T e n t h e d i t i o n Gary Dessler Chapter 15 Part 5 Employee Relations Labor Relations and...

t e n t h e d i t i o n

Gary Gary DesslerDessler

ChapterChapter 15 15 Part Part 55 Employee Relations Employee Relations

Labor Relations and Labor Relations and Collective BargainingCollective Bargaining

Employee Relations Issues

• Policies, procedures, rules• Employee discipline• Grievances• Employee rights

Spring 2008 2

Policies, Procedures and Rules

• Policies:– A general guideline– For example: “XYZ, Inc. does not tolerate sexual harassment”

• Procedures– A customary method– For example: the steps for reporting sexual harassment

• Rules– A specific guideline (“programmed decision”)– For example: sexually harassing a subordinate is cause for termination

Spring 2008 3

About Rules, Policies, and Procedures

• Why?– To ensure consistent treatment (i.e., fairness,

procedural justice)– To reduce time demands (programmed decisions)

• How communicated– Employee handbooks– Policy and procedure manuals

Spring 2008 4

Effective PPR

• Internally consistent• Only those that are necessary• Applicable• Understandable• Reasonable• Distributed and communicated• Enforced

Spring 2008 5

Employee Discipline

• Establishing discipline• Progressive discipline• Why managers don’t discipline employees• Why managers punish too soon

Spring 2008 6

Establishing Discipline

Spring 2008 7

EstablishRules

ChangeInappropriate

Behavior

CommunicateRules

AssessBehavior

Progressive Discipline

• What it is?– Gradual movement from less to more severe

penalties• Why?

– Fair treatment for employees (chance to improve)– Preserve company’s investment in employees– Maintain employee morale– Ethical considerations– Professional approach to discipline– Legal considerations

Spring 2008 8

Steps in Progressive Discipline

• General steps– Verbal warning– Verbal caution (recorded)– Formal written reprimand– Suspension (paid or unpaid)– Demotion or termination

• May start at a higher level for more severe offences (for example, immediate termination for drug use)

Spring 2008 9

Why Managers Don’t Discipline Employees

1. Lack of training2. Lack of support from above3. Fear of acting alone4. Guilt5. Loss of friendships6. Loss of time7. Fear of losing one’s temper8. Rationalization9. Lack of appropriate policies and rules10. Fear of lawsuits

Spring 2008 10

Why Managers Punish Too Soon

1. Lack of training2. Not aware of alternatives3. Fast, quick solution to problems4. Personal gratification5. Frustration6. Belief that punishment is the best way to

change employee behavior

Spring 2008 11

Employment at Will• Common law doctrine:

– Employers may hire, fire, demote and promote whomever they choose, unless a law exists to the contrary

– Depends on state courts’ interpretations

• General exceptions to EAW:– Public policy

• Violation of law• Filing workers’ comp claim• Refusal to commit illegal acts)

– Implied employment contract (the employee handbook)– Good faith and fair dealing

Spring 2008 12

Just Cause

• Reason for termination stems from a job-related, work performance problem

• Employee knew that the problem could result in termination• If necessary, a fair and impartial investigation has been

conducted (and documented)• Substantial evidence supports firing employee• Firing is not an unusually harsh action• Problems are handled consistently

Spring 2008 13

Grievances

• Procedure for dealing with employee dissatisfaction with management action

• Found in union and many non-unionized organizations (FedEx, for example)

• Involves appeals through various levels of management, sometimes hearing by management / employee panel

Spring 2008 14

Employee Rights

• Access to personnel records• Substance abuse / drug testing• Medical records and genetic testing• Off-the-job activities• Polygraphs and honesty testing• Miscellaneous

– Email and employee monitoring– Whistle blowing– Right to be aware of hazards– Plant and facility closings

Spring 2008 15

Access to Personnel Records

• Unauthorized individuals should not have access– Individual records are confidential information– Employer has responsibility to take reasonable precautions to ensure

this

• However, the employee has right to see his / her records• Employee also has the right to:

– Respond to unfavorable information and correct erroneous information

– Be notified (or possibly consent) if information is released to a third party

– Know how information is used internally

Spring 2008 16

Substance Abuse and Drug Testing

• Occurs in at least 85% of U.S. firms• Why?

