Industrial Relations: Bargaining and Trade Unions
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Questions and Answers

What is the purpose of imposing a general duty to bargain?

  • To reduce union power
  • To limit industrial unrest (correct)
  • To restrict collective bargaining
  • To increase employer flexibility
  • What is a consequence of a failure to bargain prior to the 1995 Labour Relations Act?

  • Improved industrial relations
  • Unfair labour practice (correct)
  • Loss of union recognition
  • Reduced employer liability
  • What is a right acquired by trade unions through the duty to bargain?

  • Right to collective bargaining
  • Right to strike
  • Access to employer premises (correct)
  • Right to employ non-union workers
  • What is the primary bargaining approach in South Africa?

    <p>Centralised collective bargaining</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What is the precursor to a registered union acquiring organisational rights?

    <p>Sufficient representation</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What is the term for the requirement that all employees in a bargaining unit must join a union?

    <p>Closed-shop agreement</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What is the term for the arrangement where employees pay union dues, but are not required to join the union?

    <p>Agency-shop agreement</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What is the term for the practice of benefiting from union negotiations without paying union dues?

    <p>Free-riding</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What is the purpose of union security arrangements?

    <p>To prevent free-riding</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What is the term for the level of representation required for a union to acquire organisational rights?

    <p>Sufficient representation</p> Signup and view all the answers

    Study Notes

    Integrative Bargaining

    • Emphasizes win-win outcomes that produce joint gains
    • Relies heavily on principles of resolution

    Trade Unions

    • Came into being through the realisation that collective power is needed to match employers' power
    • Examples of trade unions include registered trade unions and employers' organisations

    Collective Agreements

    • Legally binding agreements concluded between employers (or employers' organisations) and organised labour
    • Concern terms and conditions of employment or any other matter of mutual interest
    • Definition according to s 213

    Union Security Arrangements

    • Address the problem of 'free-riding' in trade unions
    • Examples include:
      • Ballot of all employees to be covered by the agreement with a two-thirds majority vote
      • Post-entry closed shop, where employees become members of a trade union after taking up employment
      • Exclusive use of deductions to further socio-economic interests of employees

    Bargaining Councils

    • Voluntary bodies established in terms of s 27 of the Labour Relations Act
    • Consist of one or more registered unions in collaboration with one or more registered employers' organisations
    • Collective agreements concluded in a bargaining council bind the parties and their members
    • The state as an employer can also be a party to a bargaining council

    Background to South African Collective Bargaining

    • Centralised collective bargaining at industry level has been the principal approach since 1924
    • Industrial councils were established under the Industrial Conciliation Act of 1924
    • Table 9.1 shows the number of bargaining councils and their coverage from 1983-2014

    Bargaining Levels and Structure

    • Different levels of bargaining, including industry level, company level, and workplace level
    • Advantages and disadvantages of each level, as shown in Table 9.4

    The Duty to Bargain

    • Failure to bargain constitutes an unfair labour practice
    • Good faith bargaining is important in limiting industrial unrest
    • Trade unions rely on the duty to bargain to obtain recognition and organisational rights

    Representativity

    • A precursor to a registered union acquiring rights
    • Three levels of representation, including sufficient representation (though the Act is unclear on what this means)

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    Description

    Test your knowledge on integrative bargaining, trade unions, and employers' organisations in the context of industrial relations. Learn how collective bargaining can lead to joint gains and understand the role of trade unions in negotiating with employers.

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