HRM textbook

CHAPTER 15 LABOR RELATIONS AND COLLECTIVE BARGAINING 505
Step 3. Hold a Hearing
Once the union collects the authorization cards, one of three things can occur. If the
employer chooses not to contest union recognition at all, then the parties need
no hearing, and a special consent election is held. If the employer chooses not to
contest the union s right to an election, and/or the scope of the bargaining unit, and/or
which employees are eligible to vote in the election, no hearing is needed and the
parties can stipulate an election. If an employer does wish to contest the union s right,
it can insist on a hearing to determine those issues. An employer s decision about
whether to insist on a hearing is a strategic one. Management bases it on the facts
of each case, and on whether it feels it needs more time to try to persuade employees
not to elect a union.
Most companies do contest the union s right to represent their employees, claiming
that a significant number of them don t really want the union. It is at this point that the
National Labor Relations Board gets involved. The union usually contacts the NLRB,
which requests a hearing. The regional director of the NLRB then sends a hearing
officer to investigate. The examiner sends both management and union a notice of
representation hearing (NLRB Form 852; see Figure 15-3) that states the time and place
of the hearing.
The hearing addresses several issues. First, does the record indicate there is
enough evidence to hold an election? (For example, did 30% or more of the
employees in an appropriate bargaining unit sign the authorization cards?)
Second, the examiner must decide what the bargaining unit will be. The
bargaining unit is the group of employees that the union will be authorized
to represent and bargain for collectively. If the entire organization is the bargaining
unit, the union will represent all nonsupervisory, nonmanagerial, and nonconfidential
employees, even though the union may be oriented mostly toward
blue-collar workers. (Professional and nonprofessional employees can be included
in the same bargaining unit only if the professionals agree.) If your firm disagrees
with the examiner s bargaining unit decision, it can challenge the decision. This
will require a separate NLRB ruling.
The NLRB hearing addresses other issues. These include, Does the employer
qualify for coverage by the NLRB? and Is the union a labor organization within the
meaning of the National Labor Relations Act?
If the results of the hearing are favorable for the union, the NLRB will order holding
an election. It will issue a Notice of Election (NLRB Form 707) to that effect, for
the employer to post.
Step 4. The Campaign
During the campaign that precedes the election, union and employer appeal to
employees for their votes. The union will emphasize that it will prevent unfairness,
set up grievance and seniority systems, and improve wages. Union strength, they ll
say, will give employees a voice in determining wages and working conditions.
Management will stress that improvements like those don t require unions and
that wages are equal to or better than they would be with a union. Management
will also emphasize the financial cost of union dues; the fact that the union is an
outsider ; and that if the union wins, a strike may follow. It can even attack the
union on ethical and moral grounds, while insisting that employees will not be as
well off and may lose freedom. But neither side can threaten, bribe, or coerce
employees.
authorization cards
In order to petition for a union election,
the union must show that at least 30%
of employees may be interested in being
unionized. Employees indicate this interest
by signing authorization cards.
bargaining unit
The group of employees the union will be
authorized to represent.