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A lot of this just needs to be eloborated/made up! This is one of those papers that you really can just bs your way through!
1.
Work on your final paper. Include the following:
a.
Briefly describe the issues you initially identified while reading the Mock Negotiation Problem.**attached
i.
How did your views differ from those of your teammates? **try to explain how I didn’t really have a good view/understanding what unions in labor groups went through in negotiations
ii.
What research did you provide for your team during this process? Did it help? *** we broke up our demands and I was gave 3.) Overtime should be on a volunteer basis first and if additional personnel are needed then it can be made mandatory only if additional workers are needed. Persons out of town pre-approved vacations are exempt from mandatory overtime. — my info I submitted is attached below
b.
Briefly describe the 6-8 demands your team decided on to negotiate. **below
i. Why did you choose these demands to negotiate? ** we felt this was a good mix of good/current topics?? Elaborate on this!
ii. Do you feel these demands were adequate for negotiations? Why or why not? **I would go w/ yes because that is the best/easiest to answer and include reasons why you chose them to negotiate as why you feel these were adequate!
iii.
Choose two demands and give the bargaining zone limits for each. **from final decisions below!
iv.
What were the results of these two demands? ***From Final Decisions below!
c.
How do you feel the negotiating process went? Was it smooth? Difficult? Why? **say it went ok w/ a few bumps in the road because not everyone could effectively communicate in the discussions because of technical problems…
d.
What do you feel could have been done better or differently? **pretty much the above…
e.
Compare your views of labor unions and management before and after this negotiation. **opened my eyes to all of this…
i. How are your views different than before?
2.
This paper is to be 3-5 pages type written APA format, 12 pt Arial or Times New Roman font, double spaced with 1” margins. You are to have at least three sources – one of which can be your textbook. This paper is due no later than Sunday, May 5, 2013 at midnight. No exceptions!
8 demands:
1.)
Increase the escalator clause from 3 cents to 5 cents for every 0.4 point increase in the CPI. Bi-Annual review of the escalator agreement. 2.) Maintain employee coverage for emergency department usage. *Company will establish a wellness program which emphasize prevention, smoking cessation, diet, prescription coverage through discount programs such as Medco by mail. *Company will establish and maintain an employee assistance program for employees dealing with stress and other stress creating situations. 3.) Overtime should be on a volunteer basis first and if additional personnel are needed then it can be made mandatory only if additional workers are needed. Persons out of town pre-approved vacations are exempt from mandatory overtime. 4.) Minimum of two union members serving on the company board of directors at all times. 5.) Extend medical insurance coverage to 90 days for employees on lay-off 6.) 2 weeks paid vacation after 2 years of seniority, 3 weeks after 5 years of seniority.
Final Decisions:
At this time, union and management have reached a settlement on the issues at hand. I will post the issues below and our final decisions on them. We, the union and the management team have worked jointly to negotiate a new contract which we believe will serve the company to operate both in the interest of the business and the interest of the employees. Management Requests Keep wages the same. Over the 3 year period of the first contract, wages have increased $0.75 hr. //$0.40 from the escalator clause of $0.03 increase per 0.4 percent increase in the CPI. And $0.30 from the operation of the annual improvement factor.
See COLA, SUB pay and production bonus details under other headings.
2. Contract shall set production standards
Set production standards at 100% for full employee pay and allowing employees the option to leave work for the day with full pay intact once they have met these standards. This may change at the next contract negotiation, however at this time we found it may not be in the best economic interest of the company to offer a financial bonus to employees to create surplus, but we believe that an incentive should be offered to meet these production standards. We have have taken safety and housekeeping factors into consideration and the go-home option will be rotating and offered based on seniority.
3. Reduce SUB pay percentage
Adjust the sub pay back to 90%
4. Cost share any increase in health premiums with the employee
Future health care costs will be shared 50/50 between the company and the employee.