– Absenteeism– Turnover– Accidents and workers’ compensation claims– Health care costs– Public safety

Spring 2008 17

Who Gets Tested?

• New hires (after conditional offer of employment)

• Probable cause (such as accidents)• Employees at random

– In certain industries, such as transportation– As a condition of being given a second chance

Spring 2008 18

Medical Records and Genetic Testing

• Employee medical records:– Must be kept separate from other personnel records– Medical conditions not grounds for dismissal if

employee can perform the job

• Genetic testing:– Are employee, spouse or dependents at risk for

developing an expensive-to-treat medical condition?– But…a certainty or just a predisposition?– Reluctance to hire and ADA

Spring 2008 19

Off-the-Job Activities

• Dating• Smoking• Language issues

Spring 2008 20

Dating at Work

• Possibility of conflict of interest if employee is dating a competitor’s employee

• Possible perceptions (or reality !) of sexual harassment

• Employer’s moral standards (WalMart case)• Nepotism

– More and more, spouses and relatives are allowed to work for same employer

– Normally,not allowed to work in same unit, one can’t supervise the other

Spring 2008 21

Smoking

• The employer can prohibit / restrict at work• Difficult to forbid off-the-job (how to

enforce?)• No federal protection, but smokers may be

protected under state law (including Tennessee)– Some employers can ban smoking (primarily

around children)

Spring 2008 22

Language Issues

• Can employees speak a language other than English at work?– Yes, on breaks– No, not at work

Spring 2008 23

Polygraphs and Honesty Testing

• Polygraphs– Now illegal for pre-employment screening in most

instances– Can be used for security agencies, governments,

manufacturers of controlled substances– Can be used (with employee’s consent) for

internal investigations of theft or losses• Honesty testing

– A substitute for the polygraph?– Test validity?????

Spring 2008 24

Miscellaneous Issues

• E-mail and other employee monitoring– Employers are free to read email and monitor

productivity and other activities– Internet screens– Do need to notify employees that they are being

monitored• Whistle blowing• Right to be aware of hazards (OSHA)• Notification of plant and facility closings

(WARN)

Spring 2008 25

Why Do Workers Organize?

• Solidarity– To get their fair share of the pie.

• Improved wages, hours, working conditions, and benefits– To protect themselves from management whims.

• Conditions favoring employee organization– Low morale– Fear of job loss– Arbitrary management actions– Voice/Grievances

© 2005 Prentice Hall Inc. All rights reserved.

14–26

The Labor Movement

• 1790–Skilled craftsmen organize into trade unions.• 1869–The Knights of Labor seek social reform.• 1886–American Federation of Labor pursues bread-

and-butter and improved working conditions.• 1935–National Labor Relations Act fosters organizing

and the rapid growth of labor unions.• 1947–Taft-Hartley Act regulates union activities.• 1955–AFL and CIO merge.• 1970s–Union membership peaks and begins to steadily

decline.


14–27

Unions and the Law: Period of Strong Encouragement

• The Norris-LaGuardia Act of 1932– Guaranteed to each employee the right to

bargain collectively “free from interference, restraint, or coercion.

– Declared yellow dog contracts unenforceable.– Limited the courts’ abilities to issue injunctions

(stop orders) for activities such as peaceful picketing and payment of strike benefits.


14–28

Unions and the Law: Period of Strong Encouragement (cont’d)

• National Labor Relations (or Wagner) Act of 1935– Banned certain unfair labor practices of

employers– Provided for secret-ballot elections and

majority rule for determining whether a firm’s employees would unionize.

– Created the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) to enforce the act’s provisions.


14–29

Unfair Employer Labor Practices

• To “interface with, restrain, or coerce employees” in exercising their legally sanctioned right of self-organization.

• To dominate or interfere with either the formation or the administration of labor unions.

• To discriminating in any way against employees for their legal union activities.

• To discharge or discriminate against employees who file unfair practice charges against the company.

