Annual Editions: Labor-Management Relations 05/06

UNIT 1. Historical and Legal Regulation of Collective Bargaining1. Basic Labor Law, Gwynne A. Wilcox, Employee Rights Quarterly, Winter 2003Most of the collective bargaining process is based on the foundation of the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA). The main sections of the NLRA are reviewed and the relevance of each is explained.2. Individual "Concerted" Activity Under Federal Labor Laws, Mary-Kathryn Zachary, Supervision, January 2004Though the words concerted effort imply more than one person, it has been held that one person acting on the part of more than one person is provided certain forms of protection under the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA).3. U.S. Labor Law, Andrew Strom, Dollars and Sense, September/October 2003Though the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA) provides the opportunity to organize and join a union, if the majority of an employee group wished to do so, it is not that easy. The NLRA also provides opportunities for the employer to delay voting, delay negotiation of a contract, change the membership of an appropriate bargaining unit, and sometimes coerces employees into not voting for a union.4. Weingarten Rights in Non-Union Settings, Martha B. Pedrick, Labor Law Journal, Winter 2001Over the last twenty years the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) has changed its view of whether or not a non-union employee had the right to be provided a witness during an interview that is believed to possibly result in disciplinary action. Most recently the NLRB decided, in the Epilepsy Foundation of Northeast Ohio case, that a non-union employee has the right to a witness. A review of the NLRB decisions with regard to Weingarten rights is provided.5. Labor Pains for Union-Free Employers, Jonathan A. Segal, HR Magazine, March 2004When employees do not have a labor union representing them, it does not mean that they are not able to discuss workplace issues in a concerted effort manner. The concerted actions of employees are in many cases protected by labor laws and National Labor Relations Board decisions. These actions may include: employment terms, statements about the employer, work stoppages, honoring picket lines, and other actions normally considered to be unionized activities.6. The Impact of Employer E-Mail Policies on Employee Rights to Engage in Concerted Activities Protected by the National Labor Relations Act, Christine Neylon O'Brien, Dickinson Law Review, 2002There is an interrelationship between the employee's rights to engage in concerted effort activities under the National Labor Relations Act and an employer's policies on the use of e-mail. Monitoring of e-mail by an employer may not be allowed during an orgainizing compaign. Case law is discussed in light of the NLRA as it applies in such circumstances.7. The Thirteenth Amendment and the Right to Strike, James Pope, Dollars and Sense, January/February 2003The Thirteenth Amendment states: "Neither slavery nor involuntary servitude shall exist within the United States" yet current laws such as the Taft-Hartly Act allow the federal government the power to make workers return to their job if they do strike. Following the breaking of the PATCO strike in 1981, by then President Reagan, employers have felt freer to replace striking workers with permanent replacement workers. All but the stongest unions have quit using the strike as a union activity.8. Does America Need a National Right-to-work Law? (Pro and Con arguments ), Reed Larson and William L. Clay, Insight on the News, August 17, 1998Should workers have the right to join a labor union if they so desire or should workers be required to join a labor union and pay dues if a labor union is present in their workplace? Twenty-one states allow the worker the choice and twenty-nine states require the workers to join a union if one is present in the workplace. What are the two sides to the issue of right-to-work?9. The 'Living Wage': It Couldn't Do Any Harm, Charles R. Morris, Commonweal, October 11, 2002Over eighty jurisdictions have passed a living wage ordinance as a means of providing a reasonable standard of living level for low-wage workers in their respective area. Most living wage ordinances apply to local government workers or government contractors. Some research has shown that a living wage has not had a major impact on labor costs and prices. Other evidence is present that legislated pay and benefits can become distortive and inefficient.10. Palace Coup at the AFL-CIO, Aaron Bernstein, Business Week, March 17, 2003In 1995 John Sweeney was elected AFL-CIO President with a mandate to get the labor movement moving again. In 2003 a group of union leaders made somewhat of a palace