Mgmt 583
Chapter 3: The National Labor
Code
Fall 2008
The National Labor Code
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National Labor Relations Act (1935)
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Labor Management Relations Act (1947)
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Wagner-Connerly Act
Taft-Hartley Act
Labor Management Reporting and
Disclosure Act (1959)
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Landrum-Griffin Act
National Labor Relations Act
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Objectives:
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Reduce work stoppages
Increase wages through collective bargaining
Increase demand for more goods through
increased wages, hence stimulate the economy
National Labor Relations Act
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Covered Employers:
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Private sector employers engaged in interstate
trade.
Employers defined by size & industry:
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Nonretail
Retail
Hotels
Colleges
Healthcare
$50,000
$500,000
$500,000
$1,000,000
$250,000
National Labor Relations Act
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Exempt Employers:
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United States government or any wholly owned
federal government corporation.
Any Federal Reserve Bank.
Any State or political subdivision thereof.
Any entity subject to the Railway Labor.
National Labor Relations Act
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§ 2 Definitions
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§ 2(3) The term employee shall include any employee,
unless the Act explicitly states otherwise.
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any agricultural laborer.
a domestic servant of any family or person at his home.
any individual employed by his parent or spouse.
any individual having the status of an independent
contractor.
any individual employed as a supervisor.
any individual employed by an employer subject to the
Railway Labor Act.
any other person who is not an employer as herein defined.
National Labor Relations Act
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§ 2 Definitions
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§ 2(5) an entity is consider to be a labor
organization under the Act if it meets the
following conditions:
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Employees participate.
The organization exists (at least in part) for the
purpose of “dealing with’ employers.
These “dealings” involve conditions of work,
grievances, labor disputes, wages rates of pay or hours
of employment,
National Labor Relations Act
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§ 3 Creates the National Labor Relations Board
(NLRB)
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Enforces the NLRA
Investigates unfair labor practice charges.
Oversees certification elections and the recognition
process
Composition:
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Five members serve 5-year terms
Appointed by the president
Confirmed by the Senate
National Labor Relations Act
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National Labor Relations Board (NLRB)
 The current Members are:
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Robert J. Battista (Chairman) - Bush
Wilma B. Liebman - Clinton
Peter C. Schaumber - Bush
Dennis P. Walsh - Bush
Peter N. Kirsanow - Bush
Of the total ULP charges filed each year
[approximately 30,000], only one-third are found
to have merit of which over 90% are settled.
National Labor Relations Act
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§ 7 Employees Right to Organize
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Employees have the right to organize without
interference
Employees have the right to bargain collectively
Employees have the right to strike for better
conditions
Employees have the right not to organize
(Employee Free Choice)
National Labor Relations Act
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§ 8(a) Unfair Labor Practices by Management
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§ 8(a)(1) the Derivative Violation. Interfering with,
restraining, or coercing employees in the exercise of their
§ 7 rights.
 Threatening discharge
 Spying
 Threatening to move the plant (run away plants)
 Bribing or extorting employees for their votes
 Questioning employees about their votes
National Labor Relations Act
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§ 8(a)(2) Unlawful Domination. Prohibits company
unions. Broadly worded:
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Interferes with a labor organization’s formation
Interferes with a labor organization’s administration
Provides financial support to a labor organization
Note: The employer’s motives are irrelevant. NLRB v. Newport News
Shipbuilding, 308 U.S. 241 (1938). Employee participation programs violate
§ 8(a)(2) Electromation v. IBT 309 N.L.R.B. no. 163 (1992). Electromation v.
NLRB, 35 F.3d 1148 (7th Cir. 1993).
National Labor Relations Act
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§ 8(a)(3) Unlawful Discrimination Based on Union
Membership:
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Cannot discriminate against union [or nonunion] employees with
regard to their conditions of employment
Requires proof of employer’s intent to discourage union
membership
Examples:
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Discharging pro union employees
Refusing to hire pro union applicants
Constructive discharges
Superseniority to permanent strike
replacements
National Labor Relations Act
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§ 8(a)(4) Whistleblowers Clause:
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Cannot retaliate against an employee who files an
unfair labor practice complaint against the employer.
