CHAPTER 14

How do unions increase productivity?

They allow workers a greater voice to give suggestions to management

Which of the following would be a likely reason employees might opt for associate union membership?

They wish to join a union but their workplace is not organized by a union.

What were the results when foreign automakers began to present a competitive threat to U.S. companies? (Select all that apply.)

U.S. automakers lost market share. U.S. autoworker employment was reduced.

Which of the following are recommendations made by Fossum for management preparing for negotiation with a union? (Select all that apply.)

Understand how much saying "yes" to union demands may cost the company. Be ready for a strike. Agree upon goals to work toward in the negotiation.

Which of the following are conditions under which management can weather a strike? (Select all that apply.)

Unemployment rates are high. Demand for a product is not very strong. A company is not highly labor-intensive.

Which of the following statements about union membership in the United States since the 1950s is true?

Union membership has gradually decreased as a percentage of employment.

The organizational chart of the AFL-CIO indicates that there are a number of trade and industrial departments that are part of the organization. Which of the following is NOT among those departments?

grocery store trades

Which of the following are outcomes that are pursued by management in labor relations? (Select all that apply.)

increase productivity of workers control costs

Which of the following are outcomes that are pursued by labor unions in labor relations? (Select all that apply.)

increasing compensation determining work rules

A union whose members are linked by their work in a particular field of business is known as a(n) ----- union.

industrial

A union whose members are linked by their work in a particular field of business is known as a(n) ------- union.

industrial

According to the organizational chart of the AFL-CIO, building and construction and maritime trades are all examples of ______ departments.

industrial

Labor unions' greatest positive contribution to society is _____.

institutionalizing industrial conflict resolution

The part of the labor-management negotiation process that seeks solutions beneficial to both sides is referred to as ______, bargaining

integrative

Considering the attitudinal structure in a given management and labor relationship, when the relationship is poor, it may be difficult for the two sides to engage in which of the following?

integrative bargaining

The attitude of American workers toward unions ______.

is one of significant interest

Which of the following are programs that seek to decrease the adversarial relationship between labor and management? (Select all that apply.)

labor-management problem solving teams self-managed employee teams profit sharing with employees

Fossum recommends that in preparing for a negotiation that management prepare for a potential strike. Which of the following are actions management might consider when completing this planning? (Select all that apply.)

lining up replacement workers ensuring facilities' security

The Taft-Hartley Act of the NLRA allowed states to disallow the union security provision known as ______.

maintenance of membership

A procedure for resolving collective bargaining impasses in which a person with no formal authority acts as a facilitator and go-between in negotiations is referred to as ------.

mediation

The impasse resolution procedure that has a facilitator with no formal authority is called _____.

mediation

Western European countries have ______.

more government regulation and higher union membership rates than the United States

The American Federation of Labor and Congress of Industrial Organizations (AFL-CIO) represents labor interests at the ______ level.

national

The majority of union members belong to a ______ or international union.

national

Of the following, which are basic strategies used by management to avoid unionization? (Select all that apply.)

pay employees equitably actively oppose unionization of workforce

A fact finder, a person who reports reasons for labor-management disputes and offers ideas for resolution, is most frequently used in disputes that occur in the _____.

public sector

Laws known as ______ make certain union security provisions, such as maintenance of membership, illegal.

right-to-work laws

In his book Industrial Relations Systems, author John Dunlop identified four elements of a successful industrial relations system, including which of the following? (Select all that apply.)

shared rules of the game a common ideology

Goal attainment, according to the labor relations framework, is achieved at which of the following levels? (Select all that apply.)

society employees and unions management

According to the labor relations framework, the environment and context refers to forces that impact the labor relations system and include which of the following? (Select all that apply.)

stakeholder needs laws globalization

An important element in the relative power of employers and unions during collective bargaining is the ability of each party to withstand a(n) ----- .

strike

A survey showed that about ______ of nonunion workers were covered in a management controlled representation system.

33%

What are possible reasons why there may be a lack of employees using the grievance procedure? (Select all that apply.)

Employees do not think the negotiations process can be effectual. Employees are afraid to file a grievance.

Which of the following statements regarding agency shops is accurate?

Employees of the firm may choose never to become members of the union.

Which of the following are among the principles suggested by Fisher and Ury in their book Getting to Yes? (Select all that apply.)

