Ch. 32 Labor Law

Norris-LaGuardia Act

A federal statute enacted in 1932 that made it lawful for employees to organize labor unions

Union Solicitation on Company Property

Employer may restrict solicitation activities to the employees' free time and also limit them to nonworking areas. off-duty employees may be barred from union solicitation on company premises, and nonemployees may be prohibited from soliciting on behalf of the union anywhere on company property. employers may dismiss employees who violate these rules. the inaccessibility exception applies.

closed shop

a business where an employer hires only employees who are already members of a labor union and cannot hire employees who are not members of a union. closed shops are illegal in the US

strike

a cessation of work by union members in order to obtain economic benefits or to correct an unfair labor practice; permitted by federal labor law.

no-strike clause

a clause in a collective bargaining agreement between an employer and a labor union whereby the union agrees not to strike during a particular period of time. it is illegal for a strike to take place in violation of this clause and an employer may dismiss union members who strike in violation of the clause.

National Labor Relations Board (NLRB)

a federal administrative agency that oversees union elections, prevents employers and unions from engaging in illegal and unfair labor practices, and enforce and interprets certain federal labor laws. created by the NLRA, composed of 5 members appointed by the president and approved by the Senate.

Railway Labor Act

a federal statute enacted in 1926 and amended in 1934 that regulates labor organizing by employees of railroads and airlines

National Labor Relations Act (NLRA)

a federal statute enacted in 1935 that established the right of employees to form and join labor organizations, to bargain collectively with employers, and to engage in concerted activity to promote these right. aka the Wagner Act

Labor Management Relations Act (Taft-Hartley Act)

a federal statute enacted in 1947 that (1) expanded the activities that labor unions could engage in, (2) gives employers the right to engage in free speech efforts against unions prior to a union election, and (3) gives the president of the US the right to seek an injunction (for up to 80 days) against a strike that would create a national emergency; aka Taft-Hartley Act

Labor Management Reporting and Disclosure Act (Landrum-Griffin Act)

a federal statute enacted in 1959 that regulates internal union affairs and establishes the rights of union members

Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act (WARN Act or Plant Closing Act)

a federal statute that requires employers with 100 or more employees to give their employees 60 days' notice before engaging in certain plant closings and layoffs. aka WARN Act or Plant Closing Acts

appropriate bargaining unit (bargaining unit)

a group of employees that a union seeks to represent; aka bargaining unit. it must be defined before the union can petition for an election. this group can be the employees of a single company or plant, or an entire industry. managers and professional employees may not belong to unions formed by employees whom they manage.

Congress of Industrial Organizations (CIO)

a labor organization formed in 1935 that permitted semiskilled and unskilled workers to become members

AFL-CIO

a labor organization formed in 1955 by the combination of the AFL and the CIO. individual unions may choose to belong to the AFL-CIO, but not all unions opt to join

American Federation of Labor (AFL)

a labor organization that was formed in 1886 to which only skilled craft workers such as silversmiths and artisans were allowed to belong

sit-down strike

a labor strike in which the striking employees continue to occupy the employer's premises. such strikes are illegal because they deny the employer's statutory right to continue its operations during a strike.

wildcat strike

a labor strike where the striking employee union members go on strike without proper authorization from the union. such a strike is illegal but becomes lawful if it is quickly ratified by the union.

violent strikes

a labor strike where the striking employees cause substantial damage to property of the employer or a third party. violent strikes are illegal

partial (intermittent) strike

a labor strike where the striking employees strike part of the day or workweek and work the other part. such strikes are illegal because they deny the employer's statutory right to continue its operations during a strike; aka intermittent strike

cooling-off period

a mandatory 60 days' notice before a strike can commence; is designed to give the employer and the union enough time to negotiate a settlement of the union grievances and avoid a strike. any strike without a proper 60-days notice is illegal, and the employer may dismiss the striking workers.

unfair labor practice

a practice that occurs when an employer or a labor union interferes with, coerces, or restrains employees from exercising their statutory right to form and join labor unions. when an unfair labor practice has been discovered, the NLRB or the courts may issue a cease-and-desist order or an injunction to restrain these practices and may set aside the election and order a new election

inaccessibility exception

a rule that permits employees and union officials to engage in union solicitation on company property if the employees are beyond reach of reasonable union efforts to communicate with them. applies to logging camps, mining towns, company towns, etc.

