Exam 12: Dealing With Union and Employeemanagement Issues

Despite a 1938 Supreme Court ruling allowing their use, were seldom used by management during labor- management disputes until the 1980s.

The AFL was concerned primarily with:

is the process by which a group of workers legally take away a union's right to represent them.

Mini-Case The workers at Endrun Corporation are not affiliated with a union. Until recently, the workers felt they were well paid and treated fairly by the company, so they had little interest in seeking union representation. However, worker morale at Endrun has declined steadily since the board of directors fired the old CEO last year and replaced him with Ty Runt, a no-nonsense, autocratic manager with a reputation for cutting costs. As soon as he took over, Ty fired other members of the old top management team and replaced them with people who shared his views. Together, the new management team made a series of moves that did not sit well with Endrun's workers. First, they announced changes in work procedures designed to speed up the production line. Many workers complained that the new methods cut corners and were unsafe, but management refused to listen. A few months after changing work methods, the company told workers that it was reducing their health benefits. This led to even greater worker unrest. Finally, just a few weeks ago, workers received word that the wages of all production line employees would be cut by 6 percent. Many employees felt this was the last straw, especially since the company's board of directors recently approved big salary increases and more lucrative stock option plans for Ty and his management team. A spokesperson for the board explained that the raises were justified because of the management team's "outstanding efforts to reduce costs, increase productivity, and improve the company's profits." Several disgruntled employees, led by Ima Striker and Boyd Cotter, now believe it is time to obtain union representation. Top managers at the company have hinted that workers who actively participate in the union campaign may be among the first workers laid off if the company decides to downsize. Ima and Boyd are not intimidated by these management threats. "I wish we didn't have to do this," Ima recently told many of her fellow workers at the plant. "But someone has to stop Ty Runt and his team from ruining our jobs." -If management's efforts did not disrupt everyone's work life enough the company board of directors just awarded management with increased pay while cutting the workers pay. Which of the following issues promises to be a controversial labor-management issue?

The negotiated labor-management agreement clarifies the terms and conditions under which labor and management agree to function over a specified period of time.

A(n) is a court order directing someone to do something or to refrain from doing something.

Arbitration is an agreement to bring in an impartial third party to render a binding decision in a labor dispute.

Critics of labor unions argue that unions are no longer needed to protect workers from abusive and unfair treatment because:

During the 1920s and early 1930s the Dallas Sheet Metal Shop was able to prevent workers from forming a union by requiring them to sign an employment contract in which they agreed not to join a union as a condition of employment. Dallas was making use of:

The Taft-Hartley Act allowed states to pass laws that prohibited compulsory union membership.

Mini-Case The workers at Endrun Corporation are not affiliated with a union. Until recently, the workers felt they were well paid and treated fairly by the company, so they had little interest in seeking union representation. However, worker morale at Endrun has declined steadily since the board of directors fired the old CEO last year and replaced him with Ty Runt, a no-nonsense, autocratic manager with a reputation for cutting costs. As soon as he took over, Ty fired other members of the old top management team and replaced them with people who shared his views. Together, the new management team made a series of moves that did not sit well with Endrun's workers. First, they announced changes in work procedures designed to speed up the production line. Many workers complained that the new methods cut corners and were unsafe, but management refused to listen. A few months after changing work methods, the company told workers that it was reducing their health benefits. This led to even greater worker unrest. Finally, just a few weeks ago, workers received word that the wages of all production line employees would be cut by 6 percent. Many employees felt this was the last straw, especially since the company's board of directors recently approved big salary increases and more lucrative stock option plans for Ty and his management team. A spokesperson for the board explained that the raises were justified because of the management team's "outstanding efforts to reduce costs, increase productivity, and improve the company's profits." Several disgruntled employees, led by Ima Striker and Boyd Cotter, now believe it is time to obtain union representation. Top managers at the company have hinted that workers who actively participate in the union campaign may be among the first workers laid off if the company decides to downsize. Ima and Boyd are not intimidated by these management threats. "I wish we didn't have to do this," Ima recently told many of her fellow workers at the plant. "But someone has to stop Ty Runt and his team from ruining our jobs." -After gaining union representation, any workers with complaints regarding promotions, layoffs, and job assignments will file a(n) with their shop steward.

In a primary boycott, a union encourages its members and the general public not to buy the goods and services produced by a firm involved in a labor dispute.

Most historians view the increase in union membership in the United States as an outgrowth of the transition from an industrial economy to a service economy during the middle part of the 20th century.

Workers who are hired to do the jobs of striking workers until the strike is over are called "scabs" by the union.

The "Spotlight on Small Business" in Chapter 12 discusses the medical profession and unions. Which of the following statements about the views of doctors and nurses is most accurate?

Jenna is a member of a union team that is negotiating with management to obtain a labor contract for the workers represented by the union. Jenna is involved in contract arbitration.

The Taft-Hartley Act gives the president the power to require striking workers in any industry to return to their jobs for a cooling- off period while representatives of management and the union continue to negotiate.

If management and union officials cannot resolve a grievance, a(n) is asked to listen to the arguments of each side and to make a decision that both sides will have to comply with.

Antonio received specific training to become an electrician. He belongs to a union with other skilled electricians. Antonio belongs to a(n):

After adjusting for inflation, the average CEO compensation is actually a little lower now than it was in 1960.