Exam 12: Dealing With Employee-Management Issues and Relationships

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

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):

The Wagner Act established the first minimum wage for workers.

At one time,as a condition of employment,the employer could make the employee sign a statement prohibiting the worker from joining a union.This was called a(n):

Last year,a retired schoolteacher moved her parents from Michigan to northern Illinois to live with her.For the past year,she was traveling two times each month to provide care for this eighty-six year old couple,including coordinating medical services and meals.In conversations with her family members,the teacher remarked,"If I were not already retired,I would have to quit my job to continue this way!" This retired teacher:

Hector is philosophically opposed to unions."Why should I be required to join an organization I don't agree with,or pay a fee to support it financially?" he asked some of his buddies who belong to the union."I thought this was a free country,but I don't feel very free when I'm told that I'll lose my job if I don't join the union.It just isn't fair." Hector's comments suggest he favors a(n)__________ shop arrangement.

Many companies do not provide any formal training for dealing with prevention of violence in the workplace.

Under an agency shop agreement,only union members are represented at the bargaining table.

The AFL (American Federation of Labor)was initially intended to be a single craft union.

Under a closed shop agreement,workers must agree not to join a union in order to keep their jobs.

The Knights of Labor,the first national labor organization,offered membership to all working people,including employers.

Which of the following statements best summarizes the extent to which unions currently rely on strikes as a tactic when collective bargaining breaks down?

At this time,over 50% of all union workers are:

Women have become a __________ part of the labor force.

The AFL originally was a federation of craft unions that did not attempt to organize industrial unions.The main reason for this strategy was that:

As a management executive left the meeting between his team and the company's union representatives and headed straight for the CEO's office,he reviewed where things seemed to breakdown.Union reps came to the table with three different offers to resolve the insurance and vacation benefits problems laborers were experiencing.Management offered its own resolutions - two different ones,to be exact.The problem was that a bargaining zone did not emerge.Neither side was willing to consider each other's alternatives.As he reached the CEO's door,he was ready to concede that the negotiations were probably headed to _______________.

Marco is the newly appointed CEO of the Sine of the Times Corporation.The board of directors approved an attractive stock option package as part of his total compensation.From this information,you would assume that one of the board's objectives is to stabilize the value of Sine of the Times' stock by preventing it from rising or falling more than a small percentage.

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.

A lockout is a tactic utilized by unions when collective bargaining breaks down.

The Industrial Revolution slowed the growth of unions by creating a rapidly rising standard of living for most workers.