Question 1

20 / 20 pts

1) Facts- The union circulated recognition slips to employees before a representation election. If a worker signed a slip and the union was subsequently certified, those who signed could join the union without paying an initiation fee. The union won the election. The employer, however, refused to bargain because it felt the union committed an unfair labor practice.

Issue- Is the union guilty of an unfair labor practice that will set aside the election?

(Close-ended: Yes or No ONLY)

Your answer:

Yes

 

Question 2

23 / 30 pts

2) Facts- The union circulated recognition slips to employees before a representation election. If a worker signed a slip and the union was subsequently certified, those who signed could join the union without paying an initiation fee. The union won the election. The employer, however, refused to bargain because it felt the union committed an unfair labor practice.

(Explain your response from above and provide the supporting section of the NLRA.)

Reasons:

Your answer:

In Section 8 the NLRA states that "It shall be an unfair labor practice for a labor organization or its agents-(1) To restrain or coerce (A) employees in the exercise of the rights guaranteed in section 7."  The Recognition slips that were circulated by the union to the employees was the cause of the unfair labor practice.

 

Question 3

9 / 10 pts

3) Please read the following two articles:

(Save or print these 2 articles as they will be utilized in Questions 4 & 5.)

 FE_Wk9_Amazon.pdf

Actions

FE_Wk9_India.pdf

Actions

Compare one specific fact from each story...do NOT merely state facts.

Your answer:

The Catholic nuns in Kerala gathered together to incite a call to order for justice to be served against the bishop that was accused of sexual molestation of a sister nun.  Their effort to follow through with their hunger strike showed effective as it gained public sympathy and the police took action by taking the bishop into custody to await trial.  This situation is comparable to the Amazon warehouse workers' situation because both situations resulted in some kind of action and both were incited by the gathering of people involved to speak out.  The Amazon warehouse workers throughout the country incited the company to look into other solutions besides the initial wage raise in order to be positively affective for all workers and not just those that are new and getting the new minimum wage.  The communication and efforts of both groups from each article shows that gathering and speaking out can be effectively heard.

 

Question 4

10 / 10 pts

4) With respect to the 2 articles in Question #3:

Contrast one specific fact from each story (No Repeats from above).

Your answer:

The female actress, Tanushree Dutta, took a stand against a fellow actor, a male, who sexually harassed her while they worked together in Bollywood.  Her rise up against him caused her to suffer at the hands of the male dominated society and judgement from the media as well as the people.  As progress began to loom, even after she moved to the US, the artists' association apologized to her while fellow actors have come forward and slowly India's entertainment industry moves towards being one with less gender discrimination.

The Amazon warehouse workers communicated their concerns throughout the country to take a stand against unfair wage changes.  While publicly showing what could be seen as a positive action in raising their minimum wage, they also made changes that would take away stock options for their employees almost as if to look good with one action while doing some bad with another.  The company's losses were null while there were longtime employees lined up to suffer at their pockets in the end.  

The biggest difference between these situations is that in another country women are still fighting, and suffering while doing so, to be able to speak out against unfair acts against them.  They are battling to be recognized as equals and not be harassed at the least.  In the US, workers of both genders, are fighting and speaking up to get fair wage practices.  I wonder if that will be the next step for women in India.  The fight is still there from both sides but what these two groups are fighting for is quite different.  The media in the US reached out to the company for comment on behalf of the workers, while in India, the media harassed, "mocked and vilified" the victim.  It is evident how different the fights are in different countries.

 

Question 5

25 / 30 pts

5) With respect to the 2 articles in Question #3:

Link a theory/concept from the textbook to a specific fact from each story above (2 Total from different chapters—Cite page and chapter numbers--No Repeats)

1. Identify the theory/concept and define/explain it
2. Briefly describe its linkage to the fact(s) within each story

Your answer:

The Amazon warehouse workers incited a "labor movement" which is a social movement to pursue common interests.  In this case it was coming together to incite changes to the new minimum wage and the changes that were taking affect with that in regards to other workers that have been with Amazon for a while.   (Labor Relations: Striking a Balance, page 48)

The gender discrimination in India would have not been an issue if there was an industrial democracy.  Wh(Labor Relations: Striking a Balance, page 8)