Decision regarding a union-management dispute

Question

1. In return for employee rights guaranteed in the union contract, union employees agree to all of the following except to:

• Abide by the employer's work rules
• Follow supervisor's directions
• Refrain from striking over grievances
• Refrain from criticizing the organization or its management

2. Which of the following is a typical outcome of a discharge grievance case in which the arbitrator rules in favor of the employee?

• The employee is reinstated with or without full back pay.
• The employee is awarded compensatory damages.
• The employee is granted back pay but denied reinstatement.
• The employee is awarded punitive damages.

3. The final step in a typical union grievance procedure is appealing to __________________? (Points : 1)

• a mediator.
• the regional office.
• binding arbitration.
• the Supreme Court

4. In return for the privilege of being the exclusive representative, unions have an obligation to represent all of the bargaining unit employees without discrimination. This principle is known as:

• Exclusive representation
• Duty of nondiscrimination
• Duty of fair representation
• Weingarten Rights

5. The first step in a typical grievance procedure is _____________________?

• filing a complaint with the union
• discussion between employee and supervisor
• mediation
• disciplinary action

6. In making a decision regarding a union-management dispute, an arbitrator's task is to:

• Interpret the contract and apply it to the current situation.
• Conform exactly to the letter of the contract.
• Rewrite the contract so the terms are more clear to the parties and future disputes are avoided.
• Introduce new language that clarifies the intent of the parties.

7. At the end of the strike, for an employer to be able to claim that strike replacements that were hired were "permanent", it must be able to show:

• That all of the strike replacements are willing to stay on as permanent employees
• That the strikers do not wish to return to their jobs
• That the strike replacements were promised permanent employment at the time of hire
• All of the above

8. Which of the following is not an interest dispute?

• Wage levels
• Seniority based layoff systems
• Whether a particular employee has been properly disciplined
• Whether employees should participate in management decision making

9. Which of the following is true with respect to strike activity in the U.S.?

• It declined sharply after WWI but has increased steadily since.
• It has increased steadily since WWI.
• It has declined sharply since the 1980's.
• It has remained steady throughout most of U.S. history.

10. Third-party dispute resolution mechanisms use _______________ to settle bargaining impasses with the goal of avoiding costly strikes.

• a neutral third-party
• decertification elections
• boycotts
• a local county judge

11. Which of the following is a strike not protected under the NLRA?

• economic
• unfair labor practice
• jurisdiction
• recognition

12. Although many argue that public sector unions have unlimited bargaining power, this theory is refuted all of the following except:

• Public sector occupations can be replaced by technology.
• Laws forbid public sector workers from striking.
• The public is not always willing to pay more for government services (e.g., in the form of higher taxes)
• The public is heavily dependent upon certain government services such as police and firefighting.

13. Intraorganizational bargaining arises due to the:

• Involvement of the government in contract negotiations
• Involvement of a mediator or arbitrator in contract negotiations
• Presence of diverse interests within a negotiating party's constituency
• Interaction between management and the union

14. When the terms and conditions from one contract negotiations are used to determine terms and conditions of other contracts, it is called:

• Pattern bargaining
• Centralized bargaining
• Decentralized bargaining
• Industry-wide bargaining

15. Which of the following is not mandatory bargaining issue?

• Seniority provisions
• Just cause discipline provisions
• Food prices in the company cafeteria
• Union representation on the board of directors

16. If the union members are unhappy with the terms of a contract settlement and vote to reject it:

• They are bound to the terms of the old contract
• They can fire the bargaining committee and begin negotiations again
• They can petition to the NLRB for changes
• The negotiators return to the bargaining table to try again or impasse is reached

17. In distributive bargaining, each party's target point is often:

• The same as the other party's resistance point
• The same as the other party's target point
• Lower than the other party's resistance point
• Higher than the other party's resistance point

18. If an employer denies a request for voluntary recognition, what is the next employee step in the union organizing process?

• Filing a grievance with the NLRB
• Collecting additional authorization card signatures
• Organizing a card-check election
• Filing an election petition with the NLRB

19. Due to problems in the certification process outlined by the NLRA, more and more unions are pursuing union organizing campaigns that:

• Rely on use of the secret ballot election.
• Rely on neutrality and card-check agreements with employers.
• Rely on legal intervention to force employers to recognize and negotiate with a union.
• Rely on intervention by the NLRB to issue Gissel orders that force employers to recognize and negotiate with a union

20. To restrict the ability of a union to solicit union members during work hours, the employer should:

• Institute a no solicitation policy that only allows charitable organizations to solicit donations but doesn't allow private entrepreneurs to sell products.
• Institute a no solicitation policy that could be loosely applied, thus allowing charitable organizations such as the Girls Scouts to sell products.
• Institute a no solicitation policy that is applied to all organizations, including charitable organizations.
• Not worry about it because no matter what they do, the union will be allowed to have access to the organization.

21. If a group of employees is represented by a union and another union that has a better track record also wants to represent those workers, the employees:

• Can choose to belong to both unions.
• Can immediately switch unions.
• Can file for a decertification election if enough workers express interest in an election.
• Must stick with the union they have until the contract expires.

