Deck 7: Defining and Commencing Collective Bargaining

Question 1

Which of the following forms of union security requires membership in the union as a condition of employment?

A) Hiring Hall
B) Company union
C) Rand formula
D) Closed shop

Answer 1

D

Question 2

What happens to workplace terms and conditions once collective bargaining begins?

A) As items are agreed to, they are incorporated into the agreement
B) There can be no unilateral change in terms and conditions
C) The labour relations board may impose conditions as bargaining progresses
D) As long as no collective agreement is in force, management may alter the conditions as it sees fit

Answer 2

B

Question 3

What is the term commonly used to describe the process by which the employer deducts funds from each employee and remits these funds to the union?

A) Union security
B) Automatic deposit
C) Dues check-off
D) Dues remittance

Answer 3

C

Question 4

What legally required process ensures that members of union bargaining committees will not unduly focus on their own personal priorities and instead negotiate an agreement that reflects the objectives of the full membership?

A) The certification process
B) The grievance process
C) The ratification process
D) The arbitration process

Question 5

Can a collective agreement include conditions that are less favourable than the minimum conditions in the relevant employment standards act?

A) Yes, when it is a wage that is set for a unique type of skilled labour
B) Yes, as long as conditions as a whole in the agreement exceed conditions as a whole in the employment standards act
C) Yes, only when specific approval of the labour relations board has been granted
D) No, collective agreements can contain terms that are less than the minimums note in the applicable employment standards act

Question 6

Which of the following must be included in a collective agreement under most provincial labour relations legislation?

A) A contracting-out clause
B) A grievance procedure
C) A seniority clause
D) A layoff procedure

Question 7

Under most Canadian jurisdictions, when must negotiations begin once a certification order has been issued?

A) Within one calendar month
B) As soon as either party advises the other of their intention to commence bargaining
C) Within eight days of the notice
D) As quickly as possible once the certification order is received

Question 8

What is the term used when one of the parties bargains without any serious intent of concluding a collective agreement?

A) Surface bargaining
B) Circumvention
C) Intransigence
D) Boulwarism

Question 9

Mount Allison University's 2010 and 2013 rounds of collective bargaining were characterized by what bargaining approach?

A) Traditional negotiations
B) Positional negotiations
C) Interest based negotiations
D) Win/ loss negotiations

Question 10

Which of the following would normally be included on the union bargaining team, assuming the union is a local of a larger union?

A) Representatives of the union executive
B) Elected rank and file members
C) National or regional representative
D) All of the above

Question 11

What is it called when an agreement reached by one union is used to pressure other employers in the same industry, dealing with the same union to agree to similar terms?

A) Concession bargaining
B) Multi-employer bargaining
C) Whipsawing
D) Patent bargaining

Question 12

What is the required minimum duration of a collective agreement in most Canadian jurisdictions?

A) Three years
B) Two years
C) One year
D) This number varies in each jurisdiction

Question 13

Which of the following combinations are parts of the process generally used by unions in identifying their priorities and goals during collective bargaining?

A) Polling the membership to discover their concerns and comparing collective agreements in other locals or other industries
B) Determining any adverse impact on the employer's profits and comparing collective agreements in other locals or other industries
C) Reviewing what was accomplished in past negotiations and weighing their goals against what they feel the employer will demand
D) Examining outside conditions, such as labour market demographics and economic indicators and aligning their expectations based on economic factors

Question 14

Which of the following participants would not typically be a part of the employer's bargaining team?

A) The human resources director
B) A financial officer
C) The chief executive officer
D) A representative of the parent company or head office

Question 15

Most Canadian labour codes specify that when employers wish to undertake bargaining as a group, certification must be sought to create what?

A) Bargaining council
B) Employer's union
C) Employers' council
D) Labour council

Question 16

How is the choice of bargaining structure usually determined?

A) By mutual consent of the parties
B) By the certification order
C) By the provincial labour code
D) By the employer

Question 17

Which of the following labour codes does not permit religious exemptions in regards to regular dues payments?

A) Quebec
B) Ontario
C) Manitoba
D) Saskatchewan

Question 18

What is the most common bargaining structure in Canada among the various models of collective bargaining?

A) Multiple unit-single employer
B) Multiple unit-multiple employer
C) Single unit-single employer
D) All of the above

Question 19

What is often used to replace the religious exemption in those provinces where there is no such provision in the labour code?

A) Dues check-off
B) Rand formula
C) Closed shop
D) Union shop

Question 20

Which of the following are examples of bad faith bargaining?

A) Outright refusal to bargain
B) Having no intention to conclude a collective agreement
C) Bargaining directly with the employees rather than the union
D) All of the above

Question 21

Which of the following is not an example of a commonly negotiated item?