Establish that the outcome of the negotiations process should be grounded on an objective benchmark. Brainstorm numerous possibilities before deciding what course to take. Differentiate between the problem and the people involved.

True or false: The United States has a higher percentage of employees who are unionized than any other country.

False

Which part of the United States is less heavily organized than the rest?

South

What are the three ways unions decrease productivity? (Select all that apply.)

Strikes and slowdowns cause lost production. The contract with the union limits the amount and type of work an employee can do.

Which of the following statements describe the situation with public-sector unions? (Select all that apply.)

Teachers have two of the largest unions in the nation. Local employees strike more than federal employees. Federal employee strikes are illegal.

How do unions directly and indirectly affect company profits? (Select all that apply.)

The research and development budget is lower when there are unions. Strikes can decease profits for suppliers of the struck companies. Firms become more competitive when unions are weakened.

True or false: Most of the day-to-day interaction between labor and management happens at the local union level.

True

True or false: The National Labor Relations Act (NLRA), when passed in 1935, did not spell out any unfair labor practices by labor unions.

True

True or false: The National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) does not commence actions when unfair labor practices occur, but instead responds to formal requests for action.

True

How do workers feel that union representatives compare to representatives of employees covered by nonunion programs?

Union and nonunion programs represent workers nearly the same.

Which of the following countries has the lowest unionization rate (union density)?

United States

An employee must pay union membership dues but is not required to join the union in a(n) ______.

agency shop

Over half of all charges against employers in unfair labor practice cases involving unions concerns a refusal to ______.

bargain

Labor-management contracts vary from each other in their ______.

bargaining structure

Studies show that structural changes in the economy have ______.

caused no more than one-fourth of the decrease in union membership

One aspect of union security, known as a(n) ______, requires an employer to deduct union dues from employees' paychecks.

checkoff provision

Compared to nonunion workers, union members tend to ______.

earn higher wages

Labor unions were designed to _____.

equalize the bargaining power of workers and management

Unions have a(n) ______ effect on company profits.

largely negative

Public sector workers have ______.

seen substantial union growth among white-collar workers

In 2016 most of the strikes in the United States involved ______.

white-collar workers

There are ______ steps in an employee-initiated grievance.

4

Which organization works to make sure that employees have the ability to make up their own minds regarding union membership?

NLRB

Unions have traditionally _____.

been strongest in urban areas

The union security provision known as a(n) ______ requires a person to join the union within a certain amount of time after being hired.

union shop

When applicants can obtain employment prior to being a union member, but are required to join the union within a certain amount of time, this is known as a(n) ______,

union shop

If a company has a number of different production facilities, how able would the company be to deal with a workers' strike?

very able

One benefit of union membership that employers cannot provide employees is a(n) ______.

voice that is independent

Dunlop suggested that in an industrial relations system, conflict between ______ is unavoidable.

workers and managers

Which of the following are examples of conduct that would require the NLRB to discount an election? (Select all that apply.)

A union representative promises workers that the union will increase workers' pay. A manager makes a speech on company time to workers less than 24 hours before an election. A union representative uses physical force against a worker to influence how she votes.

Although not technically a union, the ______ is an association that works to further the common goals of its member unions at the national level.

AFL-CIO

What are the two questions that are asked when people decide to join a union? (Select all that apply.)

Is there a mismatch between employment circumstances and expectations? Is union membership the most effective means of change?

How does increasing foreign competition influence unions?

It increases employer resistance to unions.

The union security provision known as ______ requires union members to remain members of the union for some specified period of time.

Maintenance of membership

Data on strikes confirm which of the following statements? (Select all that apply.)

Scant labor hours are lost to strikes in the overall picture. Strikes are more common among white-collar personnel. Strikes tend to be an exception to normal circumstances.

Unfair labor practices by employers are identified and spelled out in which section of the NLRA?

Section 8

During which step of the grievance procedure is the grievance written down and submitted to the appropriate manager?

Step 2

Which of the following statements are true about local unions? (Select all that apply.)

The administration of the union contract is carried out largely at the local union level. The local of an industrial-based union may correspond to a single large facility. The local of a craft-oriented union may cover a region.

Which of the following may occur when more than 50 percent of employees in the bargaining unit sign authorization cards?

The union may request that the employer voluntarily recognizes it.

