Industrial Relations PDF

INDUSTRIAL RELATIONS Week 8 The Collective Agreement & Negotiation Professor Qian Zhang ADM3334 Pedagogical Values & Goals - Students’ success - Knowledge of Industrial Relations - Safe and caring environment - Students’ well-being - “I am here to help you” Course Schedule Learning objectiv...

INDUSTRIAL RELATIONS Week 8 The Collective Agreement & Negotiation Professor Qian Zhang ADM3334 Pedagogical Values & Goals - Students’ success - Knowledge of Industrial Relations - Safe and caring environment - Students’ well-being - “I am here to help you” Course Schedule Learning objectives - Summarize the importance of collective agreements - Describe the legal nature of a collective agreement between the “actors” in the labour relations system - Identify the mandatory collective agreement terms required by legislation - Outline the voluntary terms commonly included in a collective agreement - Understand language prohibited in collective agreements - Explain how collective agreements affect human resources management - Identify the determinants and significance of the bargaining structure - Explain practices and procedures in traditional adversarial bargaining - Describe the principles of interest-based bargaining Collective agreement - Nature of employment relationship transformed: - from an individual employee-to-employer contract - to a union-to-employer legal relationship - Important to the employer, the union, employees and the public - Employer: - Union: - The public: Collective agreement contents - Mandatory, voluntary, and prohibited articles Collective agreement contents Mandatory Terms - provisions that must be included in the collective agreement because they are required by law – labour relations legislation: v A recognition clause indicating that management recognizes the union as the exclusive bargaining agent for its members in the workplace v A prohibition against strikes and lockouts during the term of the agreement v A provision for the arbitration of disputes relating to the interpretation, application and administration of the agreement v A minimum term of one year for the agreement v A check-off of union dues clause or “check off” clause, if the union requests it, requiring the employer to deduct union dues from the pay of unionized employees (in place in a majority of Canadian jurisdictions) Collective agreement contents Mandatory terms: Union recognition - referred to as the scope clause, is usually found at the beginning of the collective agreement - states that the employer recognizes the union as the sole bargaining agent for a specified group of employees that make up the bargaining unit. - The recognition article will usually describe or limit the bargaining unit in terms of location and jobs. Collective agreement contents - Grievance and Arbitration Process - grievance: an allegation that the collective agreement or an employment statute, including human rights legislation, has been violated, together with the remedy that is claimed to rectify the situation. - set out the number of steps in the process and time limits for each. - contain a term providing that any disputes regarding the administration of the agreement that the parties cannot resolve be referred to arbitration. Collective agreement contents - Grievance and Arbitration Process - Types of grievance: - Individual grievance: an allegation by an employee that the employer has violated the collective agreement or statute and that includes a statement of the remedy sought by the employee. - Group grievance: a claim by a number of employees that the employer has violated the collective agreement in the same manner for all the affected employees. - Policy grievance: an allegation by either the union or the employer that the other has violated the collective agreement. Collective agreement contents - Grievance and Arbitration Process - Unresolved grievances are referred to arbitration - Rights arbitration: a dispute resolution method in which management and union representatives present evidence and arguments to a third party who makes a final, binding decision. American Arbitration Association Canadian Arbitration Association Find an arbitrator Collective agreement contents - Mandatory terms: Strikes and lockouts - Strike: the refusal to work or a restriction of output by bargaining unit members. - Lockout: an employer’s refusal to allow employees to work, in order to force the union to agree to terms of employment proposed by the employer. - One of the basic principles of Canadian labour relations is that strikes or lockouts are prohibited during the term of the collective agreement. Collective agreement contents - Mandatory terms: Duration or term of the agreement - In all jurisdictions, the collective agreement must have a term of at least one year. - If the term is not specified, or is stated to be less than a year, it will be deemed to be one year. - the majority (86%) of agreements had a duration of > 3 years (in 2015). - Over half (55.6%) had a duration of 4 years or more (in 2015). Collective agreement contents - Mandatory terms: Check-off of union dues - collection of union dues - a service fee paid to the union by members of the bargaining unit - set by the union as a percentage of the worker’s earnings and is not a subject