A) Managers' wages
B) Benefits
C) Hours of work
D) Working conditions

Question 22

The matching of senior union employees unable to find work with those employers needing skilled labour occurs in "hiring halls"

Question 23

The concept of bargaining in good faith and the concept of unfair labour practices are separate and distinct even though they are both resolved through complaints to the labour relations board.

Question 24

What is one of the first actions a well prepared negotiating team will undertake?

A) Promising a specific outcome
B) Making sure the team knows they will not get most of what they are asking for
C) Establishing who will comprise the negotiation spokesperson hierarchy in the team
D) Deciding upon the priorities

Question 25

The management team is more formally accountable to those it represents than the union team

Question 26

Once a certification order is in place, an employer who attempts to bargain directly with individual employees, rather than with the union is exercising their management rights.

Question 27

What is a common remedy applied by a labour relations board when dealing with a charge of failure to bargain in good faith?

A) Apply appropriate punitive sanctions
B) Levy fines against the offending party
C) Provide behavioural guidelines to follow in subsequent bargaining sessions
D) Provide a conciliator to ensure adherence to the principles of good faith bargaining

Question 28

Under which of the following circumstances can labour boards be proactive in allegations of bad faith?

A) At the beginning of the bargaining
B) When there has been an impasse
C) To order the parties back to the table
D) None of the above

Question 29

Most Canadian jurisdictions allow a labour relations board to impose a collective agreement in cases where negotiations for a first agreement are at an impasse.

Question 30

When unions choose to bargain as a group, the resulting bargaining council must be formalized with the labour relations board.

Question 31

Bargaining in bad faith includes all but which of the following?

A) Refusing to bargain
B) Participating in bargaining, but with no intent to reach a collective agreement (surface bargaining)
C) Attempting to renegotiate terms that have already been settled
D) All of the above are examples of bargaining in bad faith.

Question 32

Once a certification order is in place, most Canadian labour codes specify times by which negotiations must begin.

Question 33

Why are timelines established to commence bargaining after certification?

A) Employees are anxious to conclude a new agreement
B) Employers want certainty around terms and conditions of employment
C) One of both parties may be reluctant to begin the process
D) To prevent complaints to the labour board

Question 34

Generally, employees who receive a religious exemption can participate in votes since they are still paying the equivalent union dues.

Question 35

Some research shows that union members place a high priority on effectiveness criteria. Which of the following is not one of those criteria?

A) Quality of leadership
B) Opportunity to participate in union activities
C) Participating in mediation to resolve disputes
D) Willingness of the union to undertake innovative activities

Question 36

Boulwarism comes from what country and what historical period?

A) US - 1960's
B) US - 1950's
C) Canada - 1960's
D) Canada - 1950's

Question 37

The Rand formula requires that all employees covered by the certification order pay union dues, even if they do not wish to be members of a union.

Question 38

The notion of good faith bargaining requires that an agreement will ultimately be concluded.

Question 39

Unions usually expel members only as a last resort when?

A) A member continues to file complaints against the union
B) The impact of the member's employment affects the union's reputation
C) The employer dismisses the expelled employee from his/her employment
D) Other disciplinary measures have failed.

Question 40

Which of the following is an example of the subjective criteria that will be used to assess a bad faith complaint?

A) Ethical or moral issues
B) The strategy behind a management proposal
C) Management considerations of future lay offs
D) Economic factors

Question 41

Discuss 'good faith' bargaining and give examples of actions that have been categorized as bad faith bargaining. (193-194)

Question 42

Discuss the need for timelines for collective bargaining and how notice to bargain plays a role in this part of the process. (186-187)

Question 43

What is a religious exemption?

Question 44

Name three of the methods used by unions to identify priorities in collective bargaining.

Question 45

Explain why Mount Allison University has had what they characterize as successful collective bargaining sessions in 2010 and 2013?

Question 46

Describe the union security provision known as the Rand formula.

Question 47

What is the ideal composition of a union bargaining committee? (183)

Question 48

Describe the process known as union dues check-off.

Question 49

In addition to grievance procedure language, identify other features found in 93% of Canada's collective agreements:

Question 50

Discuss the ideal composition of a management bargaining committee. (183-184)

Question 51

On occasion, there may be representation on the union's negotiating team from the regional or national level of the union. Describe two reasons why this would occur.

Question 52

Why do collective agreements have to contain a grievance procedure?

Question 53

What should be the first action undertaken by a well prepared negotiating team?

Question 54

Discuss the concept of union security. In particular, you should address the fundamental issue of whether or not employees should be obligated to participate in unions and list some forms of union security. (178-179)

Question 55

Name a few of the considerations used in determining the size of the bargaining team in collective bargaining.