22. Which of the following is not likely to be considered illegal under the National Labor Relations Act?

• Firing an employee who is trying to organize a union.
• Improving wages, benefits and working conditions just before a representation election.
• Lies, misrepresentation, and distortion of facts.
• Questioning employees about whether they intend to vote for the union.

23. After a lengthy negotiation involving a series of contract changes agreed to by management and the union, General Soft Drinks refused to make any further changes to the contract even though the union was ready to strike. The parties are:

• committing an unfair labor practice in violation of the NLRA
• negotiating in bad faith
• at a bargaining impasse
• ready for final and binding arbitration

24. Oshkosh Corporation is a large manufacturer of military vehicles used in Afghanistan. If Oshkosh Corporation workers went out on strike and the President believed this strike presented a significant threat to the nation's safety, he could do all the following except:

• Discharge the strikers and replace them with new workers
• Appoint a board of inquiry to investigate the labor dispute
• Seek a court-ordered injunction preventing the strike
• Ask congress to legislate a settlement to the strike

25. An employee who wants to work instead of strike has the legal right to:

• Cross their own union's picket line but not another union's picket line.
• Resign from the union but cannot cross the picket line.
• Cross another union's picket line but not their own picket line.
• Cross any picket line and/or resign from the union.

26. Workers at Coniff Enterprises recently went out on strike in protest over employer actions it claimed were in violation of the NLRA Section 8(a)(3). The strike lasted for a period of about 50 days before the NLRB ruled that the company was innocent of any wrongdoing. Coniff Enterprises hired temporary strike replacements to keep the business running. At the end of the strike, the striking workers were entitled to:

• Immediate reinstatement to their jobs and back pay for the 50 day period
• Immediate reinstatement to their jobs
• The right to be hired first if any of the strike replacements decided to quit or were fired
• Nothing

27. In the 1980's, black female workers at Delta Pride, a catfish processing plant in Mississippi, embarked on a union organizing drive. As part of this effort, the union was aggressive in publicizing wrongdoings by the employer, pressuring members of the board of directors to disassociate from the company, and sending postcards to over 100,000 Mississippi residents seeking their support for unionization. As a result of these tactics, the union won recognition. The tactics used in this organizing drive can best be described as:

• A sympathy strike
• A corporate campaign
• A boycott
• A work slowdown

28. On a cold winter day, a group of employees decides that the temperature in their manufacturing plant is unbearably cold. Together, the employees approach their employer and request that the heat be turned up. The employer:

• Must collectively bargain with this group of employees over the plant temperature.
• May refuse the employees request.
• Must turn up the heat at the request of the employees.
• Can fire the employees for insubordination.

29. Pierre is unsure as to whether he should support a union but is leaning toward a "no" vote. After talking with several of his coworkers, he realizes that most of them are very supportive of unionization. Recognizing the importance of "sticking together," and not wanting to disappoint his coworkers, Pierre decides he should vote "yes" in the upcoming election. Which of the following factors best explains Pierre's change of heart?

• Union instrumentality
• General beliefs about unions.
• Workplace social identity and/or social pressure.
• Utility maximization

30. A union organizing tactic in which paid union organizers attempt to get hired by a company is know as:

• Featherbedding.
• Salting.
• Gissel bargaining order.
• Hiring fraud.

31. The evening before a union election, an employer held a company picnic for its employees. Attendance at the picnic was required and the company president gave a passionate speech urging employees not to vote for the union. The most likely reason the NLRB would consider this a violation of the NLRA is:

• The picnic amounts to a captive audience meeting held within 24 hours of the election.
• The picnic could be considered an inducement or reward for not voting for the union.
• The president's passionate speech could be considered threatening.
• None of the above; the employer did not violate the NLRA in any way.

32. When an employer prohibits outside organizations from entering the workplace and interacting with workers, it is called ______________?

• A private injunction
• A no solicitation rule
• Salting
• The Monarch Rubber rule

33. Interpreting, applying, and resolving conflicts that arise under a union contract is called:

• Contract negotiations
• Past practice
• Mediation
• Contract administration

34. Sandy was scheduled to work an 8 hour shift on a Thursday afternoon and evening. When she arrived at work, her supervisor told her the shipment she was to process had not arrived and that she could go home. Under her union contract, Sandy was entitled to four hours of pay because she showed up for work as scheduled. This contract provision is called:

• Reporting pay
• Scheduled hours pay
• Straight-time pay
• Guaranteed hours pay

35. Billings Paper Co. recently sold their Green Bay, WI plant to a larger company. The union contract specified that any new owner would need to recognize and bargain with the existing union at Billings. This contract provision is called a:

• Successorship clause
• Union recognition
• Union shop agreement
• Employee rights clause

36. Critics of union shop agreements that argue these agreements violate employees' individual freedom by depriving them of a free choice about where to work. These critics argue they are protecting workers.:

• Right to work
• Seniority rights
• Free rider rights
• Job placement rights