Transcript Mgmt 583 - University of Mississippi

Mgmt 583
Chapter 6: Union Organizing
Fall 2008
Factors Conducive to Union
Organizing
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Work Environment Factors
Personal & Demographic Factors
Work Environment Factors
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Low wages
Inadequate benefits
Favoritism
Lack of due process
Internal inequities in pay structure
Unsafe working conditions
Poor communications with management
Work Environment Factors
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Increased responsibility without increase
compensation
Inadequate grievance mechanism
Discriminatory practices
Job insecurity
Inconsistency in pay and promotion decisions
Arbitrary & capricious management
practices
Personal & Demographic Factors
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Sociocultural background
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White-collar families are generally anti-union.
Blue-collar workers are more receptive.
Race, sex, and religion
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Blacks are more prone to accept unions.
Women are less prone to accept unions.
Older workers are more prone to accept.
Personal & Demographic Factors
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Geographic location
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Southern and Western states are less likely (though this
relationship has weaken in recent studies among bluecollar workers).
Southern white-collar workers are still the least likely to
join unions.
Urban v. Rural
Perception of unions
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Those who perceive unions as corrupt are less likely to
join.
Personal & Demographic Factors
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Employee commitment to the job
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Employees who see themselves as long-term
employees are more likely to accept a union.
Industry in which the union is organizing
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Historically organized industries tend to
encourage further organization.
The exception maybe the auto industry
Personal & Demographic Factors
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Presence of right-to-work laws
Personal desire to exert more influence on the
job
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Particularly true in public sector organizing.
Peer pressure
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If your buddies want a union, so do you.
Vice versa
Union Organizing Tactics
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Establishing Organizational Targets
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Identifying potential targets (benefit/cost)
 Propensity of workers to support organizing.
 Anticipated employer reaction.
 Composition of the proposed BU
[homogenous BUs are easy to organize than
heterogeneous ones).
Telephone surveys of potential BU.
Union Organizing Tactics
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Initial Contacts
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Intelligence gathering.
 Identifying real or potential dissatisfaction.
 Assessing current conditions.
Formulating organizing agenda.
Recruiting pro-union employees.
Holding training sessions.
Union Organizing Tactics
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Obtaining “Critical Mass” (generally 60-70% of the
proposed BU).
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“Tuperware” parties.
Mass meetings
Telephone campaigns
Pamphlets
Responding to employer countermeasures
 Rebuttals to statements
 Legal actions.
Obtaining employee signatures on authorization
cards.
Representation Process
Authorization Card Campaign
Recognition
[50% + 1]
Certification
[30%]
File Recognition
Petition
File Certification
Petition
Consent Election
Decree
Collective Bargaining
Begins
Formal Election
Hearing
Election
Authorization Card Campaign
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A Union Authorization Card is a card that
authorizes the Union to negotiate with an employer
over your wages, hours and other conditions of
work.
Signing a union authorization card does NOT
obligate an employee to vote for the union in a
certification election?
Authorization Card Campaign
Even if you signed a union authorization card before or during the
campaign, you are not obligated to vote for the union in the election
Authorization Card Campaign
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Showing of interest
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Must have a minimum of 30% if they are to file
for certification.
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Unions generally look for 60-70%.
Certification process stops dead for 12 months if they
can’t get 30% within 30 days [in most cases].
Must have a simple majority (50%+1) if they are
seeking recognition.
Neutrality Agreement
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An agreement stating that the employer will not
campaign against the union while union agents
solicit signed authorization cards.
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Often done to avoid a corporate campaign.
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A corporate campaign is a “top down” organizing
approach in which the union attacks the employer’s public
image, makes it difficult for the employer to conduct
business, and then pressures top level management to
succumb to union demands.
