Chapter 23: Unions and the Employment Relationship
1. A promise not to join a union was a condition of employment under a yellow-dog contract.
2. Before 1842, the courts classified unions as criminal conspiracies.
3. In early labor disputes, ex parte injunctions prohibiting strikes were issued by judges after hearing both sides
of an argument.
4. The Clayton Act exempted unions from the Sherman Antitrust Act.
5. Now most labor relations problems are resolved by the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB).
6. Common employment interests are one of the primary considerations in determining who should be included
in a particular bargaining unit.
7. It is illegal for an employer to fire or to threaten to fire union sympathizers to discourage unionization.
8. The closed shop, where an employer agrees that a worker must be a union member, is legal in some states
where manufacturing as an industry is still strong.
9. An employer is not required by the law pertaining to collective bargaining to bargain over health care and
working conditions.
10. Attempting to force an employer to pay for featherbedding is an unfair labor practice of unions.
11. Employees that cannot be in a bargaining unit are
A. those who have a confidential role in creating management-labor policies.
12. What percentage of employees in the proposed bargaining unit must sign authorization cards before the
NLRB will conduct hearings to determine who’s in the bargaining unit and who is eligible to vote?
C. anything over 50 percent
D. 100 percent
13. The election conducted by the NLRB requires what percentage of votes to select a union?
A. 30 percent
B. 50 percent
14. What percentage of the employees, represented by a union, can compel a decertification election?
C. anything over 50 percent
D. 100 percent
15. A person would need to be a member of the union in order to be represented by that union in a(n)
C. open shop.
D. all of these.
16. The statute requiring unions to give their members full voice in decision making is the
C. Sherman Antitrust Act.
D. Taft-Hartley Act.
17. An employer may hire permanent replacements for striking workers in
C. a national emergency strike.
D. both a and b.
18. Disputes over wages, hours, or conditions of employment can cause
C. a national emergency strike.
D. none of these.
19. An injunction in federal court forcing a cooling-off period of 80 days when a national emergency strike is
threatened can be obtained by
A. the employer.
B. the National Labor Relations Board.
20. When striking employees try to get customers to stop buying the products or services of a third party that
continues to do business with the striking employees’ company, the action is known as
C. an economic strike.
D. none of these.
21. Katlin was hired to work at a garment manufacturing plant that does not require her to join the Garment
Manufacturer’s Union. However, Katlin is required to pay union dues as a condition of employment. What kind
of shop is maintained in Katlin’s place of employment?
A. union shop
B. quasi-union shop
22. Once a union has been certified, which of the following is not true?
C. Individual employees cannot negotiate their own employment contracts.
D. None of these.
23. Which of the following statements regarding labor relations is true today?
A. Once a bargaining unit is established and a union certified as the bargaining agent, employees must accept
this representation for five years.
B. Congress resolves most labor relations problems in the United States.
24. During a recent strike between the Railroad Workers’ Union and Coastal Pacific Railroad, negotiations
broke down resulting in a deadlocked situation. If the railroad operations are vital to national defense and
safety, which of the following is a probable solution?
C. The NLRB can mandate an 80-day cooling off period.
D. The U.S. attorney general can obtain an injunction.
25. Several state and federal statutes require employers to treat unions fairly. Which of the following statements
is not true regarding these statutes?
A. Management must negotiate in “good faith.”
B. Management cannot financially favor or otherwise support a particular employee union.
26. While working for a plastics manufacturing company, Enrique and many of his co-workers attempted to
organize a union. Their attempts failed. Enrique and his co-workers were laid off. Their names were placed on a
directory of “pro-union” persons. This directory was subsequently sent to other companies that manufacture
plastic products that would in turn refuse to hire Enrique and his former co-workers. This unfair labor practice
is known as
C. picketing.
D. none of these.
27. Which of the following is not a requirement of the Taft-Hartley Act?
A. Unions must treat employees and management fairly.
B. A strike must be legal and nonviolent.
28. The purpose of the Sherman Antitrust Act was to
C. make unions illegal.
D. both b and c.
29. If management does not voluntarily recognize an employee-authorized union, the next step for employees is
to
A. file an injunction.
B. issue authorization cards.
30. During recent contract negotiations between the Airline Pilots’ Union and a major airline, negotiations broke
down and eventually were paralyzed. Which of the following is a common result of a break down in contract
negotiations?
A. the occurrence of lockouts and strikes
B. business operations cease
31. The name of the law that exempted unions from the Sherman Antitrust Act was
the ____________________.
32. When Yakichi was hired to replace a striking union employee, she had to sign a contract promising not to
join the union. This type of employment contract is known as a(n) ____________________.
33. The name of the agency that administers the rights and duties given to workers, employers, and unions is
known as the ____________________.
34. Murray and other plumbers in an existing bargaining unit have collectively agreed to select a different union
to represent them. They will need to have a(n) ____________________ election in order to begin this process.
35. Although she is a nonunion employee, Taylor was recently hired as a law enforcement officer. She must,
however, join the law enforcement union within 30 days from her first date of employment. Taylor works in
a(n) ____________________ shop.
36. Collective bargaining disintegrated between the management at SouthWest Gas and striking employees of
the SouthWest Gas Workers Union. The government intervened and sent an individual to bring the parties
together hoping to end the deadlock by creating a compromise. This individual is known as a(n)
____________________.
37. The Parcel Delivery Workers Union hired a group of 30 individuals to patrol around its employer’s company
headquarters carrying signs stating “Parcel Express is unfair to employees.” This practice on the part of the
union employees is known as ____________________.
38. State laws that forbid both the union shop and the closed shop are known as ____________________.
39. The stewards and stewardesses collectively stopped working to force North Atlantic Airways to give in to
union demands. This work stoppage is known as a(n) ____________________.
40. The people in the small town of Hillsboro have organized and agreed not to purchase DigiTech televisions
because of DigiTech’s alleged unfair labor practices. This refusal is known as a(n) ____________________.
41. Managers of the bottling plant constantly had the long-time union workers redo jobs because of new ideas
or very minor changes they wanted to employ. This extra time of redoing work caused the workers to fall
behind in their daily tasks, subjecting them to reprimands by their supervisors. The long-time union workers felt
that this was an intentional attempt by management to discourage them and cause them to quit as a way of
eliminating the union. What can they do?
The workers can file a complaint with their union representative to investigate the matter. If necessary,
42. Leah and many of the teachers with whom she works are dissatisfied with Ben’s (their campus
administrator) expectations. They are salaried employees, so the administrator feels justified in expecting them
to work until 6 or 7 p.m. If teachers do not take on the additional duties Ben asks them to take, he threatens
non-renewal of their teaching contracts or poor evaluations. The heaters and air conditioners on their campus
seldom if ever work in the overcrowded, under-supplied classrooms. Additionally, the district’s health care plan
has not been revised in more than ten years despite the increase in medical costs to employees. Consequently,
48 percent of the teachers petition the school district for collective representation from the state’s teacher’s
union. The district denied the recognition of the union as the teachers’ representative. What can the teachers
legally do to obtain the representation they want? Once a teachers’ union is formed, can the teachers legally
strike to improve their working conditions?
Answers may vary. If at least 30 percent will sign authorization cards, the union can petition the NLRB to