coup attempt through the creation of a new governing body to run the federation. Will labor unions be able to regain a growth of membership by making changes in the bureaucracies that govern their bodies?11. Building Strength, Arthur Jones, National Catholic Reporter, April 18, 2003During the life of Cesar Chavez, the United Farm Workers (UFW) reached a pinnacle of 80,000 members and with the help of California Governor Gray Davis worked to pass the Agricultural Labor Relations Act; the beacon for agricultural workers. Today the UFW is trying to maintain his legacy and work for agricultural workers from a mountain headquarters two hours from Los Angles, CA.UNIT 2. Strategies for Collective Bargaining12. Guaranteeing Opportunity For The Workers, John J. Sweeney, Vital Speeches of the Day, September 3, 2003John Sweeney, AFL-CIO President, in a speech to the Detroit Economic Club discusses the role of labor in the U.S. and the relationship with management that is shipping American jobs overseas. He also discusses the policies of the federal government and the impacts that affect the American workers and their families.13. Should Collective Bargaining and Labor Relations be Less Adversarial?, Norman E. Bowie, Journal of Business Ethics, August 1985The author argues that the poker analogy is not appropriate for negotiations because it undermines trust between labor and management; ignores cooperation within business relationships; and ignores dignity and fairness that should be a characteristic of negotiations. A different model of ideal family decision making is proposed as a superior alternative to negotiations.14. The Developing Law of Neutrality Agreements, Charles I. Cohen and Jonathan C. Fritts, Labor Law Journal, Winter 2003Recently a neutrality agreement has become a concept frequently discussed at the negotiations table. The neutrality agreement may include not only a card-check recognition of a labor union, but more comprehensive issues that are discussed in the article. Case law is presented that has been upheld by several district courts under Section 301 of the Labor-Management Relations Act.15. Who Will Fold First?, Andy Meisler, Workforce Management, January 2004The AFL-CIO and the Teamsters entered a high-stakes battle with an anti-union Cintas and are helping UNITE in its attempt to unionize the Cintas worker. Researchers believe that the Cintas organizing result will be an indicator of the balance of power between management and labor unions for the future.16. E-Organizing, The Next Frontier? Labor Unions Seek Access to Company E-mail Systems, Thomas L. McDaniel, Compensation & Benefits Review, September/October 2003Because of technological advances that have made E-mail a convenient means of communications, unions are now seeking access to company intranet systems-especially when the employees are widely dispersed. The employers may have to provide unions access based upon a pending NLRB decision.17. PC Use at Home and for Union Organizing-New Challenges in the Wired Workplace, Thomas J. Cole Jr., Employment Relations Today, Spring 2002Scrutiny of employees' e-mail to determine if e-mail is being used to organize a union may result in the employer being in violation of the National Labor Relations Act. If an investigation determines that a violation has occurred, the employer can be charged with an unfair labor pracitce and prosecuted by the National Labor Relations Board.18. Collective Bargaining is the Right Step, Andrew C. Yacht, The New England Journal of Medicine, February 10, 2000Residents [doctors-in-training or house staff] across the country need an organized voice to ensure them of reasonable working conditions and to enhance their ability to care for patients. This article discusses how some municipal hospitals have improved working conditions for residents and how those improved working conditions have been guaranteed under contract for more than 40 years.19. Up Against Wal-Mart, Karen Olsson, Mother Jones, March/April 2003Workers in 27 states have sued Wal-Mart for violations of wage-and-hour laws. In Oregon the company was found guilty of forcing workers to work overtime without pay. Wal-Mart has responded to labor union organizing by trying to stop workers from organizing and it is frequently in violation of federal law.20. Rollback WAGES! Will Labor Take the Wal-Mart Challenge?, Liza Featherstone, The Nation, June 28, 2004In an attempt to suppress its workers right to organize unions, Wal-Mart has altered the labor politics, used creative and ruthless tactics, and driven down wages and benefits in the retail industry and beyond. Grocery workers in Southern California had to accept a reduced health plan after months of striking their employers. A realization among labor leaders is that organizing Wal-Mart workers