Labor Relations: Labor Union Perspective

Labor Relations: Labor Union Perspective

Explain issues in the existing contract that could be improved upon from the union's perspective

From the labor union's perspective, the Maple Leaf Manufacturing Company's collective agreement with Local 123 of the Canadian Widget Markets' Union might be problematic because it does not delineate differences in rights and benefits between full-time and part-time employees. The Maple Leaf Company has a strong incentive to hire more student and part-time workers, (as it already does) because it does not have to pay or allocate them specific benefits. In the first round of negotiations the parties involved, both union and management, were forced to set aside the issues of contracting out and technological change in order to reach an agreement, but even if the company does not contract out its work to cheaper sources and even outsource nations, this does not mean it cannot hire the cheapest labor possible, to the detriment of union employees. Thus, the existing contract could be improved upon if stipulations regarding the benefits of full, part, and student workers were laid out, to avoid denial of benefits to student and part time workers, and to insure that full time workers would not be discriminated upon, because they receive greater benefits.

Also, Article 5: Strikes and Lockouts 5.1 that states that the "union and the employer agree that there will be no strikes or lockouts during the term of this agreement," may be unwise from the union's point-of-view since such important issues as technological changes and outsourcing have been bracketed for the period of negotiations, thus taking away these particular sources of leverage for the union and its membership. From a union perspective, it is deleterious to their negotiating to be forced to deny themselves a potential source of leverage against the company they are negotiating with.

On one hand, Article 8 regarding "Layoff and Recall" might seem to be good for the union membership, as it reads in section 8.1 that in the event of a layoff, the employer must lay off individual employees in reverse order of seniority, provided that the remaining employees have the skill and ability to do the job required. However, this could alienate younger workers from becoming members of the union, particularly since Section 8.2 reads that employees will be recalled in order of seniority (provided that they have the skill and ability to do the job required). This could, within the union, result in charges of age discrimination and ultimately undermine the union's power in the workforce.