Unions ~ A Collective
Bargaining Experience
Dwayne Richardson, RT(R), RN, MSN.
Agenda:
• Union History & Perceived Pro’s and Con’s of
the Union
• Working with your bargaining units and
delegates
• The Power of Negotiations
• Short Story: Dealing as we Speak
• Questions & Answers
2
Learning Objectives:
• You will learn:
*Collective Bargaining Models.
*Perceived Pro’s and Con’s of the Union
*How to work with your Bargaining Units and
the Delegates?
* What are they truly negotiating?
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What is a
Union
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What is a labor union?
• Main Entry:
– labor union
• Function:
– noun
• an organization of workers formed for the
purpose of advancing its members' interests
in respect to wages, benefits, and working
conditions
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• A union
How
Do Unions Work?
– Is a democratic organization of member
workers
– Provides strength in numbers
– Provides worker representation
– Negotiates a contract (collective
bargaining agreement)
– Approves a contract through the vote of
its members
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trade_union
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History
of Collective
Bargaining in the United States
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Knights of Labor (K of L), was
the largest and one of the most
important American labor
organizations of the 19th
Century
The First successful Strike in American History was by
the Philadelphia printers.
Boston
Shoemakers
First strike in building
trades by Philadelphia
carpenters
New York
Shoemakers
Slavery
Abolished
1648
1785
1786
1791
1865
American Federation of
Labor and Congress of
Industrial Organizations
National
Labor Union
1866
1869
1886
Pullman
Strike
1894
Women's
Right to
Vote
1920
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Is union membership required?
• Depends upon the relationship detailed in the
collective bargaining agreement
–Open shop – no need to join or pay dues
–Agency shop – no need to join, but you will
have to pay the same dues as members
–Closed shop – membership is required as is
payment of dues
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Right to Work
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The following 22 states are right-to-work states:
Alabama
Arizona †
Arkansas †
Florida †
Georgia
Idaho
Iowa
Kansas
Louisiana
Mississippi †
Nebraska
Nevada
North Carolina
North Dakota
Oklahoma †
South Carolina
South Dakota
Tennessee
Texas
Utah
Virginia
Wyoming
If you are employed in one of the 22 states that
has a Right to Work law, you are probably
protected by the state's Right to Work law and
cannot be required to join or pay dues or fees to
a union. (There are a small number of
exceptions to the basic rule that individuals
who work in Right to Work states cannot be
required to pay to join or pay dues or fees to a
union. Employees of airlines and railroads, and
employees working on property subject to
exclusive federal jurisdiction, cannot be
required to join a union, but may be required to
pay union fees.
^ NFL Collective Bargaining Agreement 2006-2012: Art. V, Sec. 1 (agency shop);
Art. LIX (law of New York, not a right-to-work state, applies).
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The National Labor Relations Act
• Established in 1935
• Guarantees non-supervisory
employees the rights to:
– Organize a union
– Choose their own representatives
– Bargain collectively for improved
working conditions
www.NLRB.gov
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The Taft-Hartley Act of 1947
aka Labor Management Relations act
• It gives employees the right to refrain from
participating in union activities and adds a series of
prohibited unfair labor practices by unions. In
addition, it creates the Federal Mediation Service to
assist management and unions in settling disputes.
The Taft-Hartley Act gives the president the power
to require striking workers to return to work for
up to 80 days while labor negotiation continue if the
labor dispute “imperils the national health or safety.”
The Labor–Management Relations Act, 80 Pub.L. 101; 61 Stat. 136,
informally the Taft–Hartley Act, is a United States federal law12
that
monitors the activities and power of labor unions.
History Of Violations
• A Virtually every U.S. labor union faces
allegations of violating labor law. Consider the
number of charges filed against these unions
between 1998 and 2004:
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United Food and Commercial Workers 2,161
Teamsters 6,909
Service Employees International Union 3,910
Steelworkers 1,912
Source: data supplied by the Bureau of National Affairs
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Violence
History (continued)
1875 Molly Maguires in mining, Pennsylvania and West Virginia
1886 Haymarket Riot, Chicago: Strike for 8 hour day
1892 Homestead Steel, Pennsylvania: Lockout when workers refuse wage
cuts
1894 Pullman Strike, Illinois: strike over layoffs, wage cuts
1972 Norman Rayford, August 28th, a paid holiday for all 1199C members.
1199: The National Health Care Workers'
Union (originally known as the Drug, Hospital,
and Health Care Employees Union-District 1199)
was a labor union originally founded by Leon J.