Section 8b of the NLRA

a section of a federal statute that makes it an unfair labor practice for a labor union to interfere with, coerce, or restrain employees from exercising their statutory right to form and join unions.

Section 8a of the NLRA

a section of a federal statute that makes it an unfair labor practice for an employer to interfere with, coerce, or restrain employees from exercising their statutory right to form and join unions. employers may not form a company union

Section 7 of the NLRA

a section of a federal statute that provides that employees shall have the right to self-organize, to form, join, or assist labor organizations, to bargain collectively with employers through representatives of their own choosing, and to engage in other concerted activities in support of union organization and collective bargaining.

dues checkoff

a situation in which, upon proper notification by a labor union, employers are required to deduct union dues or agency fees from labor union employees' wages and forward these dues to the union.

secondary boycott picketing

a type of picketing in which a union tries to bring pressure against an employer by picketing the employer's suppliers or customers. the picketing is illegal if it is directed against the neutral employer instead of the struck employer's product.

union shop

a workplace where an employee must join the union within a certain number of days after being hired. under a union shop agreement, an employer may hire anyone whether they belong to a union or not.

agency shop

a workplace where an employer may hire anyone whether he belongs to a union or not. after an employee has been hired, he does not have to join an existing labor union, but if he does not join the union, he must pay an agency fee to the union.

employer lockout

an act of an employer to prevent employees from entering the work premises when the employer reasonably anticipates a strike.

union security agreement

an agreement between an employer and a union that provides some form of security for union workers, such as a union shop or an agency shop agreement. there are several types of lawful security agreements such as union shop, agency shop.

decertification election

an election to decertify a labor union that is held if some employees no longer want to be represented by a union. decertification elections must be supervised by the NLRB

consent election

an election to establish a labor union that is not contested by the employer and may be held without NLRB supervision

contested election

an election to establish a labor union that is opposed and contested by the employer and must be supervised by the NLRB.

plant closing

as defined in the WARN Act, it is the permanent or temporary shutdown of a single site that results in a loss of employment of 50 or more employees during any 30-day period.

mass layoff

as defined in the WARN Act, it is the reduction of 33% of the employees or at least 50 employees during any 30-day period.

crossover workers

individual members of a labor union that is on strike who choose not to strike and remain working, or who return to work after joining the strikers for a time.

Title I of the Landrum-Griffin Act (labor's "bill of rights")

labor's "bill of rights," which gives each union member equal rights and privileges to nominate candidates for union office, vote in elections, and participate in membership meetings. it further guarantees union members the rights of free speech and assembly, provides for due process (notice and hearing), and permits union members to initiate judicial or administrative action.

right-to-work laws

laws enacted by some states that provide that an individual employee cannot be forced to join a union or pay union dues and fees even through a labor union has been elected by other employees

internal union rules

rules adopted by a labor union that regulate the operation of the union

illegal strikes

strikes by employees that are illegal and not protected by federal labor law, including violent strikes, sit-down strikes, partial or intermittent strikes, and wildcat strikes.

permissive subjects

subjects of collective bargaining that are not compulsory subjects of bargaining but are employment issues that the company and union agree bargain over. these subjects may be bargained for if the company and union agree to do so. (size and composition of the supervisory force, location of plants, corporate reorganizations, etc.)

illegal subjects

subjects of collective bargaining that cannot be discussed by management and labor unions and cannot be included in a collective bargaining agreement (e.g., discrimination).

compulsory subjects

subjects of collective bargaining that must be negotiated by an employer with a labor union, such as issues concerning wages, hours, and other terms and conditions of employement

picketing

the action of strikers walking in front of an employer's premises, carrying signs announcing their strike. it is lawful unless it is accompanied by violence, obstructs customers from entering the employer's premises, or prevents pickups and deliveries at the employer's place of business. an employer may seek an injunction against unlawful picketing.

collective bargaining agreement

the contract that results from a collective bargaining procedure

collective bargaining

the process of negotiating contract terms between an employer and the members of a union the employer and the union must negotiate with good faith; this prohibits take-it-or-leave-it proposals

labor law

the statutes, rules, and regulations adopted by administrative agencies, and court decisions interpreting and applying the statutes and rules and regulations, that regulate labor relations

replacement workers

workers who are hired by a company to take the place of the striking employees. replacement workers do not have to be dismissed when the strike is over.