 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
NOAA Workforce Management Office
Serving NOAA's Most Valuable Asset - People
NOAA Supervisory Resource Guide
What Should I Do When Employees Want to Discuss the Union?
As an authority figure within your organization, employees bring their issues to your attention for an audience and seeking relief. However, when those issues deal with any aspect of the union, you must remain impartial.
Section 7102 of the Statute gives each employee the right to form, join, or assist any labor organization, or to refrain from any such activity, freely and without fear of penalty or reprisal.
In addition, Section 7116 of the Statute states that it shall be an unfair labor practice (a violation of the Statute) for an agency
- to interfere with, restrain, or coerce any employee in the exercise by the employee of any right under this chapter;
- to encourage or discourage membership in any labor organization by discrimination in connection with hiring, tenure, promotion, or other conditions of employment;
As a member of management, you are prohibited from several things, including:
- Expressing personal views disparaging the union
"Yes, I agree. John Doe is a liability as a union representative." - Correlating an employee's performance with his/her union activity
A union official must be evaluated on the basis of actual work he/she performed and not penalized for work remaining because of time spent on official labor-management activities. - Stating that the union is responsible for operational delays
"We would have implemented the new system by now if the union cooperated." - Revisiting issues already addressed with the union
Management proposed a change for which individual employees expressed approval, but the union, as the exclusive representative of bargaining unit employees, vetoed it. You cannot engage in discussions with individual employees or otherwise publicize information about benefits lost or other disadvantages created as a result of the union's decision.
It is your responsibility to remain impartial in any and all discussions with employees regarding any aspect of the union. Failure to do may result in the filing of an Unfair Labor Practice charge against your organization with the Federal Labor Relations Authority (FLRA).
If an employee or group of employees wishes to express dissatisfaction with the union, its representatives, or its performance, you should ONLY advise them to contact the national office of the union representing the bargaining unit and/or the FLRA with their concerns.
The contact information for the FLRA is: http://www.flra.gov
Your WFM Advisor is available to provide guidance and address any questions or concerns you may have regarding employees' complaints about the union.
Page last edited: January 25, 2012