5. Modify the wait time before employee is eligible for health and retirement benefits
The wait time for eligibility for health benefits shall be six months and eligibility for retirement benefits shall be two years. We believe this will help to reduce healthcare costs and still offer a benefits package that will retain and attract employees.
6. Open dialog on flex-time, telecommute, outsourced administrative functions, holidays, sick leave and vacation.
Generally applies to Management and Administrative.
Flex time will be introduced with the expectation of normal 8 hour days/40 hour week. Identify daily fixed schedule where most all employees are expected to work “core time”. (Telecommuters to be separately arranged).
Telecommuting will be encouraged for positions wishing and able to do so with consideration to certain core time requirements.
Union Requests
1. The demand is to pay $0.05 instead of $0.03 for every 0.40 % CPI increase, reviewed twice annually.
Keep COLA at $0.03 per 0.40% increase in CPI, reviewed twice annually.
5. Medical coverage for laid off employees: Current contract is 30 days coverage; the demand is for 90 days.
Extend medical coverage for laid off employees to 60 days post notice.
6. Vacation accrual is currently 1 week after 1 year, 2 weeks after 5 years and 3 weeks after 20 years. Demand is for 2 weeks after 2 years and 3 weeks after 5 years.
Vacation to be 1 week after six months with 1 day per year additional accumulation on employee’s anniversary date with the maximum retained accumulation being 15 days. Rotational shift workers will have the comparable amount of time off.
3. Overtime: currently the company can require overtime. This continues. The demand is to make overtime volunteers first and mandatory only to the point of filling slots/positions not able to be filled by volunteers. Two historical points here. First, recently the company forced overtime and threatened to fire those not responding. Secondly some employees say supervisors offer overtime to their “friends” and the chance to make overtime money isn’t equally shared.
Overtime will be rotational within skills and departments giving all an equal opportunity for overtime and allowing employees to predict when their obligation to overtime will be. An alphabetical ranking or apprentice-journeyman-full type of schedule will be adopted. The unpredictable part is how many employees will be required in any instance but after the first series employees will know if they may be obliged to overtime the next occurrence.
4. The current demand is to put TWO representatives on the board. Logically they are thinking that by starting with 2 we might concede to allowing 1.
We have agreed to have one voting member on the board. This is what was asked for in the case study and we, the union believe this will allow us a more open dialogue with management and provide management with more “hands on” company information.
2. The classroom union demand is for a host of wellness programs covering both physical and mental health issues. Recently the company has pushed to eliminate emergency room visits from the health coverage and that employees enroll in an HMO to save on dollars.
A Union-Management committee will be struck to analyze wellness programs with the mandate to offer a binding proposal to this contract on wellness programs within six months provided that future health care costs are shared 50/50 and wait times for health and retirement are adopted.
Overtime should be on a volunteer basis first and if additional personnel are needed then it can be made mandatory only if additional workers are needed. Persons out of town pre-approved vacations are exempt from mandatory overtime:
It refers to the time when workers work beyond the set working hours. The set working hours are usually determined by custom; that is what the society views is healthy and reasonable; by law; by practices of a particular profession or through an agreement between employers and staff or their representatives.
Negotiating for overtime essentially involves the process of collective bargaining. The process involves coming to an agreement on how the working conditions are to be regulated. The employees are usually represented by a trade union. These negotiations are mainly on working hours, wage, health and safety, training, how to handle grievances and overtime. The unions may opt to negotiate with one employer or with a group of businesses thus covering a wider business agreement.
Different views have been put forth as to whether overtime should be compulsory or on a volunteer basis. In the United States Economy for instance, workers work for more time than in any other industrialized nation; almost a third of the workforce work for more than forty hours a week and a fifth more than fifty hours. The advantage of this is that it may lead to increased output but it has adverse implications on health as well as other social costs. The burden is usually not only on the workers but also on family. There is less family time, less time to play, less time for sleep and less time for housework .Eventually this may lead to increased case of accidents, stress, fatigue, chronic illnesses, reduction in parenting and family time and poor quality goods and services.