is an urgent priority.21. Street Corner, Incorporated, Christopher D. Cook, Mother Jones, March/April 2002Labor Ready's annual report has depictions of its "emphasis on worker safety" and how it "treats its workers with respect." Lawsuits brought by workers and government agencies, and thousands of public record pages create a totally different image. Yet, people continue to line up early each morning waiting to be assigned a job for the day.UNIT 3. Labor-Management Contract Negotiations22. Labor Contract Negotiations in the Airline Industry, Andrew von Nordenflycht and Thomas A. Kochan, Monthly Labor Review, July 2003Why have contract negotiations within the airline industry been so difficult? Recent research has shown that on average contract negotiations take 1.3 years because of the quality of the labor-management relationships, and as a result, also productivity, customer service, and profitability. Therefore calls for reforms of the Railway Labor Act have gained momentum.23. Process, Strategy, and Tactics in Labor-Management Mediation, Paul D. Roose, Dispute Resolution Journal, November 2003 - January 2004Once a negotiation impasse has been reached and one or both sides believe that further progress cannot be made, it is often necessary to bring in a third-party mediator. Each mediator has a style of their own shaped by their personality as well as their past experiences. Mediation is not a science, it is an art. Some of the techniques and strategies that can be used in mediation, to assist the parties reach a settlement, are presented.24. Tortilla Flap, Sarah Karp, The Chicago Reporter, December 2002After changing labor unions to represent them, workers at Aztec Food walked out over differences on health care and charges of unfair labor practices. What is most unusual about this strike is that it pits Latino workers against a Latino owner. Some argue that the strike is not about health care and wages, but that the labor union was seeking publicity for itself without regard for the workers.25. Labor Adversaries Bury the Hatchet, Donald D. Tippett and Joseph Costa, Personnel Journal, May 1996Within an environment of a continuing change in contractors, 1350 workers represented by 13 unions at the Arnold Engineering Development Center in Tennessee had very little allegiance to their employer. In 1991 the new contract sought to negotiate improved work rules to boost productivity and cut costs. The result was a 57-day strike. Leaders on both sides sought out better ways of collective bargaining and the result was turnaround in the working relationships of all involved.26. The New Deal, Tonya Vinas, Industry Week, May 2003With the United Steelworkers of America and some of the steel companies having survived the industry's consolidations of the previous decade, they will be operating under more flexible and less costly labor contracts. Some experts believe that contracts in which unions give give-backs to management are going to be the trend of the future.27. Labor and Management Build a Prescription for Health, Jennifer Hutchins, Workforce, March 2001The DaimlerChrysler/United Auto Workers National Wellness Program is a collaboration between the automaker and the union representing its 90,000 workers across the U.S. The basis of the collaboration is the Wellness Advisory Council that meets quarterly at corporate headquarters and has six representatives. The program is managed by outside companies at 33 locations with a minimum of 500 or more employees each. Success of the program is measured by health-risk assessments, employee satisfaction surveys, and outside research.28. Deauthorization and Decertification Elections: An Analysis and Comparison of Trends, Clyde J. Scott and Edwin W. Arnold, Working USA, Winter 2003-2004An examination of the 48-year period of 1959 to 1998 reveals that labor unions won 42.2 percent of the deauthorization elections in the U.S. and only 28 percent of the decertification elections. Provisions for these elections are provided by the Taft-Hartley Act, Section 9(e) (1) and are seldom discussed in the literature of labor-management relations.UNIT 4. Dispute Resolution and Administering the Relationship29. Psychological Contracts in the Workplace: Understanding the Ties That Motivate, Denise M. Rousseau, Academy of Management Executive, February 2004Functional and dysfunctional employee actions are the outcomes of the labor-management relationship. What is the basis of the relationship and how does it function within an organizational setting? The author explains the concept of the psychological contract and its function in the labor-management relationship.30. Good Management/Union Relations can be a Sweet Deal, T.L. Stanley, Supervision, February 2003After several problems occurred in the negotiations and