National Labor Relations Act
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§ 8(a)(5) Obligation to Bargain in Good Faith:
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Employer must bargain with the bargaining units
recognized/certified bargaining agent
Mandatory Bargaining Issues:
 Wages
 Hours
 Conditions of Employment
National Labor Relations Act
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§ 9 Certification Process
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NLRB v. Jones & Laughlin Steel Co., 301 U.S. 1
(1937) declared the NLRA to be constitutional
[though under duress]
Labor Management Relations Act

Historical Background

At its enactment, NLRAs critics claimed it gave the
unions too much power with no checks & balances
 Closed shops were rampant
 Mgmt had to bargain in good faith, but not the union
 Secondary boycotts were common place
 Employees were coerced into joining unions
 Strikes were used to coerce employers into making
concessions
Labor Management Relations Act
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Historical Background cont’d
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Featherbedding was common
Organized crime had infiltrated some unions
Instead of reducing labor stoppages, under the NLRA they
actually increased
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1941 4,300 strikes
1945 4,750 strikes
In 1943 UMW strikes caused the coal mining industry to be
seized by the federal government and administered by the Dept
of the Interior
In Post-War American unions were fueling inflation
Labor Management Relations Act
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Objectives
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Balance power between the two parties in the
collective bargaining process
Curb union abuses
§ 8(b) Unfair Labor Practices by the Union
ULPs by the Union
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§ 8(b)(1) Employee’s § 7 Rights § 7
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8(b)(1)(a) Employee’s Right to Free Choice
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Union cannot interfere with employees § 7 rights.
Examples:
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Picket line violence
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Threats of violence to nonunion employees
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Threaten loss of job to nonunion employees if the union
wins certification
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Entering into a recognition agreement when the union does
not have a majority showing of interest
ULPs by the Union
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§ 8(b)(1) Employee’s § 7 Rights
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§ 8(b)(1)(b) Union cannot coerce the employer in
the selection of the employer’s bargaining
representative.
 Union cannot insist on meeting only with the
owner.
 Employers may select whomever they want to
represent their interests
ULPs by the Union
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§ 8(b)(2) Fair Representation
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Unlawful to force any employer to discriminate
against non-union members of the bargaining
unit.
 Demanding different wages or benefits based
on union membership.
 Failing to submit a grievance based on union
membership.
ULPs by the Union
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§ 8(b)(3) Bargain in Good Faith
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Unions cannot refuse to collectively bargain with
an employer.
 No “take or leave it “ultimatums.
ULPs by the Union
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§ 8(b)(4) Secondary Boycotts
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§ 8(b)(4)(A) Hot cargo clause. Forcing an
employer to enter an agreement with the union to
refrain from handling goods of another employer
against whom the union has labor dispute.
§ 8(b)(4)(B) Forcing an employer to cease doing
business with another employer against whom the
union is striking
ULPs by the Union
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§ 8(b)(4) Secondary Boycotts cont’d
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§ 8(b)(4)(C) Forcing an employer to recognized a union
when another union has already been certified as the
bargaining representative..
§ 8(b)(4)(D) Forcing an employer to assign work to
employees of one union rather than members of another
union (jurisdictional disputes)
ULPs by the Union
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§ 8(b)(5) Excessive Dues & Fees
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Unlawful for the union to charge a fee that the
NLRB would consider excessive or
discriminatory.
ULPs by the Union
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§ 8(b)(6) Anti-Featherbedding Clause
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Featherbedding - payment for services not
performed or not to be performed.
ULPs by the Union
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§ 8(b)(7) Limitations on Organizational Picketing
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No picketing when a certified bargaining agent is already
in place
No picketing within 12 months of the last certification or
decertification election.
Picketing must cease if a certification petition has not
been filed with the NLRB 30 days after the
commencement of such picketing
Notification of Modification of CBA
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§ 8(d)
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Written notice no later than 60 days prior to the
expiration of the contract.
Health care institutions have a 90 day notification
requirement.
Right-to-Work Laws
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§ 14(b) Right-to-Work Laws
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Nothing in this Act shall be construed as
authoring the execution or application of
agreements requiring membership in a labor
organization as a condition of employment in any
State or Territory in which the execution or
application is prohibited by State or Territorial
law.
Does not apply to employees who work on
federal property or for a railway or airline (RLA).
Continuum of Compulsory Union
Membership
Exclusive
Bargaining
Rights
Open
Shop
Agency
Shop
Maintenance of
Membership
Shop
Modified
Union
Shop
Union
Shop
Closed
Shop
Preferential
Union
Shop
Compulsory Union Membership
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Open Shop - non union
Exclusive Bargaining Rights
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Certified/recognized bargaining agent
Membership is strictly voluntary
Only union members must pay dues
Compulsory Union Membership
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Agency Shop
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Certified/recognized bargaining agent
Membership is strictly voluntary
Union members must pay dues; nonunion
members of the BU pay equivalent of dues.
