Union Awareness

Overview/Description
 According to the U.S. Department of Labor's Bureau of Labor Statistics, in 2004, 12.5 percent of wage and salary workers were union members--down from 12.9 percent in 2003. Why is membership declining? Perhaps the growing number of laws in place to protect workers prevents the necessity of unions, or perhaps the nature of the work itself has changed. Regardless of the decline, workers still have the legal right to form unions, and you need a basic understanding of workers' rights, and what rights you have as an employer. It's important to understand why employees form unions, and how best to deal with them in your workplace. SkillSoft's Legal Compliance courses are developed and maintained with subject matter support provided by the Labor, Employment, and Employee Benefits Law Group of the law firm of Sheehan Phinney Bass + Green PA.

Target Audience
 Managers and supervisors

Expected Duration
2.0

Lesson Objectives:

The Legal Base of Labor Unions

  • identify the main characteristics of labor unions.
  • identify good practices for handling the formation of a union in the workplace.
  • recognize the benefits of good practices when union formation activities occur in the workplace.
  • recognize acceptable employer behavior under labor union laws.
  • identify an employer's obligations to employees under labor union laws.
  • identify the characteristics of a bargaining unit.
  • recognize the clauses in a Collective Bargaining Agreement.
  • recognize the positions, strategies, and subjects of collective bargaining.

    • Employers and the NLRB

  • identify the practices employers can use to prevent union formation in the workplace.
  • recognize the benefits of avoiding union formation in the workplace.
  • match union organizing tactics with their uses.
  • sequence the steps involved in the union recognition process.
  • sequence the process of conducting a union election.
  • recognize examples of how an employer may legally respond to union activity.
  • recognize the role of the NLRB in preventing unfair labor practices.
  • determine how an organization can comply with the NLRA in a given scenario.


    • Course Number: LCO0123