The NLRB has been responsible for overseeing union representative elections and investigating unfair labor practice (ULP) charges for over 70 years.  During this time the board has typically stayed away from controversy.  Labor unions believe that regulators are to blame for their declining numbers by allowing employees an extended period of time prior to casting their votes regarding union representation.  Last year the NLRB passed rules reducing the time period between representation petition and election – reducing this period by almost half.  This rule is scheduled to take effect on April 30^th.

The new rule does not alter the percentage of union membership that is necessary to request representation but hopes to make the voting possibly more emotional by having the employees vote when emotions are high.  The new rule will most likely increase employee disenchantment and expand union activities into areas that were previously not well represented.  Time is running short on employers having a solid employee relations program.  Employers must aggressively review their communications programs or if no program exists, create one immediately.  This will more than likely require employers to turn to outside professionals to assist them in this program development.  Having strong legal support as well as a public relations/communications firm is critical.  Communications should flow effortlessly throughout an enterprise – both from management to staff and from staff to management.  Be sure to take advantage of all mediums available, to include social and electronic media and video communication. Employers must constantly review their policies and procedures.

This NLRB ruling, as well as others, are under scrutiny and are being challenged in several circuit courts.  Let’s hope that the judicial system recognizes the impact of these rulings and overturns them.  If not, employers are will be facing severe hurdles regarding union representation issues and communications with their employees.

I was fortunate enough to attend several labor relations and human resources conferences over the past month which I found very enlightening.  Recent union activity, NLRB rulings, the need for corporations to continue to improve operational efficiencies and the upcoming political election are ingredients for a very interesting meal.  Every presenter and attendee I spoke to were extremely concerned with the activities of the Department of Labor and the National Labor Relations Board.  A recent ruling by the NLRB regarding the negotiations of first contracts, and the tight timeline that rule proposes, is scheduled to take effect in April.

In addition, all indications are that the unions plan on contributing even more than the $450 million dollars they did in 2008.  This presidential election will be all about the money!  The front runner for the Republican party has a tremendous bankroll and the President will be sure to execute a successful campaign to raise capital for the race.  With all this money being thrown around this will undoubtablely be one of the most monetarily driven political races in history. Evidence of this is this quote from the AFL-CIO political director, “I think that the labor movement as a whole will be stepping up, and that will mean in this post-Citizens United world, having to spend more resources in this cycle,” said AFL-CIO political director Michael Podhorzer. But more cash going to state and local elections won’t come at the expense of federal races, he added. “This is a period of crisis for workers and the labor movement has to step up and be present at all levels of government to protect workers.”

The unions have also publicly announced that they will attack certain politicians.  You can read more by clicking on the following link Big Labor plots 2012 revenge: Enemy No. 1: Scott Walker

Being in the strike security business, we tend to follow the NLRB closely.

The NLRB has had a very active year. Between the instability of the board, recess appointment efforts, and pushing the political agenda through rule-making, the NRLB’s activities have been headline news.   Based upon the most recent developments it doesn’t appear that that trend will be subsiding anytime soon.  Now, their own members are rising up against them.  On Feb. 16, many NLRB employees attended a seminar at the Cornell Industrial and Labor Relations School in New York City, where NLRB Deputy General Counsel Celeste Mattina was speaking. Outside the meeting room, some in the NLRB Union passed out flyers accusing Pearce and Solomon of “Declaring War on NLRB Employees” in an effort to “destroy their employees’ union.”

The National Labor Relations Board is the agency tasked with supervising union elections and responding to complaints of unfair labor practices.  Ironic isn’t it?

Unionized workers organize against National Labor Relations Board

By Adam Jablonowski

In a twist on typical union activity, employees of the National Labor Relations Board are accusing their bosses of treating them unfairly. NLRB Chairman Mark Pearce and Acting General Counsel Lafe Solomon are facing resistance as they attempt to limit the amount of on-the-job time unionized employees can spend on union business, and on attending seminars and other meetings.

