Chapter 16

Representation Certification (RC) election

The election process whereby union members vote in a union as their representative.

Representation Decertification (RD) election

The election process whereby union members vote out their union as their representative.

Authorization Cards

A card signed by prospective union members indicating that they are interested in having a union election held at their work site.

Lockout

A company action equivalent to a strike; when management denies unionized employees access to their jobs.

Federal Meditation & Conciliation Service (FMCS)

A government agency that assists labor and management in settling their disputes.

National Labor Relations Board (NLRB)

A group that has primary responsibility for conducting elections to determine union representation and to interpret and apply the law against unfair labor practices.

Taft-Hartley Act

A law passed in 1947 that specified unfair union labor practices and declared the closed shop to be illegal.

Collective bargaining

A process for developing a union contract, which includes preparing to negotiate the contract, negotiating the contract, and administering the contract after it has been ratified.

Fact-finding

A technique whereby a neutral third-party individual conducts a hearing to gather evidence from both labor and management.

Labor relations

All activities within a company that involve dealing with a union and it's members.

Landrum-Griffin Act

Also known as the Labor and Management reporting and disclosure act, this legistlation protects union members from possible wrong doing on the part of their unions. Its thrust is to require all unions to disclose their financial statements.

Wagner Act

Also known as the National Labor Relations Act, this act gave employees the legitimate right t9o form and join unions and to engage in collective bargaining.

Agency Shop

An agreement that requires nonunion employees to pay the union a sum of money equal to union fees and dues as a condition of continuing employment.

Dues checkoff

A provision that often exists in union security arrangements whereby an employer withholds union dues from members' paychecks.

Secondary boycott

A union strikes against Employer A (a primary & legal strike), then strikes and pickets against Employer B (an employer against which the union has no complaint) because of a relationship that exists between employers A & B, such as Employer B handling goods made by Empoyer A.

Grievance (rights) arbitration

The final step used to settle labor and management dispute.

Maintenance of Membership

An agreement that should employees join the union, they are compelled to remain in the union for the duration of the existing contract. Such an agreement often provides an escape clause when the contract expires in which their membership from the union without penalty.

Open shop

An arrangement in which joining a union is totally voluntary.

Union Shop

An arrangement that stipulates that employers, although free to hire whomever they choose, may retain only union members

Wildcat Strike

An illegal strike in which employees refuse to work during the term of a binding contract, often as a result of ambiguities in the current contract.

Economic strike

An impasse that results from labor and managements inability to agree on the wages, hours, and terms and conditions of a new contract.

Union

An organization that represents workers and seeks to protect their interests through collective bargaining.

Interest arbitration

Arbitration in which a panel of three individuals hears testimony from both sides and renders a decision on how to settle a contract negotiation dispute.

Racketeering influenced & Corrupt Organizations Act (RICO)

Legistlation whose primary emphasis with respect to labor unions is to eliminate any influence exerted on unions by members of organized crime.

Grievance procedures

Procedures designed to resolve disputes as quickly as possible and at the lowest level possible in the organization.