Exam 12: Changes to the Union or the Employer

The restructuring of work due to technological change usually causes no substantive change in the composition of the bargaining unit or the structure of the employer.

In January 2012, a historical merger of two unions took place between the Canadian Auto Workers and the Communications, Energy and Paperworkers unions. Why was this event important to labour relations in Canada? In 2009, Vancouver's Handy DART bus service came under new management with consolidated union representation of its 500 employees. With a 97 percent strike vote during bargaining, what issue was the major stumbling block?

Discuss the impact of a failed bid for successorship on a union's ability to function in cases where the business has changed substantially.

What is the term used to describe a situation where there are individuals involved in a business whose knowledge or skills are essential for the operation of the business?

Which of the following actions on the part of the employer would have the effect of weakening the union's bargaining power and, as such, might be considered to be motivated by anti-union animus?

What is the name of the process used to cancel a union's certification?

In which of the following circumstances can issues of successorship arise?

How long is a certification considered to be in effect?

Few collective agreements include language to deal with issues such as layoffs or terminations.

When can issues of successorship arise?

Does a union have an inherent right to negotiate workplace changes with management even when there is no such right specified in the collective agreement? Discuss both points of view.

Some jurisdictions in Canada allow employers, as well as employees, to make applications for decertification.

Which of the following jurisdictions requires that the employer give notice before making a technological change that will affect workers' jobs or income?

How is the frequency of decertifications that occur as a result of abandonment of bargaining rights characterized?

A certification is considered to be in effect indefinitely and a collective agreement is negotiated to last for a predetermined period. How does the element of time factor into these two processes?