a strike took place, a contract was finally approved between Hershey Foods Co. and the Chocolate Workers Local 464. What made the difference was the good labor and management relationship. A good relationship can make many of the difficulties that arise between labor and management much easier to solve.31. Mending Labor-Management Relationships, James Flint, Public Management, August 2002The author argues that there is a labor-management relationship continuum composed of a series of evolution stages in how management and labor choose to relate between the parties. The author also argues that the relationship continuum is both descriptive and prescriptive of how and in which directions the parties should move (work) to enhance the relationship in a more positive and effective manner.32. Nature vs. Nurture, Jill Jusko, Industry Week, July 2003Recent breakdowns in the labor and management relationship have clearly demonstrated that there are not only financial costs, but more tragic human costs that result. When a need for change in the relationship was recognized, several companies have worked with the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers union to develop a high-performance work organization partnership.33. Quaker Oats Co., Jill Jusko, Industry Week, October 19, 1998In the late 1980's the Quaker Oats Co., Danville, IL facility was among the high-cost producers of the company, and the American Federation of Grain Millers Local 317 filed charges of unfair labor practices with the National Labor Relations Board. Today it is one of the best facilities in the company. The change was achieved by developing a culture where labor and management work toward common goals and depend on a mutually developed set of guiding principles.34. Ambiguities in Labor Contracts: Where do They Come From?, John B. LaRocco, Dispute Resolution Journal, February/April 2004What the words really mean is the major reason that the interpretation of a contract can lead to the filing of a
grievance by an employee and the union. The ultimate interpretation is left up to an arbitrator when the grievance cannot be settled by the main parties of the contract. Sometimes the ambiguity of the language is intentional by one of the parties and other times it is unintentional. Usually the dispute is the result of interpretation.35. Minimizing the Likelihood of Employment Litigation, Murray Schwartz and Taraneh Moayed, Employee Rights Quarterly, Spring 2002Many grievances in both union and non-union facilities end up in a courtroom litigation that can be very expensive-even if the defendant(s) wins the case against them. The author presents some simple steps that may prevent an employee complaint from becoming a litigation suit.36. The Pivotal Role of Labor-Management Committees, Workforce, January 5, 2004In recent years Labor-Management Committees (LMC) can be a means of bringing major changes about in the way that the two parties work with each other. Created during contract negotiations, LMC's often address issues that extend beyond the scope of traditional bargaining many of which are complex and require expanded study or technical assistance.37. Behavioral Safety: A Necessary Part of the Whole, Michael Topf, Occupational Hazards, September 2002With Behavior-based safety, the worker is the primary cause of accidents and injuries. This ignores the necessity for engineering improvements to hazardous equipment and conditions. Many critics of behavior-based safety argue that these programs allow management to minimize their responsibility for providing the safest conditions and equipment.38. Delphi Gets a Handle on Hand Protection, Sandy Smith, Occupational Hazards, March 2003Personal protective equipment (PPE) used by employees is the last barrier against hazards and have become serious business at Delphi. Only after trying to eliminate the hazard or condition is PPE implemented to provide as much protection as possible. Training and signs to communicate with the employees to help them recognize hazards are also used.39. Union Liability in Discrimination Cases, Mary-Kathryn Zachary, Supervision, October 2002Not only can an organization be held liable in an employment case, but unions may also be liable for their own conduct with regard to employment discrimination. Federal laws support and courts have held unions liable in several employment discrimination cases, as discussed in this article.40. Dispatches from Decatur: Community is the First Casualty in America's Labor Wars, Kevin Clarke, U.S. Catholic, April 1996Three months after the end of the disputes and strikes between three unions and three major employers, signs of the stuggles could continue to be seen around Decatur, IL. Because friends and relatives crossed picket lines or became replacement workers, a