• To refuse to bargain collectively with their employees’ duly chosen representatives.


14–30

Unions and the Law: Period of Modified Encouragement and

Regulation (cont’d)• Taft-Hartley (Labor Management Relations)

Act of 1947 – Prohibited unfair union labor practices.– Enumerated the rights of employees as union

members– Enumerated the rights of employers– Allows the president of the United States to

seek an injunction that temporarily will bar a national emergency strike for 60 days.


14–31

Unfair Union Labor Practices

• To restrain or coerce employees from exercising their guaranteed bargaining rights.

• To cause an employer to discriminate against employees in order to encourage or discourage their membership in a union.

• To refuse to bargain in good faith with the employer about wages, hours, and other employment conditions. Certain strikes and boycotts are also unfair practices.

• To engage in “featherbedding” (requiring an employer to pay an employee for services not performed).


14–32

Taft-Hartley and Employers

• Rights– To express their views concerning union organization.

– To set forth the union’s record concerning violence and corruption, if appropriate.

• Restraints– Must avoid threats, promises, coercion, and direct interference

with workers who are trying to reach an organizing decision.

– Cannot meet with employees on company time within 24 hours of an election.

– Cannot suggest to employees that they vote against the union (in private, while they are out of their work area).


14–33

Union Security• Closed shop

– The company can hire only union members. Congress outlawed this in 1947, but it still exists in some industries (such as printing).

• Union shop– The company can hire nonunion people, but they

must join the union after a prescribed period of time and pay dues. (If not, they can be fired.)

• Agency shop– Employees who do not belong to the union still must

pay union dues on the assumption that the union’s efforts benefit all the workers.


14–34

Union Security (cont’d)

• Open shop– It is up to the workers whether or not they join

the union—those who do not, do not pay dues.

• Maintenance of membership arrangement– Employees do not have to belong to the union.

However, union members employed by the firm must maintain membership in the union for the contract period.


14–35

Union Security (cont’d)

• Right-to-work laws– 12 Section 14(b) of the Taft-Hartley Act permits

states to pass statutes or constitutional provisions banning the requirement of union membership as a condition of employment and to forbid the negotiation of compulsory union membership provisions.

– Twenty-one “right to work states,” from Florida to Mississippi to Wyoming, ban all forms of union security.


14–36

The Union Drive and Election

• Step 1. Initial contact– The union determines employees’ interest in

organizing, and sets up an organizing committee.– Labor Relations Consultants– Union Salting

• Step 2. Obtaining authorization cards– 30% of eligible employees in an appropriate

bargaining unit must sign cards authorizing the union to petition the NLRB for an election.


14–37

The Organizing Drive

• Authorization cards– Let the union seek a representation election.

– Designate the union as a bargaining representative in all employment matters.

– State that the employee has applied for membership in the union and will be subject to union rules and bylaws.


14–38

The Organizing Drive

• Employer responses to organizing– Can attack the union on ethical and moral grounds

and cite the cost of union membership.

– Cannot make promises of benefits.

– Cannot make unilateral changes in terms and conditions of employment that were not planned to be implemented prior to the onset of union organizing activity.

– Can inform employees of their right to revoke their authorization cards.


14–39

The Union Drive and Election (cont’d)

• Step 3. Hold a hearing– Consent election

• Employer chooses not to contest union recognition at all.

– Stipulated election• The employer chooses not to contest the union’s right to an

election, and/or the scope of the bargaining unit, and/or which employees are eligible to vote in the election.

– Contest of the union’s right to an election• An employer can insist on an NLRB hearing to determine if

employees wish to elect a union to represent them.


14–40

The Union Drive and Election (cont’d)

• Step 4. The campaign– Both sides present their platforms.

• Step 5. The election– Held within 30 to 60 days after the NLRB issues its

Decision and Direction of Election.– The election is by secret ballot; the NLRB provides

and counts the ballots.– The union becomes the employees’

representative by getting a majority of the votes cast in the election.