It has been realized that workers who are in a union have better protection against compulsory overtime than non unionized workers. Unions and labor relations usually specify the maximum limit on overtime. They also establish a scheme that makes overtime more organized or establish a system that provides a compensating leave incase the employees work overtime.
In the United States economy, various unions have successfully negotiated through and have come up with a limit on the mandatory overtime or have suggested steps which make such arrangements more voluntary in nature. The bargaining points are contained in the Fair Labor Standards Act. This act provides that employees covered are to receive overtime pay for any hours worked beyond the standard 40 hours in a week and the rate should not be less than half the regular rate of pay. The Act does not put a limit on the number of hours workers aged 16 and above years should work and does not need payment for overtime for working on weekends, holidays, or regular days of rest unless one works overtime on such days. For instance, The American Postal Workers Union and The National Association of Letter Carriers have an agreement that protects the workers who have signed a list of “desired overtime” but wish only to work limited overtime, and those not in the list as well.
In the sector of manufacturing, a voluntary overtime arrangement has also been negotiated whereby the members of the union are allowed to be excused from mandatory overtime unless there is no other suitable employee available. St. Vincent’s Hospital and Tenet Health Care Tenet Health Care have a signed agreement with six hundred nurses that allowed the hospital to make overtime mandatory but only for less than four hours twice every three months. The nurses can work for extra two hours but only if they feel they can do so safely. The management of Tenet Health care had initially put a limit of sixteen hour shifts with an advance notice of one hour. Mandatory overtime caused a strike in the Communications Workers of America. As a result they had to reach an agreement on the limit of forced overtime with some being cut by half; the arrangement now also requires the company to give a two and half hours notice in case there is a requirement for overtime work and it must also be considerate to the employees who request to be excused from overtime. Northwest Airlines allows workers to refuse overtime provided they give reasons that can not be changed on short notice, for instance child care responsibility. According to the Employment Standards Act in Canada the following were agreed upon between the employers and labor relations in as far as overtime was concerned:
That if an employee reports to work at any day, the employer is bound to pay for a minimum of two hours at the usual wage rate whether the employee stars work or not provided the employee is fit to work.
If the worker had been scheduled to work for more than the usual 8 hours he is meant to pay for at least 4 hours unless the worker is unfit for work or work comes to a standstill for reasons beyond the employer’s control.
The agreement also stipulates that the employer must not either directly or indirectly allow any of his workers to work excessive hours or for a period of time that may have harmful repercussions to the health and safety of the employee.
An employee who works over 40 hours a week and is not in an average agreement for overtime pay must be paid one and half times his regular payment for the time worked beyond the 40 hours ( Linder,2006).
Therefore, there is a need to establish whether mandatory overtime is really essential as a workplace policy or do we go for the voluntary. Unions have however put restrictions on management as far as overtime is concerned. They need the management to first consider if it is possible to have a replacement or if the overtime is declined is it based on hardship or is it a matter of convenience. In their bargaining, the agreement provides that for professionals such as nurses they need to first consider if there is any opportunity to consult a supervisor, the risk the patient would be exposed to and the availability of relief from a shift (Berg & Cazes, 2008).
· The unions, as part of their bargaining suggest the following as alternatives:
· Reassigning of personnel
· Recalling those management had laid off
· Changing the work schedules
· Subcontracting
· Employing Part-time or temporary workers.
When workers rise grievances about overtime, there complains need to be evaluated in light of what is contained in the labor contracts.
References:
Berg, J., & Cazes, S. (2007). The Doing Business indicators: Measurement issues and political implications. Internat. Labour Office.
Berg, J., & Cazes, S. (2008). Policymaking gone awry: the labor market regulations of the doing business indicators. Comparative Labor Law & Policy Journal, 29(4).
Campbell, I. (2007). Long working hours in Australia: working-time regulation and employer pressures. The Economic and Labour Relations Review, 17(2), 37-68.
