Home /
Areas of Practice /
In-House Training /
Programs We Offer /
A Practical Guide to Maintaining the Union-Free Workplace
A Practical Guide To Maintaining The Union-Free Workplace:How to Avoid Union Organizing and What To Do If Your Workplace Becomes a Target
Don't wait until the union is barking down your door. Make sure the management of your organization is equipped and just as competent as the professional union organizers you may face. This session provides the information you require to safeguard your position as a union-free employer
. You Will Learn How To: Raise consciousness/ keep managers vigilant and aware of the importance of union-free status; Ensure everyday decisions, practices, policies and procedures don't pave the way for a union drive; Initiate only effective, lawful and appropriate countermeasures in the face of an organizing drive or a vote.
The Program Will Cover:
Introduction: Know Your Adversary What unions are/ What they Do/ Why they Organize Recent statistics and trends in union organizing activity Why is it important to avoid applications for certification
Why Employees Join Unions How Unions get Bargaining Rights (Part I) Voluntary recognition and certification Groups of employees that unions can and cannot represent - Grey areas Gathering support - Membership evidence How much support is needed? What happens if the union doesn't have it? Applications for certification - What they are, how they happen
How Unions Get Bargaining Rights (Part II) The employer's response - What it is, why is it important to respond The secret ballot vote - When, where, how? After the vote - Tying up loose ends Bars to reapplying for certification
How Unions Organize Employee-initiated vs. union-initiated Open campaigns vs. secret campaigns The early-warning signals
Maintaining the Union-Free Workplace (Part I) Best practices as preventive measures - an introduction Advance preparation for union application: education of supervisory/management staff, the Five Day Plan Responding to union organizing activity -Introduction - unfair labour practices vs. employer free speech - Remedial powers of the Ontario Labour Relations Board Comparison with other Canadian jurisdictions
Maintaining the Union-Free Workplace (Part II) Responding to union organizing activity What you can (and should) do and what you cannot do - Specific examples Educating the workplace about unions - Dispelling the image unions create for themselves How to talk about the negatives of unionization without stepping over the line Choosing the form of communication - What works best? The Role of the Supervisor in communicating the message A quiz on what is legal and illegal Common problems: Handling employee discipline and dismissal Dealing with provocative activity - union organizing on company property, pins, buttons, t-shirts, baseball caps, leaflets
What You Can Do Now - Human Resources Best Practices Why best practices should be the goal How to identify areas of strength and vulnerability Defining the objectives and how to achieve them: Fair and effective Managers and Supervisors Employees: getting the right people and managing them properly Fair and competitive wage and benefits Effective two-way communication between employees and management Job security Fairness, dignity and respect for employees Full statutory compliance (and beyond) Team-building, commitment, satisfaction and common goals - Making a realistic and achievable action plan
|