15–41

How to Lose an NLRB Election

• Reason 1. Asleep at the switch

• Reason 2. Appointing a committee

• Reason 3. Concentrating on money and benefits

• Reason 4. Industry blind spots

• Reason 5. Delegating too much to divisions


15–42

Union Avoidance: What Not to Do

• Human resources professionals must be very careful to do the following during union activities at their companies:

– Watch what you say. Angry feelings of the moment may get you in trouble.

– Never threaten workers with what you will do or what will happen if a union comes in.

– Don’t tell union sympathizers that they will suffer in any way for their support. Don’t terminate or discipline workers for engaging in union activities.

– Don’t interrogate workers about union sympathizers or organizers.

– Don’t ask workers to remove union screensavers or campaign buttons if you allow these things for other organizations.

– Don’t treat pro-union or anti-union workers any differently.


15–43

Figure 15–4 Source: From the BLR Newsletter “Best Practices in HR.” Copyright © 2003, Business & Legal Reports, Inc. Reprinted with permission of the publisher, HRNext.com. Copyright HRNext.com, 2003.

Union Avoidance: What Not to Do (cont’d)– Don’t transfer workers on the basis of union affiliation or sympathies.

– Don’t ask workers how they or others intend to vote.

– Don’t ask employees about union meetings or any matters related to unions. You can listen, but don’t ask for any details.

– Don’t promise workers benefits, promotions, or anything else if they vote against the union.

– Avoid becoming involved in the details of the union’s election or campaign, and don’t participate in any petition movement against the union.

– Don’t give financial aid or any support to any unions.

• Any one of these practices may result in a finding of “unfair labor practices,” which may in turn result in recognition of a union without an election, as well as fines for your company.


15–44

Figure 15–4 (cont’d)Source: From the BLR Newsletter “Best Practices in HR.” Copyright © 2003, Business & Legal Reports, Inc. Reprinted with permission of the publisher, HRNext.com. Copyright HRNext.com, 2003.

The Collective Bargaining Process

• What Is collective bargaining?– Both management and labor are required by law to

negotiate wage, hours, and terms and conditions of employment “in good faith.”

• What Is good faith bargaining?– Both parties communicate and negotiate.– They match proposals with counterproposals in a

reasonable effort to arrive at an agreement.– It does not mean that one party compels another to

agree to a proposal or make any specific concessions.


15–45

Violations of Good Faith Bargaining• Surface bargaining• Inadequate concessions• Inadequate proposals and demands• Dilatory tactics• Imposing conditions.• Making unilateral changes in conditions.• Bypassing the representative.• Committing unfair labor practices during negotiations.• Withholding information• Ignoring bargaining items


15–46

Classes of Bargaining Items

• Voluntary (permissible) bargaining items– Items in collective bargaining over which bargaining is neither illegal

nor mandatory—neither party can be compelled against its wishes to negotiate over those items.

• Illegal bargaining items– Items in collective bargaining that are forbidden by law; for example, a

clause agreeing to hire “union members exclusively” would be illegal in a right-to-work state.

• Mandatory bargaining items– Items in collective bargaining that a party must bargain over if they

are introduced by the other party—for example, pay.


15–47

Bargaining Items


15–48

Table 15–1

Mandatory

Rates of pay

Wages

Hours of employment

Overtime pay

Shift differentials

Holidays

Vacations

Severance pay

Pensions

Insurance benefits

Profit-sharing plans

Christmas bonuses

Company housing, meals, and discounts

Employee security

Job performance

Union security

Management–unionrelationship

Drug testing of employees

Permissible

Indemnity bonds

Management rights as tounion affairs

Pension benefits of retired employees

Scope of the bargaining unit

Including supervisors in the contract

Additional parties to thecontract such as the international union

Use of union label

Settlement of unfair labor changes

Prices in cafeteria

Continuance of past contract

Membership of bargaining team

Employment of strike breakers

Illegal

Closed shop

Separation of employeesbased on race

Discriminatory treatment

Source: Michael B. Carnell and Christina Heavrin, Labor Relations and Collective Bargaining (Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall, 2001), p. 177.

Bargaining Stages

• Presentation of initial demands– Both parties are usually quite far apart on some issues.