lot of friends and relatives are not talking to each other now that the disputes have been settled.UNIT 5. Public Sector Collective Bargaining41. Making Labor-Management Relations Integral to the Management Process, Kenneth L. Smith, The Public Manager, Fall 2001This article is a compilation of discussions that occurred at two Interagency Labor Relations Forums. The discussions focused on how to best create an effective two-way strategic linkage between labor relations strategy and the broader organizational strategy.42. Union Monopoly is Bad for Teachers, Myron Lieberman, USA Today Magazine (Society for the Advancement of Education), March 2003The National Education Association and the American Federation of Teachers represent nearly 100 percent of the teachers in 34 states that require school boards to bargain collectively with teachers. The two unions also operate under a no-compete agreement and have combined revenues believed to be over $1.5 billion in 2001-02.43. Trade Unions: The Facts, New Internationalist, December 2001With considerable differences in the density of union membership around the globe, this article provides considerable data about the actual membership throughout the world. The analyses show many interesting facts such as in France 90 percent of the workers are covered by collective bargaining while less than 10 percent belong to a union.UNIT 6. International Collective Bargaining44. Taming the Tigers, Trini Leung, New Internationalist, December 2001There is an explosive situation of labor unrest in China that very few know about in the rest of the world. With the lack of collective bargaining rights, there have been wildcat strikes and sit-ins, street demonstrations, road-blocks, and petitions to government offices. Even in Hong Kong, which was held by the British until 1997, citizens were denied democratic rights. While the labor movement is gaining momentum, the movement has a long way to go.45. Shut Up or Die!, Monica del Pilar Uribe, New Internationalist, December 2001Four-fifths of Columbians live in poverty, 22 percent are unemployed, and 2.5 million children are forced to work. Any goup that is directly engaged with these issues is subject to the violence that has resulted in assassinations of 3,100 trade union leaders. Labor laws and government policies have virtually abolished trade union rights.46. Employment Tribunals: Using Your Last Resort, Roisin Woolnough, Computer Weekly, June 27, 2002Created by the Industrial Training Act of 1964 in Great Britain, Employment Tribunals provide employees an additional alternative after the grievance process has been exhausted. The tribunals are independent judicial bodies, but do not have the formal legal rules of evidence and procedures of the courts. There has been an incredible growth in the number of cases going to the tribunals.47. The "Race to the Bottom" in Imported Clothes, Robert J.S. Ross, Dollars and Sense, January/February 2002Union and labor-rights activists have long argued that management of organizations seek the places where labor unions are weak, protection is least enforced, workers are repressed and labor the cheapest. Labor-rights activist call this process the "race to the bottom." This article is an analysis of the general trends by calculating the average hourly wage of global workers that produce goods exported to the United States.UNIT 7. The Future of Labor Union Movement in the United States48. Are Unions Obsolete? Neuhaus v. O'Connor on Labor, George G. Higgins, Commonweal, November 3, 2000Father Richard John Neuhaus, a priest under Cardinal John J. O'Connor, claims that the differences between labor and management no longer exist and that labor unions are now obsolete. This opposes the stance that Cardinal O'Connor held while he was alive. The author presents reasons why Neuhaus' argument is not true.49. A Proposal for a Twenty-First-Century Trade Union Education League: An Attempt to Solve the Crisis of Organizing the Unorganized, Judy Atkins and David Cohen, Working USA, January 31, 2004The authors propose that committees of workers should be forming to engage management in struggles to improve the wages, hours, and conditions of the workplace while establishing labor union locals. This idea is based upon the Trade Union Education League of the 1920's that was the basis of mass organizing in the 1930's.50. The Working Poor in 2001, Abraham T. Mosisa, Monthly Labor Review, November/December 2003The working poor are individuals who worked 27 weeks, but whose income was below the official poverty level. In 2001 there were approximately 6.8 million workers in 3.7 million families who were considered "working poor," an increase for the first time since 1992-1993. Working youth have historically experienced the highest level of poverty.