Davis for pharmacists in New York City in 1932
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How does a Union start?
Simple Majority Wins!
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What you CAN Do!
Fighting a Union Campaign: What Employers Can and Can't D: HR Specialist 12/17/2007
Published White Paper
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What you CAN’T Do!
Campaigning on company time and premises within 24 hours of an NLRB-scheduled election.
Meetings held off-premises may take place under special circumstances.
Reproducing and distributing official NLRB ballots and showing employees how to mark them.
Discussing the union with employees in a supervisor’s office, regardless of the noncoercive
tenor of your remarks.
Fighting a Union Campaign: What Employers Can and Can't D: HR Specialist 12/17/2007
Published White Paper
17
Authorization Card Example
Adapted: 2010 National Right to Work Legal
Defense Foundation
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Employee Free Choice Act ~2009
(also called majority sign-up) ~aka “Card Check”
1. Eliminating the Private Ballot
2. Government Arbitration and Control
3. Harsh New Penalties for Businesses
Under the proposed Employee Free Choice Act
(EFCA), if the NLRB verifies that over 50% of
the employees signed authorization cards, the
secret ballot election is bypassed and a union is
automatically formed.
Employee Free Choice Act (H.R. 1409 S.560)
US Chamber of Commerce
Pro’s & Con’s
Bargaining
Dues
Money
No
Voice
Representation
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Why join a union?
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Wage advantage – 30% higher wages
Healthcare advantage – 63% greater coverage
Pension advantage –greater coverage
Disability benefits advantage – 77% greater coverage
Paid-time-off advantage – 28% more paid days off
**US Dept. of Labor – Bureau of Labor Statistics 2006**
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Benefits of Labor Unions
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A binding contract
Higher wages
Better benefits
Greater job security
• Health and safety
• Grievance procedures
• Special member
services
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Pay Member
periodic dues
Responsibilities
Elect a slate of officers
Vote on contracts
Solidarity
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Are there disadvantages?
• Common union complaints include
– Cost of dues (most common)
– Improper or poor representation
– Lack of incentives to membership
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Union Dues: What can they expect to Pay?
• BASE SALARY (Monthly) DUES (Monthly) up to $1,089.00/month
$25.10/month (minimum dues) between $1,089.00/month and
$2,317.00/month 2.15% of actual base wages EXAMPLES
• If you earn: Your monthly dues are:
• $1,200/month ~ $27.50/month
$1,400/month ~ $31.80/month
$1,600/month ~ $36.10/month
$1,800/month ~ $40.40/month
$2,000/month ~ $44.70/month
$2,200/month ~ $49.00/month
over $2,317/month ~$51.50/month (maximum dues)
•
Note: The union reserves the right to increase its dues yearly based on contract wage gains in the total
Adapted: AFSCME ~ 1199C Union Dues Schedule*
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The Union Numbers
• Union membership in the private sector
has fallen below 10%
• Union membership in the public sector
has grown to above 35%.
• Overall union membership has fallen
below 15%.
Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics ~ 2009
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Unionization
Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics ~ 2009
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Work Stoppages
Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics ~ 2009
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What can striking get you?
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Strike = 1 Month without pay
The union negotiated an $800 signing bonus in lieu of retroactivity (delayed contractual increase).
An RN $35 hr x 36 hr/week x 4 weeks (not including differentials) = 5,040 pay loss.
Raises of 2 %, 2.5 %, and 3 % over the course of the contract was negotiated.
Average yearly RN salary (base only) 65,520 x 2% = 1,310.40 first year = 66,830.40; 1,670.76
year two (2.5%) = 68,501.16; and 2,055.03 the third year (3%) = 70,556.19…Total $ increase
for three years is $5,036.19 + 800 1x bonus = 5,836.19 over three years. Basically they will
gross $796.19 in three years (5,836.19-5,040). Therefore they will see no financial gain in base
salary until the third year of the contract and the gain is minimal (796.19).
Anti-disparagement "gag" clause was eliminated.
A three-tiered health insurance is imposed with employees paying 10%, 20% or 25% of the
premium, depending on their plan choice. There is a short delay in implementation for highestpriced plan.
The union negotiated smaller tuition benefit for workers' dependents (6 credits per semester).
Some random drug testing is permitted.
Therefore, the question is was it worth the financial loss of 5,040 in a month of a strike “OR”
the minimal gain of 796.19 in the three year contract period.
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Collective
Bargaining
The basic objective of collective bargaining is
to arrive at an agreement on wages and other
conditions of employment.
