

exclusive

41
Q

A ____________ procedure is used when employees believe that their union is no longer representing the interests of the majority.

A

decertification

Explanation:

These procedures may be prompted when employees receive fairer treatment from an employer, when a union fails to provide adequate service, or when an effective first contract fails to be negotiated.

42
Q

A decertification election can be filed by a single employee, group of employees, or an employee representative. These can be filed twelve months after a union has been certified or when the labor agreement _______.

A

expires

Explanation:

Although any employee is able to file the petition, the petition must be supported by at least 30 percent of the employees involved in the bargaining unit.

43
Q

If an employer wishes to challenge a union’s majority status, they can petition for a ______________ election, but they cannot petition for a decertification election.

A

representation

44
Q

In order to petition for a representation election, an employer must show _________ to support the accusation that the union no longer represents the majority of the bargaining unit employees.

A

evidence

45
Q

An employee who participates in a _______________ procedure may suffer consequences such as ostracism from union supporting colleagues, pressure from union officials, and even expulsion from the union.

A

decertification

46
Q

A union has the right to discipline members who try to decertify the union. However, this disciplinary action is not allowed to interfere with the member’s _____________ status.

A

employment

47
Q

The totality of _______ doctrine is an example of a campaign doctrine initiated by the NLRB that is used to interpret unfair labor practice behavior.

A

conduct

48
Q

The _____________ doctrine means that the whole of a campaign is examined when investigating possible unfair labor practice behavior. Therefore, individual incidents such as campaign speeches must be considered alongside the whole campaign.

A

totality of conduct

49
Q

The purpose of the laboratory conditions doctrine is to determine what the desires of the employees are. This is achieved by using an __________ conducted under nearly ideal conditions.

A

experiment

Explanation:

This doctrine is a long-standing doctrine established by the NLRB. The NLRB states that it is their duty to determine the desires of employees and to work out whether they have been fulfilled.

50
Q

Both unions and management often use _______ audience speeches during campaigning. However, the NLRB has inhibited either party to making these speeches twenty four hours prior to an election.

A

captive

Explanation:

In addition to the twenty-four hour rule, the NLRB has also ruled that if a union has the means to communicate with employees outside of working hours, employers can prevent unions from responding to a company speech during working hours.

51
Q

If certain safeguards are adhered to by employers, the NLRB has ruled that they are allowed to ____ or question employees about their union interests.

A

poll

Explanation:

Although previously illegal as it was seen as interference with employee rights, polling and questioning employees is now an acceptable activity for an employer to perform.

52
Q

In the majority of cases, the distribution of union __________ on company property by employees is allowed. However, it must not interfere with company production or employee work.

A

literature

Explanation:

If an employer can show that the distribution of union literature is disrupting the workings of the company, they can prohibit employees from distributing it. However, places such as hospital cafeterias, where hospital employees make up a large proportion of the patronage, employees are generally free to distribute the material.

53
Q

The showing of _____ during election campaigns can have a strong impact on employees. This form of campaigning can be used to show a biased viewpoint that may either support or totally reject the concept of a union.

A

films

54
Q

Films have been used by employers to exhibit union violence in an attempt to discourage ____________. In response, unions have produced rebuttal films in an attempt to refute the biased films. The NLRB tends to change its position on the use of films.

A

unionization

55
Q

Some employers have a significant interest in maintaining a _________ status. They may use a variety of methods, both legal and illegal to retain this status.

A

non-union

Explanation:

The methods used by employers to avoid unionization range from effective personnel programs to using and abusing legal procedures. There remains a large proportion of non-agricultural workers who are union free.