On Feb. 16, many NLRB employees attended a seminar at the Cornell Industrial and Labor Relations School in New York City, where NLRB Deputy General Counsel Celeste Mattina was speaking. Outside the meeting room, some in the NLRB Union passed out flyers accusing Pearce and Solomon of “Declar[ing] War on NLRB Employees” in an effort to “destroy their employees’ union.”

Read more…

Facebook fans of IMAC Online Training Academy will have a chance to win one of 10 $1,000 vouchers towards online courses.  To celebrate the newest HRCI approved courses, IMAC fans will have an opportunity to win the opportunity to take an entire suite of courses related to workplace violence, nonviolent confrontation management, safe terminations, crisis communications, guidelines for crossing picket lines, strike security and preparation, truck hijacking, armed robbery response…and many other courses for HR training and security training.

Click here to enter and view the contest details.

Why keep up with your continuing education?

Dr. Paula Caligiuri discusses Advancing Your Career Skills on CNN Newsroom. Dr. Caligiuri is a professor of Human Resource Management at Rutgers University School of Management and Labor Relations.

Navigating the labor landscape is a continuous process since it has changed and continues to evolve.  For the past several years, labor unions and the bargaining unit leadership have had to approach the negotiation process from a very different perspective.  The lagging economy and the impact on manufacturing specifically have required a very different bargaining technique.  As Collective Bargaining Units have been either renewed as is, renegotiated to less than the unions liking or agreed to be extended; the circumstances have been less than ideal.  During this time companies have restructured, cut expenses and found ways to operate in a more cost effective manner and not reinvest in an unstable market.  As noted in many business publications and balance sheets, US businesses have more cash on hand and available as the economy improves.  The unions are aware of this fact as well and have committed to their membership that they will ‘get back’ the provisions given up in past negotiations.  The companies are also prepared to hold the current contract negotiation processes and vow not to return to old contract terms.  As a result, should the company and union leadership not come to an agreement at the bargaining table, the company is prepared to ‘lockout’ the union versus the union declaring a strike.  As evidenced in the NY Times article below, this very well may be the trend for the foreseeable future.

More Lockouts as Companies Battle Unions

By STEVEN GREENHOUSE

America’s unionized workers, buffeted by layoffs and stagnating wages, face another phenomenon that is increasingly throwing them on the defensive: lockouts.

From the Cooper Tire factory in Findlay, Ohio, to a country club in Southern California and sugar beet processing plants in North Dakota, employers are turning to lockouts to press their unionized workers to grant concessions after contract negotiations deadlock. Even the New York City Opera locked out its orchestra and singers for more than a week before settling the dispute last Wednesday.

Many Americans know about the highly publicized lockouts in professional sports — like last year’s 130-day lockout by the National Football League and the 161-day lockout by the National Basketball Association — but lockouts, once a rarity, have been used in less visible industries as well. Read more…

HR professionals will receive accreditation towards their SHRM designation upon completion of any of IMAC’s pre-approved online courses

Ohio-based International Management Assistance Corporation (IMAC) has achieved HRCI approval for several of the courses offered at its IMAC Online Training Academy. Human resources professionals will now receive HRCI accreditation towards their Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM) designation upon successful completion of any of these unique, professionally-relevant courses, available at http://www.imac-training.com.

The courses pre-approved by the HR Certification Institute (HRCI) have been designed expressly to further the careers of HR professionals, and include pragmatic subject matter developed by some of the industry’s top security professionals. Most popular of the accredited courses include an overview of workplace violence, nonviolent confrontation, high-risk terminations and work stoppage management.

Launched in early 2011, the IMAC Online Training Academy is unique in the practical and applicable nature of the training it provides. The IMAC security education team brings together respected experts who will instruct primarily on the realistic application of field-tested concepts and tactics to ensure students get relevant knowledge and techniques to equip them to succeed in the industry today. In addition to its more than twenty courses geared to HR professionals, the school also provides workplace violence training for security professionals and corporate executives.

