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Competencies 1.Describe the reasons employees join unions, and analyze the

statistics and trends of union membership. 2.Explain the goals and content of major U.S. legislation affecting

labor relations. 3.Define craft and industrial unions, and outline the sequence of

events in organizing and certifying or decertifying a union. 4.Describe how unions are adapting and changing as they look

to the future.

Managing Hospitality Human Resources Chapter 10: Labor Unions

SOLIDARITY!

Unionization in the Hospitality Industry • Unions

– Organizations comprised of employees who act together to promote and protect their mutual interests through collective bargaining. • Labor contract (CBA)

– A written agreement covering a specific time that spells out management’s expectations for employees, and limits to management’s authority

Reasons Employee Join Unions • They believe unions will help them accomplish

goals such as economic security • They are dissatisfied with current job conditions,

e.g., layoffs • They are dissatisfied with management, i.e., not

pay • Employees often believe that union

representation will increase their control over the workplace and protect them from unfair and abusive managers

Statistics and Trends • Union membership peaked in 1945

– With 35.8 percent of the non-agricultural work force in the U.S. belonging to unions

• % of the work force belonging to unions has steadily declined since 1945 – by 2009 it was 12.3 percent.

Why??? • Recent growth in membership

– public employees and teachers

Statistics and Trends (continued) • Today, over 1/2 of unionized workers in the US (7.9

million) work for local, state, or federal government • Union certification and decertification elections in

the hospitality indicate current decline in membership will continue.

• Hotel Unionization most common in 12 states – California, Pennsylvania, New York, Nevada, Washington,

Illinois, Ohio, Hawaii, New Jersey, Florida, Michigan, and Massachusetts

• Restaurant Unionization most common in 8 states – California, Pennsylvania, New York, Washington, Illinois,

Ohio, Michigan, and Oregon.

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Legislation Affecting Labor Relations • The Wagner Act • The Taft-Hartley Act • The Landrum-Griffin Act • The Civil Service Reform Act • Worker Adjustment and Retraining

Notification Act (WARN)

The Wagner Act • Gave employees the legally protected rights to

organize, strike, and engage in collective bargaining through an elected representative.

• Created National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) which prohibits employers from: 1. Interfering with or coercing employees to discourage

them from forming or joining unions 2. Attempting to dominate or influence the operation of

unions 3. Discriminating based on union membership or activity 4. Retaliating against employees who file unfair labor

practice charges with the NLRB 5. Failing to bargain in good faith

The Taft-Hartley Act • In 1947, the Wagner Act was amended and retitled the

Taft-Hartley Act, which: – Prohibits closed shops – Establishes the rights of states to enact right-to-work laws – Establishes unfair labor practice charges that could be filed

against unions by union members and employers – Prohibits employers from discriminating against employees

to influence union membership – Stipulates that unions must bargain in good faith with

employers – Prohibits unions from conducting secondary boycotts

The Taft-Hartley Act (con’t) • Prohibits unions from preventing suppliers from making

deliveries • Stipulates that unions cannot prevent employees from

crossing picket lines to go to work • Prohibits unions from “featherbedding” • Establishes the Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service

(FMCS) • Gives the NLRB power to enforce cease and desist orders

through court injunctions if either side engages in unfair labor practices

• Gives management right to discuss advantages/disadvantages of unions with employees

The Landrum-Griffin Act • As a result of findings regarding power abuse,

unethical conduct, and corrupt practices in some unions, Congress enacted the Landrum- Griffin Act, which: – Provides a “Bill of Rights” for union members – Provides for union elections once every fie years

for national and international unions – Requires unions to submit bylaws and

constitutions to the US DOL

The Landrum-Griffin Act (con’t) • Requires unions to file for elections within one

month of organizational or recognitional picketing and to refrain from such picketing for 12 months if a vote goes against the union

• Establishes the right of unions to picket but not to keep employees from going to work if they want to cross picket lines.

• Regulates financial transactions involving union funds

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Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act

• Requires employers to give employees 60 days’ notice of closings or mass layoffs.

• Covers employers with 100 or more full-time employees or 100 or more full- and part-time employees working a total of at least 4,000 hours per week.

• Can be triggered by the sale of a business if it leads to layoffs.

WHEN DOES A COMPANY NOT HAVE

TO FOLLOW THE WARN ACT?

Union Structure and Organization • There are 2 principal types of unions:

– Craft unions • represent workers who have the same skills or perform

the same tasks – Industrial unions

• represent workers in a given industry • Union management

– Union Rep – Shop Steward

Organizing Drive • Unions can be certified as the legal representatives

of employees in three ways: – The employer can voluntarily acknowledge that a majority

of the employees want the union – The NLRB can hold a secret ballot election to determine

whether a majority of employees want the union – The NLRB can, in rare cases, certify a union without an

election – Issuance of a bargaining order • Union organizers can obtain an NLRB election when

they can prove that a minimum of 30% of employees at a given business, or within a subgroup of employees, want a specific union to represent them

Elections • Any number of unions can be on the ballot, provided

each accumulates at least 10% of employees’ signatures

• When only one union is on the ballot, the only question posed is “Do you want to be represented by this union?” but when more than one union is on the ballot, employees must identify which union they prefer.

• If a majority of the employees favor a specific union, the NLRB certifies the union as the legal representative of the bargaining unit, which is the specific group of represented employees.

Decertification • Employees can decertify unions

– the employees do not want to be represented by their union any longer

• Decertification elections are called in the same way as certification elections – At least 30 percent of represented employees must

express an interest in decertifying the union • A decertification vote cannot be called for 12 months

after the original certification or during the term of a labor contract

• To call a vote, a decertification petition must be filed with the NLRB.

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Employer Strategies • Proactive measures eliminate the need for

unions – establish practices such as fair pay policies, good

working conditions, two-way communication, fair grievance procedures, etc.

• Some companies take reactive measures – typically emphasize the hardships that occur

during strikes, the rewards of current benefits, and how employee-management relationships can change when a union takes over