employee and labor relations pt 2

The organizing path (private sector)

1. contact

2. cards

3. petition

4. unit

5. campaign

   1. election

authorization card

• signed statement by employees that say they want the union to represent them

  • 30% is the amount of cards need to petition the NLRB for a union election

50%

percentage needed for companies to recognize unions

bargaining unit

• community of interest

• statute of carve-outs

  • why it is a fight

Supervisor under NLRA section 2

1. the function: hire, fire, discipline, discharge, etc

2. the Judgement: independent judgement, not following a checklist

   1. the Interest: not only just the most experienced, authority interest of the employer

Secret ballot

conducted when the unions are being voted on. Conducted by an NLRB agent. No signatures. Majority of votes

cast (NOT majority of the full unit) wins.

the conduct doctrine

Judge the WHOLE campaign, not one act. The Board

asks whether the pattern denied a free choice. One

slip usually survives... a drumbeat does no

What the employer may say during a union forming

views, argument, and facts with no threat or promise

allowed on non-working time

employee solitication (talking) during union formation talks (allowed or not?)

allowed in non-work areas on non-work time

employee distribution (literature) during union talks (allowed or not?)

must be non-discriminatory

enforcement during labor talks (allowed or not?)

no right to property, even on parking lot

non-employee organizers during union talks (allowed or not?)

30 days after campaign begins

time period where Captive-audience meetings ALLOWED on paid time. The union

gets no equal time in that room

24 hours before election

BLACKOUT: no mass, on-the-

clock captive speeches

never banned

literature, one-on-one conversations, right to vote during union organizing

yes

can unions lie or falsify things during their campaign?

7 days after the vote

when can you file an election objection?

within 6 months of conduct

when can you file that an unfair labor practice took place?

HRBPs during campaigns

1. train supervisors on tips first

2. campaign on facts

3. freeze nothing, launch nothing

4. document, don’t interrogate

   1. call counsel before mass action

survival, competitiveness, profitability, equity

what are common things from both unions and management?

shapes company strategy

• managerial philosophy

• managerial ethics

• economic conditions

• workforce composition

• competition in industry

  • stage in life cycle

union suppression, union avoidance, union substituions

what are the three company strategies when it comes to unions?

union suppression

Union busting,

illegal acts, refusal

to bargain,

decertification

union avoidance

Positive human resource management, double-breasting

Union substitution

Company paternalism, company-sponsored employee organizations, employee participation and

involvement

how unions plan

1. mission statement

2. external environment analysis

3. internal environment analysis

4. long-term and short-term objectives

   1. strategy for growth and survival

three paths to union success

1. collective bargaining

2. political activities

   1. broader organizing

what a union may NOT do

• coerce or restrain employees from using their rights

• pressure an employer to discriminate

• refuse to bargain in good faith

  • pressure neutral employees to boycott