• Reduction of demands– Each side trades off some of its demands to gain others.

• Subcommittee studies– The parties form joint subcommittees to try to work out reasonable

alternatives.

• An informal settlement– Each group goes back to its sponsor. Union seeks to have members

vote to ratify the agreement.

• Signing the formal agreement


15–49

Key Terms


15–50

closed shop

union shop

agency shop

open shop

right to work

Norris-LaGuardia Act (1932)

National Labor Relations (or Wagner) Act

National Labor Relations Board (NLRB)

Taft-Hartley Act (1947)

authorization cards

bargaining unit

decertification

collective bargaining

good faith bargaining

voluntary bargaining items

illegal bargaining items

mandatory bargaining items

impasse

mediation

fact finder

arbitration

strike

economic strike

unfair labor practice strike

wildcat strike

grievance

Management and Their Association

6–51

TOPIC 7

Introduction

• Management is a term used to describe the people who direct the activities of an organisation on behalf of its owners and the functions performed by those people.

• Why study management?

– A more assertive approach in recent years:• international competition has focused greater attention

on containing labour costs

6–52

Defining Management• To transform labour into productive output,

management establishes structures of control and co operation. E.g. management decides how work will be organized, at what pace workers will work , under which condition will they work, and how various employees will relate to one another.

• Two basic beliefs for management are management prerogative and workers as factors of production

6–53

Management Beliefs • Management prerogative – managers right to

manage an organisation.• MP can be defined as those areas of decision

making within an organisation over which managers claim to have an exclusive right to decide as they see what is fit

• The types of issues managers claim to be theirs to decide unilaterally are :

- No interference of trade unions - Hiring and firing- Promotions- Discipline- Production control - Decision on overtime etc.

6–54

Individual and collectivism

• Individualism – refers to the extent to which management gives importance to the individual employee and seeks to develop his/ her capacity and roles at work

• Low individualism – treating employees like a commodity by pursuing a tight control oriented policy of industrial relations

• High Individualism – management treat employees as valuable resources of organization. It involves extensive use of communication with individual employees. Staff development and retention are core priorities of the IR policy. Management devise attractive performance based payment system for its workers.

6–55

Collectivism

• Refers to which to the extent management recognizes the collective rights of the employees to have a say in those aspects of decision making which affect them individually or collectively

• Low collectivism – management is still interested in controlling or neutralizing the power of the unions. The extreme low degree of collectivism is called unitarist where unions are completely avoided

• High collectivism – consultative or co operative style of management

• Unions are encouraged to make constructive relationships with company

6–56

B. Employers’ Associations

What is an employers’ association• Gained prominence in recent years in shaping the government ‘s employment

relations policies and union busting activities• They are formed to achieve their sectional interests:

- promoting a particular trade or industry- improve their professional contacts- collectively regulate the terms and conditions of employment

• Trade associations vs. employer associations• Consisting predominantly of employers and whose activities include participating in

determining employees’ conditions of employment on behalf of its members (Plowman, 1991)

• The employer equivalent of unions for employees.

6–57

Why have employers’ associations

• Attracted attention of researchers since they are increasingly influencing the government’s economic and employment policies – theories on their existence

• Two major questions:– Why such associations come into being?

and– What do these associations do?

• Four major explanations:1. The market extension thesis;2. The countervailing power thesis;3. The three models explanation thesis; and4. The exogenous factors thesis

6–58


1. The market extension thesis (J R Commons, 1909)

– Extended market separates employer/employee functions creating mutually opposing interests

– This separation bought about mutually protective and competitive organizations

2. The countervailing power thesis

– Creation of one power group creates another opposing power group

– Employers’ associations came into being because of the creation of trade unions

– Employers’ associations are mainly defensive in their origin

6–59


3. The three models thesis (Jackson & Sisson, 1975)– Defensive model: employers reasons for

combining are essentially defensive, however defensive reasons do not explain their growth

– Political model: employers create associations to dictate their terms in conditions of employment and to resolve the conflicts

– Economic model: to control the cost of labour. Wages determined by the free market are competitive and run out of control

4. The exogenous factor thesis (McCaffree, 1962) – External factors such as the development of

strong trade unions, government legislation, and other external environment factors force creation of such associations.