for contract negotiations with the employer. - https://www.canada.ca/en/treasury-board-secretariat/services/labour- management/union-dues/frequently-asked-questions-union-dues.html Collective agreement contents - Voluntary terms: terms and conditions of work, not required by legislation, which union and management bargaining teams agree to include in a collective agreement. - Management rights: Most arbitrators apply the reserved or residual rights theory that provides that the employer has all rights to manage the organization except as expressly restricted by the collective agreement. - Bargaining unit work: the work normally done by employees in the bargaining unit. Collective agreement contents - Union Security: Union Membership Collective agreement contents - Voluntary terms: Seniority - an employee’s length of service with the employer - two different uses of seniority: - (1) competitive status issues or job rights à - (2) benefit status à - How to calculate seniority? - Deemed termination: if an employee is absent for a specified length of time, he or she is automatically dismissed. - Human rights legislation: cannot be applied to an employee who is absent because of a condition that is within the definition of a disability. Collective agreement contents - Voluntary terms: Discipline and discharge - the employer has the authority to discipline or discharge employees for misconduct that amounts to just cause - lay down procedures that must be followed when the employer imposes discipline or impose limitations on the employer’s right to discipline or discharge. Leave of Absence -Employment standards legislation continues to expand the type of leaves of absence in keeping with changing social norms -The employer and the union will have to negotiate what leaves are to be provided and the extent to which any leaves will exceed the minimum the law provides. - examples: Collective agreement contents - Prohibited terms - unfair labour practices or run contrary to human rights laws - may include a specific article that calls on management and the union to respect and uphold the human rights code in their jurisdiction. Time to explore! Collective agreements for the public service Negotiation of collective agreements Negotiation of collective agreements - Bargaining structure: the number of unions, employers and locations or establishments involved in contract negotiations. - the issue of “who bargains with whom.” Union-Management Relationship Types of Union-Management Relationships 1. Conflict o the employer opposes the union’s representation of employees and only deals with the union as required by law 2. Containment-Aggression o the employer grudgingly accepts the union 3. Accommodation o recognizes the legitimacy of each other with a moderate amount of respect 4. Cooperative o completely accept each other’s legitimacy and are willing to collaborate 5. Collusion o a coalition between the union and the employer to pursue common goals and practices that may be illegal. Influencing Factors External economic, technological, and legal factors Economic downturn or increased competition à increased union pressure Technological innovation à threaten job security Use of replacement workers during strike Personalities of leaders - e.g., authoritarian personality Beliefs and values of leaders - free-enterprise managers vs. union leaders who mistrust of capitalist market systems Experience with collective bargaining NEGOTIATION PROCESS Collective bargaining 1. Notice to Bargain - Either the union or the employer can give a notice to bargain a collective agreement. - Labour relations legislation provides that once a notice to bargain has been given, the employer cannot change the terms and conditions of employment. This statutory freeze continues until the union has the right to strike or the employer has the right to lock out employees. 2. Bargaining Teams - The union and the employer will each assemble a bargaining team. - Whether to have CEO in the team? 3. Preparations for Negotiation  Duty to Bargain in Good Faith - Good faith: having both the union and management negotiators be present and listening to proposals; articulating positions in favour of their proposals and refuting the terms and conditions voiced by the other negotiating team; and making a serious attempt to find “common ground” on a settlement of the terms and conditions raised in collective bargaining. - Guarantee a collective agreement will be reached? - Purpose: to ensure that the employer recognizes the union as the sole bargaining agent for its members and to facilitate an agreement being reached without a strike or lockout. Duty to Bargain in Good Faith Example actions: bad faith First Contract Negotiation - a neutral arbitrator or the Labour Relations Board will hear representations from the union and the employer and then determine the contents of the first agreement. - either the union or the employer can apply for first contract conciliation, mediation or arbitration. - This remedy prevents employers from avoiding a union by adopting unreasonable positions in bargaining. Mid-term reflection - Course average - Main issues - Answer keys  Next week 1 2 3 Please hand in Chapter 9 strikes, Group assignment your attendance lockouts and due sheet contract disputes resolution