Exam 12: Dealing With Employee-Management Issues and Relationships

During an interview with Zytex company representative,Hillary was told that Zytex faces intense competition and management believes that the only way the company can survive is to have a nonunion workforce.Therefore,all workers Zytex hires must sign an employment contract stating that they agree not to join a union while they work for Zytex.This requirement by Zytex is illegal in the United States.

Reece discovered that a male coworker is paid $1.50 per hour more than she is even though they have the same job title,have similar qualifications,and have been employed the same length of time.Unfortunately for Reece,it is legal for the hospital to pay different salaries to different workers who perform the same job.

Jian is a well-known professor of labor relations at a major university.She recently was asked by representatives of labor and management at a nearby corporation to help them resolve a disagreement that threatened to cause a breakdown in negotiations.If Jian agrees to help,her role will be to encourage both parties to continue negotiating and to offer constructive advice and suggestions,but she will not have the authority to render a binding decision.Jian's role is that of a mediator.

Today labor unions have seen a revitalization of support and union membership has increased significantly.

The NLRB oversees the decertification of unions.An employer (the company owners)can petition and seek the signatures of 30% of the employees in order to decertify the union - in other words,officially,the union could no longer represent the employees in any bargaining negotiations.

Union representatives currently prefer secret ballot voting because they do not want to intimidate employees into voting for a union by asking them to outwardly sign a card check in favor of unions.

A bargaining zone is the time period during which a third party is used to reach agreement on union disputes.

In the Making Ethical Decisions box,students are asked to consider what they would do if they had the opportunity to be employed as a strikebreaker,at a company where friends and family were currently out of work and on strike.If they choose to do so,they are immediately hired as full-time workers.

In the late 1930s management at Bodenger Industries agreed to hire only those workers who were already members of the Steelworkers Union.Bodenger had agreed to a type of arrangement known as a(n):

Under an open shop agreement,workers have the option to join or not join a union,if one is present in the workplace.

Which of the following acts gave more power to management in its relations with organized labor?

A grievance is:

_____________ is the demand for equal pay for jobs requiring similar levels of education,training,and skill.

Since violence in the workplace rarely results in severe injury,it is likely not to be much of a problem in the future.

Small firms often offer innovative child-care programs as a way of competing for qualified employees.

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." -Ima,Boyd,and their fellow employees at Endrun work on an assembly line and do not have a specialized skill.If they are successful in their quest to set-up a union,they would probably be represented by a(n)________ union.

Under the provisions of the Taft-Hartley Act,the president can ask for a(n)___________ to prevent a strike in a critical industry.

The concept of comparable worth holds that people who do jobs that require similar levels of education,training and skills should receive equal pay.

A craft union is an organization of skilled specialists in a particular craft or trade.

Mississippi has passed a right-to-work law,which means that union shops are illegal in the state.