6–60

Summary• ‘Management style’ refers to the guiding principles for

the management employment relations• Managements’ IR strategy/style ranges from:

– Control to commitment– Innovation to cost reduction– Individualist to collectivist– Unitarist to collectivist– Union avoidance to union cooperation

• Employer associations, counter to the trade unions, play a key role in influencing the public policy as well as assisting members in industrial relations matters

• Australian/South Pacific managements became more assertive in past two decades

6–61

Developing Employee Relations

© 2004 by Prentice Hall Terrie Nolinske, Ph.D.

13 - 62

13

Challenges

• What are examples of programs used to facilitate employee communications?

• How can employees use various appeals procedures to challenge management actions?

• How can managers use employee assistance programs effectively?

• What are examples of technological innovations that facilitate dissemination of information?

© 2004 by Prentice Hall Terrie Nolinske, Ph.D. 13 - 63

Employee Relations Rep

Member of HR who• ensures policies are followed• consults with supervisors• consults with employees


Employee Relations Policy

• Communicates management’s thinking about employee-related matters

• Prevents problems in workplace from becoming more serious


Communication Process

Sender Receiver(encodes message) (decodes

message)


Barriers

(noise)

Feedback

How to Communicate Feedback to Employees

• Focus on specific behaviors• Give feedback at appropriate time / place• Focus negative feedback on behaviors that

can be controlled by employee


Downward Communication… allows managers to implement

their decision and

to influence employees lower

in organizational hierarchy


Upward Communication…

allows employees at

lower levels

to communicate

ideas and feelings

to higher-level decision makers


Information Dissemination

• Employee Handbook

• Written Communications– Memos– Financial Statements– Newsletters– Bulletin Boards


Information Dissemination (cont’d)…

Audiovisual Communications– Video Presentations– Teleconferencing

Electronic Communications– Voice Mail– Electronic Mail


Information Dissemination (cont’d)…

• Meetings• Retreats• Informal Communications


Employee Feedback Programs Employee Attitude Surveys


To what extent are you satisfied with...

1. pay and bonus

2. chance to get a promotion

3. respect from management

4. morale of my division

5. responsibility to do work

HighlySatisfied Satisfied

HighlyDissatisfied

X

X

X

X

X

– Allocation of overtime – Warnings for safety rule violations– Size of merit pay increases– Specification of job duties– Employer’s reimbursement for claims filed

by employees– Performance evaluations


Management Actions Commonly Appealed

Employee Feedback ProgramsAppeals Options

• Open door program• Speak-up program• Grievance panel – non union firms• Union grievance procedure


International Comparisons of Employee Satisfaction

Switzerland Germany France Hong Kong


82%72%

66% 65%58% 53%

43%31%

Per

cen

t S

atis

fied

wit

h C

om

pan

yas

an

Em

plo

yer

100%

0

A troubled employee may have…1. excessive absenteeism patterns

2. poor judgment and bad decisions

3. unusual on-the-job accidents

4. involvements with the law

5. deteriorating personal appearance

6. problems relating to other people© 2004 by Prentice Hall Terrie Nolinske, Ph.D. 13 - 77

Employee Assistance Program (EAP)


EAP counseling

Employee refuses help;is terminated if problem has significant impact onwork

Treatment unsuccessful; employee is terminated.

TreatmentProblem solved;

employee keeps working or, if on leave, returns to work

Identify troubled employee:

•Self - id

•Supervisor id

Employee Recognition ProgramSuggestion Systems

• “Suggestion evaluation committee” evaluates suggestions; explains to employees why some suggestions have not been used

• Implement accepted suggestions immediately and give credit to the suggestion’s originator

• Make value of reward proportional to suggestion’s benefit to the company


Employee Recognition SystemsEmployee Awards

– Give public credit to people or teams who make outstanding contributions

– Can be initiated by anyone

– Celebrates team or individual success

– Encourages organization members to work toward the organization’s goals


Some employees feel uncomfortable when recognized in a public way. As a manager, how would you work with HR staff to design an employee recognition program for your Department, taking into account recognition for both individuals and teams.


