Exam 12: Dealing With Employee-Management Issues and Relationships

Comparable worth primarily is concerned with:

The key difference between an agency shop agreement and an open shop agreement is that in an agency shop:

The main goal of the Knights of Labor was to:

One strategy unions must adapt in order to grow in the future is to:

The AFL-CIO was a major __________ of the NAFTA agreement passed by Congress in 1994.

The Knights of Labor and the American Federation of Labor were actually very similar in their aims,tactics,and membership.The only major difference was in the effectiveness of their leaders.

The disparity in salaries is clearly reflected in the fact that in 2007,the average CEO compensation for a major company was $12.8 million,compared to a little more than $35,000 that the average worker was compensated.

Unions have used givebacks as a tactic to increase membership of a culturally diverse workforce.

Paulo owns a few shares of stock in a large and diversified firm.He realizes that the CEO of the company is responsible for a multi-billion dollar business,but is upset with what he feels is excessive compensation for the chief executive officer,particularly since the firm has reported losses for the past two years.Paulo's concerns are:

__________ are workplaces with undesirable,and often unsafe and oppressive working conditions.

A grievance is a charge by managers that the union is not abiding by the terms of the negotiated labor-management agreement.

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?

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

In 1955,after the passage of the Taft-Hartley Act,the AFL and CIO merged to create the AFL-CIO.

Throughout most of American history,the relationship between managers and employees has been fairly smooth.

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 20^th century.

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." -Ty Runt has always taken a hard line against unionization efforts.Two years ago,when workers at his previous company tried to obtain union representation,the company closed down the plant and refused to let employees work until they abandoned their efforts to form a union.This management tactic is called a(n):

Winona was recently hired to work at a production plant for Additup Manufacturing.When hired,she was told she must join the union at the plant within 90 days in order to keep her job.Winona is employed in an agency shop.

The Food Source Grocery chain stocks the products of Vegi-Delite Food Company at all of their supermarkets.The Teamsters Union is currently involved in a labor dispute with Vegi-Delite.The union has already encouraged its members and the general public not to buy Vegi-Delite products.Now it is threatening Food Source with the possibility of a boycott if it continues to carry the Vegi-Delite line.The union is threatening Food Source with a(n):

One of the things that labor is interested in is fair and competent management.