In states that adopted right-to-work laws, which of the following union security provisions are illegal? (Select all that apply.)

agency shops maintenance of membership union shops

------ is a procedure for resolving collective bargaining impasses by which a designated person chooses a solution to the dispute.

arbitration

Which of the following impasse resolution procedures results in a settlement (in theory) every time?

arbitration

A form of union membership by which the union receives dues in exchange for services but does not provide representation in collective bargaining is referred to as a(n)______ union membership.

associate

When negotiating contracts, Fisher and Ury suggest separating the ______ from the problem.

people

A union initiates a corporate campaign to raise the wages for miners in the United States. What types of pressure can this exert on mine owners and operators? (Select all that apply.)

political public financial

One way companies utilize human resources management to avoid unionization is to _____.

provide the same benefits a union would provide

Since the 1960s, government regulations have ______.

resulted in fewer areas where unions can provide worker rights beyond those specified by law

Which of the following are the major functions of the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB)? (Select all that apply.)

to stop labor practices that are unfair to manage and verify representation elections of unions

When negotiating a first contract, unions are unable to accomplish this task in ______% of cases.

27-37

The National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) holds a union representation election when at least ______% of employees in the bargaining unit sign authorization cards?

30

Which of the following union organizations has the greatest number of members?

National Education Association

"Concerted activity" is protected by the ______.

National Labor Relations Act

What legislation, passed in 1935, ensured that collective bargaining would be the favored method to resolve conflict between managers and workers?

National Labor Relations Act (NLRA)

The aspect of the labor-management negotiation process that refers to the relationship and level of trust between the negotiators is called ______.

attitudinal structuring

When considering union membership, people question if there is a gap between actual compensation and what they ______.

believe they should receive

As required by the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA), the duty of ______ representation is a requirement for all members of a bargaining unit to have equal access to and representation by the union.

fair

Scholars assert that the United States has a more pragmatic, business-oriented unionism due to the absence of ______ like that found in western Europe. (Select all that apply.)

class distinctions feudalism

Employees are required to be union members before they are hired by an employer in a(n) ______.

closed shop

Which of the following types of union security provisions is illegal under the original terms of the NLRA?

closed shop

Taking action on behalf of a group in order to address working conditions is an example of ______, regardless of whether employees are represented by a union or not.

concerted activity

Union activities that intend to exert public, financial or political pressure on employers during the union-organizing process are known as -------- campaigns.

corporate

Which of the following are factors related to unions themselves that contributed to a decline in union membership? (Select all that apply.)

corruption inability to adjust to structural economic shifts

Which of the following are reasons management might discourage unionization of its workforce? (Select all that apply.)

fear of being forced to increase employee compensation profit loss if workers strike

Generally, when management deals with employees, they ______.

deal with them as individuals

Which of the following are objectives for reducing the antagonism in relations between labor and management? (Select all that apply.)

decreasing work rules and increasing management flexibility increasing worker commitment, motivation, and problem solving

Which of the following are unfair employer labor practices identified in the NLRA? (Select all that apply.)

discriminating against workers who are union members refusing to bargain collectively with certain unions impeding the creation of a labor union

The part of the labor-management negotiation process that focuses on dividing a fixed economic "pie" is referred to as ______.

distributive bargaining

One major goal of a labor union in negotiations is bargaining effectiveness, which provides the union the power and influence to accomplish which of the following? (Select all that apply.)

effect changes in the workplace make the voices of the employees heard

Which of the following are examples of craft unions? (Select all that apply.)

electrical workers' union plumbers' union

A person who reports on the reasons for the labor-management dispute and the views and arguments of both sides and offers a nonbinding recommendation for settling the dispute is called a(n) ______.

fact finder

The most common unfair labor practice grievance relates to ______.

failure to bargain

Which of the following is an important component of bargaining power for a union?

the ability to strike

Which of the following employee rights were protected in Section 7 of the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA)? (Select all that apply.)

the right to join a labor union the right to bargain collectively

Which of the following are examples of union unfair labor practices as defined by the 1947 Taft-Hartley Act? (Select all that apply.)

threatening employees with physical violence to coerce them to join the union picketing in a way that prevents nonstriking workers from entering company premises

The conflicting goals of employers and unions are resolved ______.

through a negotiation process

Why are employers actively resisting unionization?

to maintain flexibility to control costs

Why do unions negotiate checkoff provisions with employers?

to maintain the security and survival of the union