Linder, M. (2006). The Autocratically Flexible Workplace: A History of Overtime Regulation in the United States. Industrial & Labor Relations Review, 59(3), 84.
Ruyter, A. D. (2007). Should I stay or should I go? Agency nursing work in the UK. The International Journal of Human Resource Management
1. Letter of the Labor Relations Department, United Postal Service to the National Association of Letter Carriers. Retrieved from http://www.nalc.org/depart/cau/pdf/mrs/M00299.PDF
Letter of the Labor Relations Department of the United Postal Service to the Assistant Secretary Treasurer of the National Association of Letter Carriers, AFL-CIO regarding the fourth step of the contractual grievance of F. Nimphius of Tampa, Florida. The question raised in the grievance is the performance of work in another craft while the employee is on overtime. It was agreed upon that employees may be assigned by management to work in another craft while on overtime, but also should be in accordance with Art. 7, Sec. 2 of the National Agreement.
2. Traub, A. & Nanos, I. (2012). Massachusetts Bans Mandatory Overtime for Nurses: Nurses Association Applauds. Wage & Hour Defense Blog: EpteinBeckerGreen. Retrieved from
http://www.wagehourblog.com/2012/08/articles/massachusetts-bans-mandatory-overtime-for-nurses-nurses-association-applauds/
This is about a new law in Massachusetts prohibiting hospitals in Massachusetts to require their nursing staff from mandatory overtime work and their scheduled hours should not be more than 12 hours in any given 24-hour day. The exception is emergency situations. Collective bargaining agreements existing at the time of the passage of the law will remain in effect and the statute shall not be construed to modify, alter, or limit the terms of any existing collective bargaining agreements.
3. Article 15 of an Agreement in the State of Michigan. Retrieved from http://www.michigan.gov/documents/ose/ARTICLE_15_381168_7
These pages cover Hours of Work and Overtime of a Collective Bargaining Agreement in Michigan. It specifies the work period as 10 working days out of every 14 consecutive days that comprise a biweekly pay period. It also details provisions on Weekend Work, Work Days, Work Shift, Work Schedules, Change of Shift, Meal Periods, Lounge and/or Eating Areas, Rest Periods, Guarantee or Limitation, Pyramiding, Overtime Procedure, Flexible Hours and Compensatory Time.
4. Airborne Express, Inc. v. Industrial Commission Case. Retrieved from
http://wmlaw.com/resources/articles/all-overtime-earnings-excluded-from-average-weekly-wage-as-overtime-wa/
This is the Airborne Express case. Airborne Express, Inc. v. Industrial Commission No. 1-06-1960WC. The delivery driver of Airborne Express was involved in 2 accidents in 2000 and another one in 2001. Decisions were rendered in a consolidated hearing but Airborne objected to one decision. The Commission included overtime of driver Ron Bronke when it decided the average weekly wage. The amount of temporary total disability and maintenance therefore increased. The court reversed the decision of the Commission based on the facts of the case and actual earnings of Bronke without the overtime.
5. Agreement between UAW Local 6000 and the State of Michicgan. Retrieved from
http://www.michigan.gov/documents/ose/2008-10_UAW_Contract_221633_7
Primary Agreement between UAW Local 6000 (Administrative Unit, Human Services Unit) and the State of Michigan for January 1, 2008 through December 31, 2010. The International Union, United Automobile, Aerospace and Agricultural Implement Workers of America (UAW), and its Local Union 6000 as the exclusive representative of employees employed by the State of Michigan.
6. Overtime Agreement: Davenport Works/Plant Wide USW Retrieved from http://www.usw105.org/Overtime_Agreement_4-14-08signed
This is a copy of the agreement between Alcoa Inc. Davenport Works and the USW Local 105 to interpret and apply VI Section 15 of the Master Agreement. It defines overtime, maximum working hours, limitations of maximum hours on a payroll week, among others. The agreement is dated April 14, 2008.
