Union
Organizations formed for the purpose of representing their members’ interests and resolving conflicts with employers
labour relations
Emphasizes skills that managers and union leaders can use to cultivate effective labour-management cooperation, minimize costly forms of conflicts (e.g. strikes), and seek win-win solutions to disagreements
3 levels of labour relations decisions
- labour relations strategy
-management - negotiating collective agreements
-decisions about pay structure, job security, work rules, workplace safety, and other issues - administering collective agreements
-day-to-day activities which may involve handling disagreements
types of unions
-craft union
-union locals
-industrial unions
-labour congresses
decline in union membership
-Change in the structure of the economy
-Management efforts to control costs
-Human resource practices
impact on company performance
Decrease productivity
-work rules and workload limits set by union contracts
-production lost to union activities
Increase productivity
-reduce turnover
-improve management practices
management goals
- increase organisation’s profits
- keep labor costs low and increase output
-maintain flexible operations
labour union goals
-obtain pay and working conditions that satisfy members
-give members a voice in decisions
-better compensation and benefits
societal goals
-union activities take place within context of society
-drive laws that affect unions
-ensure that workers have a voice
unfair labour practices: management
-interfering in the formation of a union
-discriminating based on union membership
-coercing an employee to join
unfair labour practices: unions
-try to bargain when the union is not the certified agent
-persuading employees during working hours
-illegal strikes
collective bargaining
-negotiation between union representatives and management to arrive at an agreement defining conditions of employment
typical collective agreement provisions
-rights of parties
-organization of work
-labour relations
-education and training
-conditions of work
bargaining over new contracts
1- preparation for bargaining is important
2- union and management present proposals
3- each side considers proposals
4- union and management attempt to reach agreement
when Bargaining breaks down
-strike: collective decision by union members not to work
-lockout: closure of a place of employment
alternatives to strikes and lockouts
-mediation (mediator facilitates the process)
-conciliation (report on reasons for the dispute)
-arbitration (most formal intervention determines a binding settlement)
collective agreement administration
-grievance procedure: Process for resolving union-management conflicts over interpretation or violation of collective agreement
grievance procedure
- employee discusses problem with supervisor
- written grievance is submitted to production superintendent
- union appelas grievance to top line management and senior industrial relations staff
- union decides whether to appeal unresolved grievance to arbitration
labour-management cooperation
Wider acceptance that greater cooperation is beneficial vs. adversarial
