Employee and Labor Relations pt 1

Employment at Will

In most U.S. jurisdictions, either the employer or the employee can usually end the relationship at any time, for any reason that is not illegal, or for no reason at all; unless a contract or statute says otherwise.

employment at will exceptions

• public policy exception

• implied contract

  • covenant of good faith

NLRA 1935

Protects organizing,

concerted activity, and

collective bargaining. Creates

the NLRB. Major shift toward

labor power.

Fair Labor Standards Act 1938

Federal wage, overtime, and

child-labor floors for covered

work. The economic baseline

for most employees.

Taft Hartley 1947

Rebalances the framework.

Adds limits on certain union

practices, allows right-to-

work laws, clarifies employer

rights.

employment law

Discrimination & harassment

Reasonable accommodation

Leave protections (FMLA, PWFA)

Wage and hour rules (FLSA)

Retaliation prohibitions

Labor Law

Organizing and bargaining

Protected concerted activity

(even without a union)

Contract administration

Unfair labor practice risk

for any employer

core US employment statutes

equal opportunity

pay and hours

leave and job protection

Title IV of the civil rights act of 1964

Prohibits discrimination because of race, color,

religion, gender, national origin in employment

decision

enforced by: eeoc

equal pay act of 1963

Requires equal pay for substantially equal work

regardless of sex

• Jobs do not need to be identical. The comparison

is skill, effort, responsibility.

enforced by eeoc

Age discrimination act

Protects workers age 40 and older from

discrimination in hiring, firing, promotion, pay,

and other terms of employment.

• Applies to employers with 20 or more

employees.

• The employee generally must show that age

was the but-for cause of the decision.

Age discrimination act

• Prohibits discrimination against a qualified

individual with a disability.

• Requires reasonable accommodation of

known limitations unless doing so would

create undue hardship.

• Applies to employers with 15 or more

employees.

Family and Medical Leave Act

• Gives eligible employees of covered employers up

to 12 weeks of unpaid, job-protected leave for

qualifying reasons.

• Applies to covered employers with 50 or more

employees within 75 miles or public sector

employers

• Requires certain criteria to be eligible (12-month

employed + at least 1250 hours worked)

enforced by the department of labor

Pregnant Workers Fairness Act

• Requires covered employers to provide reasonable accommodations for known

limitations related to pregnancy, childbirth, or related medical conditions unless there is

undue hardship.

• Applies to employers with 15 or more employees.

• The law works alongside Title VII and the ADA, but it fills a gap when pregnancy-related

needs do not fit neatly under the ADA.

dual lens framework

1. is it lawful: retaliations and compliance. the minimum

   1. is it workable and fair: employee voice, trust, equity

employee voice

The willingness and ability of employees to raise ideas,

concerns, or problems without fear of retaliation. Voice

goes beyond formal grievance channels

psychological contract

The unwritten beliefs each side holds about what they owe

and are owed. Job security for loyalty. Development for

effort. Flexibility for going the extra mile. Formed during

recruiting, onboarding, and the first months. Nobody signs

it. Everyone enforces it. (Rousseau, 1995)

distributive

“was the outcome fair?”

procedural

“Was the process fair”

Interactional

“was I treated fairly”

what is a union

exclusive representation

collective bargaining

democratic orgnanization

exclusive representation

1st part of what a union in

Once certified or

recognized, the union

speaks for the entire

bargaining unit on wages,

hours, and working

conditions, including

members who did not vote

for it.

collective bargaining

2nd part of what a union is

The deal moves from one- to-one to a contract. Individual side deals on mandatory subjects generally stop once a union is in place

democratic organization

3rd part of what a union is

Members elect officers, vote on contracts, and pay dues. Locals handle grievances. Nationals resource campaigns and bargaining strategy

what a union is not

• not automatic pay

• not only factories

• not a lawsuit factor

  • not required for section 7

Why people organize

• the work

• the deal

• the voice

  • the pattern

the work

why people form unions

Pay that slipped behind. Hours that shifted

without warning. Staffing that became

unsafe. Benefits that quietly shrank

the deal

why people form unions

Promises made at hire that managers no

longer keep. Development that vanished.

"We're a family" - then a layoff email.

the voice

why people form unions

Speaking up was expensive. The first

person who disagreed became "difficult."

The parking lot became the only safe room

for honest talk.

the pattern

why people form unions

One bad week is a complaint. A recurring

pattern with no real channel becomes

something else: a campaign

TIPS

what managers may not do when talks of unions start to form. a framework

threaten, interrogate, promise, surveil

threaten

t in tips

"Close the plant." "Fire the loud one." "You'll

regret this." Any statement linking union

activity to adverse consequences.

interrogate

i in tips

"Who started the GroupMe?" "How did you

vote?" Asking about protected activity puts a

target on employees.

promise

p in tips

Sudden pizza, sudden raises, sudden "we'll fix

the schedule" timed specifically to kill

protected talk.

surveil

s in tips

Photographing the parking-lot huddle.

Monitoring a group chat you weren't already

part of. Watching who signs what.

membership interest

_______ fell for unions, however _____ did not

public sector strikes

many workers cannot strike due to labor management relations statutes that have been passed. bargaining powers are low

private sector unionization

default framework for the class, NLRA, NLRB jurisdiction

Railway and Air unionization

Different board. Different strike rules. Distinct processes - do not mix these rules with the NLRA

framework