7. State of Washington Department of Labor and Industries: Employment Standards. Title: Overtime dated 1/2/2002 and revised 11/6/2006. Retrieved from http://www.lni.wa.gov/workplacerights/files/policies/esa81
Policy issued by the State of Washington Department of Labor and Industries regarding Overtime. It provides general information and opinions of the Department on the subject of overtime and does not replace RCW or WAC standards.
8. Frequently Asked Questions about the FLSA. Retrieved from
http://www.flsa.com/faq.html
Questions and Answers about the Fair Labor Standards Act. It explains the activities that are considered work, what is overtime, the FlSA threshold, time and one-half rate, leave time, rate of FLSA overtime, liquidated damages, 7(k) Exemption and others.
9. New Jersey Mandatory Overtime Restrictions for Health Care Facilities Policies issued by the New Jersey Department of Labor and Workforce Development: Division of Wage and Hour Compliance. Retrieved from http://lwd.dol.state.nj.us/labor/forms_pdfs/lsse/MW-377 .
This is a policy issued by the New Jersey Department of Labor and Workforce Development explaining the conditions in a health care facility, the rules for overtime and its exemptions as well as penalties for non-compliance.
10. Legislative Actions on Overtime Pay and Collective Bargaining and their Implications for Farm Employers in New York State, 2009-2010 by Stanley W. Telega and ThomasR. Maloney issued in 2010. Retrieved from
http://ageconsearch.umn.edu/handle/121660
cited from
http://purl.umn.edu/121660
In most states of America, agricultural workers are exempt from provisions of labor laws that apply to other workplace employees. Two of the most contentious issues farmers and agricultural labor advocates in New York State have been battling are overtime pay and collective bargaining. There are 11 states in the US with laws protecting agricultural workers engaging in union organizing and collective bargaining activities. There are 4 states with provisions for overtime pay of agricultural workers.
The Negotiating Process:
The Bargaining Zone
Source: Angelo S. DeNisi and Ricky W. Griffin, Human resource Management, 2nd ed., Houghton Mifflin Company, Boston, NY.
A useful framework for understanding the negotiation process refers to the bargaining zone, which is illustrated below. During preparations for negotiation, both sides are likely to attempt to define three critical points. For the organization, the bargaining zone and its three immediate points include:
1. the employer’s maximum limit
2. the employer’s expectation
3. the employer’s desired limit.
For example, the organization might have a zero increase in wages and benefits as a desired result (also known as management’s “target point”). But, it also recognizes that this desired result is unlikely and so what it expects is to have to provide a modest increase in wages and benefits totaling perhaps 4 to 5 percent. But is preparations are done thoroughly, managers also know the maximum amount they are willing to pay, which might be as high as 7 or 8 percent (management’s “resistance point”). Note that, in this example, management would rather suffer through a strike than pay more than an 8 percent pay increase.
On the other side of the table, the labor union also defines a bargaining zone for itself that includes three points. These three points include:
the union’s minimum acceptable limit on what it will take from management (the union resistance point: the settlement level below which the union will strike)
its own expectations about what management is likely to agree to
the most it can expect to get from management (the union target point).
For instance, the labor union might feel that it has to provide a minimum increase of 2 to 3 percent in wages and benefits to its members. They expect a settlement of around 5 percent but would like to get 9 or 10 percent. In the spirit of bargaining, they may make an opening demand to management as high as 12 percent. Hence, during the opening negotiation session, labor might inform management that it demands a 12 percent wage and benefit increase. The employer might begin by stating emphatically that no increases should be expected. Assuming, however, that some overlap exists between the organization’s and the union’s demands and expectations in the bargaining zone (a positive settlement zone), and assuming that both sides are willing to compromise and work hard at reaching an agreement it is likely that an agreement will in fact be attained.
Source: Ricky Griffin and Ronald Ebert, Business, 6th ed. Reprinted by permission of Prentice-Hall, Inc., Upper Saddle River, N.J.