Highest form of recognition in a right-to-work
states,
Right-to-Work States (22)
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Alabama
Arizona
Arkansas
Florida
Georgia
Idaho
Iowa
Kansas
Louisiana
Mississippi (1954)
Nebraska
Nevada
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North Carolina
North Dakota
Oklahoma (2001)
South Carolina
South Dakota
Tennessee
Texas
Utah
Virginia
Wyoming
Compulsory Union Membership
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Maintenance of Membership Shop
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Certified/recognized bargaining agent
Membership is voluntary in a limited sense.
Union members must pay dues; nonunion
members of the BU pay equivalent of dues.
However, once a member joins the union they
must remain a member in good standing as a
condition of employment
Compulsory Union Membership
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Modified Union Shop
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Certified/recognized bargaining agent
All new hires must join the union old nonunion
employees may remain non union.
Union members must pay dues; nonunion members of the
BU pay equivalent of dues.
However, once a member joins the union they must
remain a member in good standing as a condition of
employment.
Compulsory Union Membership
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Union Shop
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Certified/recognized bargaining agent
All employees must join the union.
Union members must pay dues.
Union membership is a condition of continued
employment.
Compulsory Union Membership
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Preferential Union Shop
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Applicable only to building & construction trade
unions (§ 8 (f)).
Allows temporary (7-day) assignment of
nonunion workers to the local.
Temporary members must pay dues.
Temporary union membership is renewable.
Compulsory Union Membership
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Closed Shop
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Must be a union member before applying for the
job.
Illegal under the LMRA..
Mediation and Conciliation Service
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§ 202 Federal Mediation and Conciliation
Service (FMCS)
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Nonbinding
Purpose is to get the two parties (labor and
management) talking to one another.
National Emergency Disputes
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§§ 206-210 National Emergency Dispute
Resolution
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Must involve an actual or threatened strike or
lockout affecting an entire industry, or a
substantial part thereof, that if permitted would:
 Imperil national health
 Imperil national safety
National Emergency Disputes
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National Emergency Dispute Resolution
Process
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President forms a board of inquiry which
investigates and reports on the magnitude of the
strike or lockout.
President may direct the Attorney General to
petition any federal district court for an 80-day
injunction
National Emergency Disputes
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National Emergency Dispute Resolution
Process cont’d
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The FMCS will be sent in to attempt mediation
At the end of 60 days the board of inquiry reports any
progress to the president.
President may make the report available to the public.
NLRB within the next 15 days makes the employer’s
final offer available to each employee for individual
balloting.
National Emergency Disputes
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National Emergency Dispute Resolution
Process cont’d
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The NLRB certifies the results.
If a settlement is reached the matter is closed.
If not, the president reports to Congress and
makes recommendations as appropriate.
Labor Management Reporting and
Disclosure Act
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Labor Management Reporting and Disclosure Act (LMRDA),
a.k.a. the Landrum-Griffin Act of 1959.
Enacted because of the undemocratic and corrupt actions of the
IBT, UMW, and ILA.
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"I'm paid $25,000 a year to run this outfit. . . . Why should truck drivers
and bottle washers be allowed to make decisions affecting policy? No
corporation would allow it." Dave Beck, IBT
The McClellan Committee (United States Senate Select Committee on
Improper Activities in Labor and Management) brought about the
conviction of Dave Beck, for tax evasion and misuse of union funds in
1957.
James Riddle "Jimmy" Hoffa took over the IBT after Beck’s
conviction.
Hoffa was convicted in 1964 of using the assets of the Teamsters'
pension plans, particularly the Central States plan, to support Mafia
projects, such as the development of Las Vegas in the 1950s and 1960s.
Labor Management Reporting and
Disclosure Act
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The major provisions of the LMRDA:
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Bars members of the Communist Party and convicted
felons from holding union office.
Requires labor unions to submit annual financial reports to
the DOL.
Requires secret ballot elections of local union officers
Declares that every union officer must act as a fiduciary in
handling the assets and conducting the affairs of the union.
Limits the power of unions to put subordinate bodies in
trusteeship, a temporary suspension of democratic
processes within a union.
Provides minimum standards to be met before a union may
expel or take other disciplinary action against a member of
the union.