Collective Bargaining is a term that all employees need to know. It is part of the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA) and if employees knew how the process actually worked, not many would risk their wages and benefits on what is most often called “…a roll of the dice.” There are many facets of the NLRA and collective bargaining and below is just a short summary. In a previous post we listed some of the things that employees do not realize that the union negotiates for and the only thing that the union has to negotiate WITH is the employee’s wages and benefits.

We highly recommend that all employees go to the NLRB.GOV website and download a copy of the Basic Guide to the NLRA. In addition we will briefly review the concept of bargaining in the NLRA, utilizing the Basic Guide, straight from the NLRB government website. It is imperative to state that no where in the ACT does it say the union and the company have to agree to anything, they just have to talk and in good faith. In contrast, there are 3 places in the ACT that specifically state the union and company DOES NOT REQUIRE EITHER PARTY TO AGREE OR MAKE A CONCESSION

1. Collective bargaining is defined in the act. Section 8(d) requires an employer and the representative of its employees to meet at reasonable times, to confer in good faith about certain matters, and to put into writing any agreement reached if requested by either party. The parties must confer in good faith with respect to wages, hours, and other terms or conditions of employment, the negotiation of an agreement, or any question arising under an agreement. These obligations are imposed equally on the employer and the representative of its employees. It is an unfair labor practice for either party to refuse to bargain collectively with the other. The obligation does not, however, compel either party to agree to a proposal by the other, nor does it require either party to make a concession to the other .
2. The duty to bargain covers all matters concerning rates of pay, wages, hours of employment, or other conditions of employment.  These are called “mandatory” subjects of bargaining about which the employer, as well as the employees’ representative, must bargain in good faith, although the law does not require “either party to agree to a proposal or require the making of a concession.” 
3. Section 8(b)(3) The obligation does not require the labor organization or the employer to agree to a proposal by the other party or make a concession to the other party, but it does require bargaining with an open mind in an attempt to reach agreement. 

Too often Human Resources Professionals are viewed differently than who they really are and what they do. Some employees fear them, others do not know them and still others miss the opportunity to take advantage of one of the most valuable resources in their own work place. So who are these people in human resources? To answer this question would take pages and pages of this article. To summarize human resources are composed of people who work for the employee and for the company. They are the balance, they are department for the people. 

Some of the traits of that human resources professional include taking risks and stepping into the unknown. They not only welcome change, they embrace it and then train everyone on the changes, whether it is policies or new technology, etc… They are the people who engage all employees on a daily basis; simply put they love people. By communicating, which includes not just talking, but also being there to listen, they effectively treat employees with the greatest respect. There are many more traits, but all of the traits add up to human resource professionals are having fun being themselves while helping people. 

Without these professionals, the employees feel that disrespect and eventually the job is just a place to collect a paycheck. The environment is one of tedious habit, not of a place to set and achieve goals. In addition to the front line supervisors, employees should be aware they have a place to go for any issues. In addition, the human resources professionals should and will go to the employees constantly just to hello and talk. When this is done together, the job is a place to advance and where employees enjoy coming to work. With that positive environment and engagement, production increases, retention increases and eventually profits increase.

Employee Recognition is part of employee engagement. In this piece we will review some of the things that can assist a leader to succeed at employee recognition. Employees want that recognition and we have found more often than not, that the recognition they seek is usually a “Thank You” or “Great Job.” 

Having a recognition program helps retention and employee satisfaction. Always ensure that when there is positive recognition that it is linked to the action and/ or behavior that the employee exhibited or performed. Also ensure that the recognition is done in a timely manner. There would be no reason to wait long time periods to offer praise.

It makes a good practice to engage employees daily to ensure you do not miss those times that deserve the recognition. There should also be a written personal note attached in addition to the verbal recognition. When writing the personal recognition, make sure it is written in a personal way and in your own handwriting is ideal. 

When creating that “prize” for recognition, make sure you are consistent and something it is valued by the employee. This could range from a gift card to extra time off.

UNION MEMBERS — 2019 : Source BLS.GOV 2019

In 2019, the percent of wage and salary workers who were members of a labor union–the union membership rate–was 10.3 percent, down by 0.2 percentage point from 2018, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. 

Highlights from the 2019 data: 

   –The union membership rate of public-sector workers (33.6 percent) continued to be more than five times higher than the rate of private-sector workers (6.2 percent). 

   –Men continued to have a higher union membership rate (10.8 percent) than women (9.7 percent).

   –Black workers remained more likely to be union members than White, Asian, or Hispanic workers. 

   –Nonunion workers had median weekly earnings that were 81 percent of earnings for workers who were union members ($892 versus $1,095). 

   –Among states, Hawaii and New York had the highest union membership rates (23.5 percent and 21.0 percent, respectively), while South Carolina and North Carolina had the lowest (2.2 percent and 2.3 percent, respectively). 

Industry and Occupation of Union Members 

In 2019, 7.1 million employees in the public sector belonged to a union, compared with 7.5 million workers in the private sector. The union membership rate declined over the year in the 

private sector by 0.2 percentage point to 6.2 percent. The unionization rate for public-sector workers was little changed over the year at 33.6 percent, and remained substantially above that of the private sector. Within the public sector, the union membership rate was highest in local government (39.4 percent), which employs many workers in heavily unionized occupations, such as police officers, firefighters, and teachers. Private-sector industries with high unionization rates included utilities (23.4 percent), transportation and warehousing (16.1 percent), and telecommunications (14.1 percent). Low unionization rates occurred in finance (1.1 percent), 

insurance (1.4 percent), professional and technical services (1.4 percent), and food services and drinking places (1.4 percent). 

Among occupational groups, the highest unionization rates in 2019 were in protective service occupations (33.8 percent) and in education, training, and library occupations (33.1 percent).

Unionization rates were lowest in farming, fishing, and forestry occupations (2.1 percent); sales and related occupations (2.8 percent); and food preparation and serving related occupations (3.5 percent).

Union Membership by State 

In 2019, 28 states and the District of Columbia had union membership rates below that of the U.S. average, 10.3 percent, while 21 states had rates above it and 1 state had the same rate. All states in both the East South Central and West South Central divisions had union membership rates below the national average, while all states in both the Middle Atlantic and Pacific divisions had rates above it.

Eight states had union membership rates below 5.0 percent in 2019. South Carolina and North Carolina had the lowest rates (2.2 percent and 2.3 percent, respectively). The next lowest rates were in Texas and Virginia (4.0 percent each). Two states had union membership rates over 20.0 percent in 2019: Hawaii (23.5 percent) and New York (21.0 percent). 

Over half of the 14.6 million union members in the U.S. lived in just seven states (California, 2.5 million; New York, 1.7 million; Illinois, 0.8 million; Pennsylvania, 0.7 million; and New Jersey, Ohio, and Washington, 0.6 million each), though these states accounted for only about one-third of wage and salary employment nationally.

While numbers reflect a decrease in membership, keep in mind the Janus decision has given public sector employees an opportunity not to pay dues and the increase in jobs created monthly is tremendous in todays economy. It is important to understand that an investment into your employees and business now can prevent this problem from happening and save lot of money and stress and division in the long run.