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Types of Bargaining
Over the years, four distinctive types of bargaining have evolved, namely;
™ Conjunctive or distributive bargaining: where both parties try to
maximize their respective gains
™ Cooperative bargaining: where both parties yield ground to the other
to get ahead and resolve knotty issues
™ Productivity bargaining: where the wages and benefits of workers
are linked to productivity
™ Composite bargaining: where labor bargains not only for wages but
goes a step further and demands equity in other matters relating to
work norms, employment levels, etc in return for agreeing to the tight
productivity norms set by management.
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Advantages of Collective Bargaining
• Bipartite agreements
• Quick & efficient
• Democratic method
US
CT
MRI
IR
Nuc
Diag
Reconciliation of Interests
Different
Similar
Collective Bargaining
Opening
Bargaining
Closing
6
5
4
Settlement
3
2
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What goes in the Contract?
Call Pay
Holidays
Birthdays
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What can Technologist expect to
make in a Union on Average?
Median
CT Tech
Yrs. Of Experience
0-2
2+-4
4+-6
6+-8
8+-10
10+
LEAD
Ultrasound Tech
Yrs. Of
Experience
0-3
3+-5
5+
LEAD
$27.46
$28.81
$29.64
$30.46
$31.30
$32.28
$36.65
Nuclear Medicine
Tech
Yrs. Of Experience
0-2
2+-4
4+-6
6+-8
8+-10
10+
LEAD
$32.02
Diag Tech III
Yrs of
Experieince
$30.40
$32.30
$33.59
$36.81
MRI Tech
Yrs. Of Experience
0-2
3+ - 6
6+
LEAD
$29.17
$31.50
$34.28
$38.00
1 - 3 yrs
$24.99
3 - 6 yrs
$26.97
6+ yrs
$27.60
Mammo Tech
Yrs of Experience
0 - 3 yrs
3+ - 6 yrs
6+ yrs
LEAD
$31.04
$32.30
$32.95
$33.59
$34.24
$34.89
$42.62
Angio Tech
Yrs. Of Experience
0-3
3+-6
6+
LEAD
$27.01
$29.15
$30.32
$35.26
$30.08
$31.36
$31.99
$37.73
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Working with
the Union
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Weingarten Rights
• The rights of employees covered by the NLRA
to request union representation during
investigatory interviews if they reasonably
believe that the interview could result in their
being disciplined. Weingarten rights also
guarantee the rights of union representatives to
assist and counsel employees during
interviews which could lead to discipline.
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You think you are ok and that
your staff have no interest in
unionization.
Peace Accord
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You Have a Union: Now What?
• Document, Document, Document !
• Communicate
No need to Fight!!!
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Key to Success
MC2
•Motivate
•Create
•Congratulate
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Staffing Changes/Department Requirements
•Librarians downsized due to PACS
Certification Requirement
~ All staff given 1 year
notice.
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Working with your Union~ A Positive
Message
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Dealing as we Speak
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Questions
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References
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[1] Benjamin Radcliff and Patricia Davis, “Labor Organization and Electoral Participation in Industrial
Democracies,”American Journal of Political Science, 44 (1) (2000): 132-141.
David Brody, Labor Embattled: History, Power, Rights, (Chicago, University of Illinois Press, 2005).
[3] David Brody, “New strategies: How the Wagner Act became a management tool,” (New Labor Forum, 2004).
[4] Martin Jay Levitt, Confessions of a Union Buster (New York: Crown Publishers, 1993).
[5] HR Policy Association's review looked for any NLRB decisions involving coercion or deception in connection with a
union's solicitation and collection of union authorization cards. It covered cards signed for union representation purposes. The
vast majority of these petitions were most likely petitions for a union representation election.
[6] Julie Martinez Ortega and Erin Johansson, “The Facts Behind the Employee Free Choice Act,” (Washington: American
Rights at Work, 2008).
[7] Ibid.
[8] Orley Ashenfelter and Dean Hyslop. “Measuring the effect of arbitration on wage levels: The case of police officers,”
Industrial and Labor Relations Review, 54 (2) (2001).
[9] The cost of benefits—especially health insurance—has increased over time and now accounts for a greater share of total
compensation than in the past, but this increase is nowhere near enough to account for the discrepancy between wage and
productivity growth. For example, according to analysis by the Center for Economic and Policy Research, between 1973 and
2006 the share of labor compensation in the form of benefits rose from 12.6 percent to 19.5 percent.
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