Source: The Facts On Union Certification By Card Check (May 2006) Hospitality
Labor Letter http://www.fisherphillips.com/showarticle.aspx?Ref=list&Type=1119&
Cat=3387&Show=3835
Proactive Management
Countermeasures
(1) Provide market wage & benefits
(2) Comprehensive benefit plans
(3) Favorable employee/management relations
(4) Safe working conditions
(5) Job security measures
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Handbooks
Just cause actions
Procedural due process
Proactive Management
Countermeasures
(6) Due process and complaint handling
(7) Communicate to employees how successful
the firm is (emphasize nonunion work
environment)
(8) Monitor employee attitudes (surveys)
(9) Attempt to screen out pro-union candidates
during the hiring process (may violate
NLRA)
Proactive Management
Countermeasures
(10) Benefit from the research on organizational
structure. The following are not conducive to
organizing:
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Small plants (<200)
Limited access
Rural Southern locations
Legal Reactive Countermeasures
(1) Provide factual antiunion information
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Letters to employees
Bulletin boards
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Factual information about unions in general.
Factual information about the union in question.
Factual information about local wages and cost of
living.
Displays
Remind employees about dues & strikes.
Legal Reactive Countermeasures
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Remind employees that work rules will still be
enforced
Remind employees that even if they signed an
authorization card they don’t have to vote “yes”
for the union in the secret ballot.
(2) Announce that you will use all legal means
to fight the union.
Legal Reactive Countermeasures
(3) Permit “No Vote” committees (be care to not
violate § 8a(2)).
(4) Hire consultants.
(5) Train supervisory personnel.
(6) Ban union organizers from company
property.
(7) Enforce the Republic Aviation rule
Republic Aviation Rule
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Employees may distribute union organizing
materials for the union in nonwork areas
during nonwork times.
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Break areas
Cafeterias (except cafeteria workers)
Parking lots
Locker rooms
Republic Aviation Corp, v. NLRB, 324 U.S. 793 (1945).
Illegal Reactive Countermeasures
(1) Threatening to discharge pro-union employees
(2) Threatening to close or relocate the plant
(3) Spying on pro-union employees
(4) Making any employment decision based on whether
an employee is pro-union or anti-union
(5) Favoring another union over the one favored by
employees.
Illegal Reactive Countermeasures
(6) Stating that nothing will change even if the
union is certified
(7) Providing open support for anti-union
employee organizations
(8) Predicting strikes if the union is certified
(9) Spreading knowingly false information
(10) Violating the Peerless Plywood rule
Peerless Plywood Rule
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It is unlawful to hold any “captive audience”
meetings within 24 hours of the representation
election.
The Election
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Usually held within 30 days of the formal
election hearing or consent election
agreement.
Secret ballot supervised by the NLRB.
Election outcome is determined by a
majority of the ballots cast.
Post Election Matters
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Challenges to ballots
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Dual status employees
Seasonal employees
Confidential employees
Strikers who have been on an economic strike in
excess of 12 months (more common in
decertification).
Post Election Matters
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Challenges that the election was unfair
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Unfair labor practices precluded a fair election.
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Hiring a large number of anti-union employers just
before the election.
Threats of layoffs and plant closings (J.P. Stevens)
Convincing evidence of a pattern of actions designed
to undermine union support.
NLRB Remedies
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Conduct new elections
Bargaining order (occurs less than 1.2% of all
elections).
Some Election Statistics
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Unions win less than 50% of elections.
Union success rate is greater in the public
sector.
Healthcare is the easiest private sector
industry to organize.
Best BUs to organize are low-wage, female,
minorities, under 35-years of age and live in a
small town
Decertification
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Same process as with certification (see §9).
Management must stay completely out of the
process.
Time frame
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Minimum of 12 months since previous election.
Maximum of 36 months with a valid contract bar.
Contract Bar
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A rival union cannot request certification, nor can a
decertification petition be accepted by the NLRB
while a valid CBA is in effect.
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Decertification petition may be filled no less than 60
days and no earlier than 90 days prior to the expiration
of a valid CBA.
No contract bar is permitted to extend more than 3 years
by the NLRB.
Incentive for a one-year duration for the first contract
after certification.