• Case

Issues & Challenges affecting HRM

Collective Bargaining Collective Bargaining

finis

fundamentals of

Human Resource Management 4th editionby R.A. Noe, J.R. Hollenbeck, B. Gerhart, and P.M. Wright

CHAPTER 14Collective Bargaining and Labor

Relations

What Do I Need to Know?

1. Define unions and labor relations and their role in organizations.

2. Identify the labor relations goals of management, labor unions, and society.

3. Summarize laws and regulations that affect labor relations.

4. Describe the union organizing process.

What Do I Need to Know? (continued)

5. Explain how management and unions negotiate contracts.

6. Summarize the practice of contract administration.

7. Describe more cooperative approaches to labor-management relations.

Role of Unions

• In the U.S., most workers act as individuals to select jobs that are acceptable to them and to negotiate pay, benefits, flexible hours, and other work conditions.

• At times, workers have believed their needs and interests do not receive enough consideration from management.

• One response by workers is to act collectively by forming and joining labor unions.

Unions and Labor Relations

• Unions – organizations formed for the purpose of representing their members’ interests in dealing with employers.

• Labor relations – field that emphasizes skills managers and union leaders can use to minimize costly forms of conflict (such as strikes) and seek win-win solutions to disagreements.

Labor relations involves three levels of decisions:

National and International Unions

• Most Union members belong to a national or international union. These unions may be:– Craft unions: labor unions whose members all

have a particular skill or occupation.– Industrial unions: labor unions whose members

are linked by their work in a particular industry.• Most national unions are affiliated with the

American Federation of Labor and Congress of Industrial Organizations (AFL-CIO).

Figure 14.1: 10 Largest Unions in the United States

The decline in union membership has been attributed to:

Figure 14.3: Union Membership Rates and Coverage in Selected Countries

Many Union Workers Hold Government Jobs

Impact of Unions on Company Performance

• Harley-Davidson and the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers have cooperated to produce good results.

• In general, though, companies wishing to become more competitive need to continually monitor their labor relations strategies.

Goals of Management

• Management goals are to increase the organization’s profits. Managers tend to prefer options that lower costs and raise output.

• When an employer has recognized a union, management’s goals continue to emphasize restraining costs and improving output.

• Managers prefer to keep their organization’s operations flexible.

Goals of Management (continued)

• In their labor relations, managers prefer to:– Limit increases in wages and benefits, and– Retain as much control as they can over work

rules and schedules.

Goals of Labor Unions

• Labor unions have the goals of obtaining pay and working conditions that satisfy their members and of giving members a voice in decisions that affect them.

• They obtain these goals by gaining power in numbers.

• Unions want to influence the way pay and promotions are determined.

Goals of Labor Unions (continued)

• The survival and security of a union depend on its ability to ensure a regular flow of new members and member dues to support the services it provides.

• Unions place high priority on negotiating two types of contract provisions that are critical to a union’s security and viability:– Checkoff provisions– Union membership or contribution provisions

Goals of Labor Unions (continued)

Checkoff Provision• Contract provision

under which the employer, on behalf of the union, automatically deducts union dues from the employees’ paychecks.

Membership Security• Closed shop• Union shop• Agency shop• Maintenance of

membership

Goals of Society

• The activities of unions and management take place within the context of society.

• Society’s values drive the laws and regulations that affect labor unions.

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

Laws Affecting Labor Relations

Laws Affecting Labor Relations (continued)

• Right-to-work laws: state laws that make union shops, maintenance of membership, and agency shops illegal.

• National Labor Relations Board (NLRB): Federal government agency that enforces the NLRA by conducting and certifying representation elections and investigating unfair labor practices.