“Our newly accredited courses for HR professionals are certain to provide a real career edge,” says Rob Shuster, vice president of protective services and training. “We are happy to have our very current and carefully-developed curriculum formally recognized by the HRCI, and look forward to imparting the latest industry knowledge, best practices, and training to as many eager learners as possible.”

In addition to the online courses, the HRCI has also pre-approved IMAC’s Labor Dispute and Work Stoppage Conference being held in Arizona from May 10 and 11, 2012. Registrants who attend both days will be awarded 7.5 HRCI credits towards their SHRM designation. For details and registration, please visit: http://www.imacservices.com/002/IMACArizona2012.php

Avoid an ULP (unfair labor practice) charge.  Using a specialized security firm versus a contract security firm during a labor dispute may appear to be economical, however the lack of expertise could be damaging.

A contract security company will not offer any additional training relevant to labor disputes –

• Legal Right & Responsibilities
• Labor Relations
• Tactical Communications
• Professionalism & Ethics
• Public Relations (Dealing with the Media)
• Relations with Law Enforcement Agencies
• Code of Conduct
• Passive & Aggressive Communications
• Note Taking & Report Writing
• Evidence Collection & Documentation (i.e. Verbal, Material, Documentary Evidence)
• Response Options to Violent Situations and/or Persons
• Components of Communications
• Roles of Persuasion

A contract guard company will not have an understanding of the following:

• Picket Line Protocols
• Affidavits & Testimony in Court
• Union’s Legal Strike Rights
• Management’s Legal Strike Rights
• Picket Line Crossing Procedures
• Continuity of Evidence Procedures
• Preparing Sworn Affidavits for Legal Counsel
• Video Evidence Procedures
• Highway Traffic Act Procedures
• Transportation
• Educational seminars for client management & third party contractors who will be crossing picket lines

During a labor dispute, 3rd party unions may support the union that is on strike and a contract security company will not have the required understanding of that 3rd party union’s habits and activities, such as USW flying squads who are not part of the ongoing labor dispute. Personal relationships between the guards and particular employees may exist, thus creating an uncomfortable dynamic once the strike is over. In fact, the contract security guards may even be unionized themselves.

The bottom line is that a contract guard company is not as qualified to provide strike security services as is a company who specializes in these services.   A local resource may be more economical on the surface but one incorrect action can have a detrimental financial long-term impact.

In 2011 the SEIU released a Corporate Campaign Playbook that is designed to solidify the union in organizing efforts as well during negotiations of current collective bargaining agreements.  It is fundamental in nature and easily transferrable to any union wishing to institute a corporate campaign.

Below you will find many of the highlights of this 73 page “playbook”.

“It is not enough to be right. You need might as well.”

• Released in March 2011
• Step by step manual of how to pressure employers
•  “How To”:
  • jeopardize employer’s relationships with investors, clients, etc.
  • threaten employers with costly legal and regulatory pressure
  • damage employer’s public image

Goal is to disrupt business and cost the employer money. Suggestions in the manual include:

• Disrupting income sources such as customers or investors
• Generating bad publicity to deter new customers

Instructions in the manual ask union activists if the tactics they employ would have the desired effects, such as:

• Distract management officials from other work they need to do
• Embarrass them in front of their superiors, associates, families, neighbors, or friends in the community
• Threaten the employer’s relationship with the greater community, business partners, government, and the media through third parties
• Advises union members to seek out any employer violations of the law, even if unrelated to contract issues
  • safety, health, discrimination, wage, contracting, and disabled access
  • SEIU will provide an investigator if the members cannot find violations
  • Goal is for the business to face:
    • expenses to meet regulatory requirements
    • costly delays in operations while those requirements are met
    • fines or other penalties
    • damage to the employer’s public image
  • Find other organizations that have disputes with the employer
  • Take advantage of their previous research
    • environmental groups, student organizations, consumer groups
    • women, minorities, poor people, senior citizens, and doctors
  •  Manual outlines how to publicize harmful information
  • Give customers, clients, and investors reasons to cut off economic ties
  • Political/legislative pressure
  • Pressure on individual officials
    • make life more difficult for them as individuals
  • Disruption
    • management is unable to do their normal work because they spend so much time responding to the union campaign
    • mass visits or sit-ins in management offices
    • filing complaints with regulatory agencies

• disrupting managers’ careers

I understand that members of a bargaining unit have the legal right to withhold their services and lawfully demonstrate, but what one IBEW member did at an ongoing labor dispute is repulsive.

Yes, a strike effects everyone involved – to include the company, customers, strike security suppliers, owners, shareholders, and employees (and their families).  Many times during the course of these job actions, the fact that families are impacted is lost in the process. However, the method of delivering this message by this IBEW member is wrong on so many levels.  Not only is this child exposed to a dangerous situation and at risk of injury, but the message being sent by an adult can be catastrophic.  What life lesson is being learned by this young lady?  It surely is not one that will assist in her development of proper interaction with people in resolving a dispute.  I guess that she is receiving an English lesson and expanding her vocabulary!

Rather than using his daughter as a ‘lever’ against his employer, maybe he should sit her down and explain the issue and the potential affect it will have on their family. Again, strikes can be ugly and sometimes necessary for either the union or management to reach their objectives.  If so, it is an absolute must that measures be put into place that allow for the safety of all involved.

For your own opinion please click the link below (warning-obscene language is used)

http://www.laborunionreport.com/portal/2011/08/union-extremists-using-children-harassing-menacing-replacement-workers-in-verizon-strike/

It is a calm Thursday afternoon and you are the VP of Human Resources working intently in your office when your assistant calls and informs you that a disgruntled ex-employee has shown up at the facility with a weapon and threatening employees.  Now what? Workplace violence can be defined as any act that creates intimidating, hostile, and offensive or a threatening work environment through unwelcome words, actions or physical contact.  Workplace violence of all types has been on a steady incline in this country.  Are you and your company prepared?

There are two types of workplace violence that need to be taken into consideration. First is the external variety – criminal activity from a non-employee, client or customer.  Second is the internal variety of a problem employee, employee personal relationship, hostile individual due to disciplinary actions or a facility closing.  Be prepared by taking some very easy measures:

• Have a  written policy that is known throughout your organization
• Take the position of ‘no tolerance’ for this activity
• Train employees and provide ongoing training
• Make sure your plan protects first, then concentrates on compliance
• Understand and effectively communicate the legal implications

The potential deadly situations are reasonably foreseeable and this should be the standard used for compliance and determination of liability. Understand what data you need to connect relating to assist in the prevention of workplace violence.  You not only have a legal responsibility but the obligation to your workforce.  Negligent hiring, high-risk terminations, retention, security, and training open you and your organization to culpability to a workplace violence incident.  Human Resources plays a key role in your workplace violence plan through effective pre-employment screening, establishing discrete communications channels, existence of an Employee Assistance Program and coordination with your security personnel regarding response plans.  Do not allow yourself to make these five critical mistakes: denial & avoidance, not having a threat response plan, acting too hastily, lack of total workforce participation and an insufficient assessment process.  Coordinate a case assessment team and make sure they understand their purpose, make-up, objectives, and documentation measures.  The need to recognize the behavioral warning signs that signal potential trouble and that evaluation of behavior is not ‘profiling’. Protective measures include: a facility security audit, obtaining local crime statistics, recording a history of incidents, personnel training, general security awareness training and an established liaison with local law enforcement.

Remember, ignorance does not relieve an organization of responsibility.  In summation, an organization MUST plan, train, recognize, manage and respond to this growing problem within the business community.