Figure 14.4:States with Right-to-Work Laws

Test Your Knowledge

True (A) or False (B)1. The NLRA established unfair labor practices on the part

of the union.2. The NLRB determines which states are Right-to-Work3. In Right-to-Work states, employees do not have to

become members of the union4. In states without Right-to-Work laws unions can refuse

to hire non-union members.5. Protection from union misconduct was established by

the Landrum-Griffin Act.

The Process of Organizing

Signing Authorization Cards

• A document indicating that an employee wants to be represented by a labor organization in collective bargaining

• Is there sufficient interest on the part of employees to justify the unit

• Evidence of interest when at least 30 percent of the employees in a work group sign an authorization card

• Usually need 50% to proceed

Figure 14.5:Example of an Authorization Card

Petition for Election

• After authorization cards have been signed, a petition for election is made to the regional NLRB office

• NLRB will ordinarily direct that an election be held within 30 days

Election and Certification

• NLRB monitors the secret-ballot election on the set date

• Board will issue a certification of the results to the participants

• Majority of the employees vote for union. NLRB will certify.

• Process does not require either party to make concessions; it only compels them to bargain in good faith

Union Strategies

• Organizers call or visit employees at home to talk about issues like pay and job security.

• Offer workers associate union membership.• Conduct corporate campaigns.• Negotiate employer neutrality and card-check

provisions into a contract.

Union Decertification

• Taft-Hartley Act made it possible for employees to decertify a union

• Essentially the reverse of the process that employees must follow to be recognized as an official bargaining unit

• Employees have used decertification petitions with increasing frequency and success

Decertification Procedure

• At least 30 percent must petition for election• Petition submitted 60-90 days prior to

expiration of current contract• Schedule decertification election• If majority votes against union, employees will

be union free

Collective Bargaining

• In collective bargaining a union negotiates on behalf of its members with management representatives to arrive at a contract defining:– Recognition– Management Rights– Union Security– Compensation and Benefits– Grievance Procedure– Employee Security

Test Your Knowledge: Which of the Following is an Unfair Labor Practice (ULP)?

1. Enforcing disciplinary policies only to those who have expressed interest in a union

2. Showing employees articles about negative aspects of unions that occurred elsewhere

3. Email employees asking them to respond with how they plan to vote in the union election

4. Tell employees the disadvantages of having a union5. Enforcing disciplinary policies when deserved to a pro-union

employee6. Promise employees an additional week of vacation if they

vote against the union

Bargaining Over New Contracts

When Bargaining Breaks Down

Strikes• Strike: a collective

decision by union members not to work until certain demands or conditions are met.

Alternatives to Strikes• Mediation• Fact Finder• Arbitration

Figure 14.6:Strikes Involving 1,000 or More Workers

Alternatives to Strikes

Contract Administration

Contract Administration

• Includes carrying out the terms of the agreement and resolving conflicts over interpretation or violation of the agreement.

Grievance Procedure• The process for

resolving union-management conflicts over interpretation or violation of a collective bargaining agreement.

Figure 14.7: Steps in an Employee- Initiated Grievance Procedure

Labor-Management Cooperation

Test Your Knowledge

True (A) or False (B)1.Mediation requires each party to abide by the

mediator’s decision.2.Clearly written contracts require less contract

administration time due to fewer disagreements over interpretation.

3. Integrative bargaining involves a win-lose approach because the issues are considered a fixed pie.

4.A union steward represents the issues concerning union employees and is elected by them.

Summary

• A union is an organization formed for the purpose of representing its members in resolving conflicts with employers.

• Labor relations is the management specialty emphasizing skills that managers and union leaders can use to minimize costly forms of conflict and to seek win-win solutions to disagreements.

• Management goals are to increase the organization’s profits. Managers generally expect that unions will make these goals harder to achieve.

Summary (continued)

• Labor unions have the goal of obtaining pay and working conditions that satisfy their members. They obtain these results by gaining power in numbers.

• Society’s values have included the hope that the existence of unions will replace conflict or violence between workers and employers with fruitful negotiation.

• In contrast to the traditional view that labor and management are adversaries, some organizations and unions work more cooperatively.

T e n t h e d i t i o n Gary Dessler Chapter 15 Part 5 Employee Relations Labor Relations and...

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