US Laws Support Collective Bargaining

The National Labor Relations Act (NLRA), also known as the Wagner Act, was enacted in Congress in 1935 and became one of the most important legacies of the New Deal. Prior to the passage of the NLRA, employers had been free to spy on, interrogate, discipline, discharge, and blacklist union members. Reversing years of federal opposition, the statute guaranteed the right of employees to organize labor unions, to engage in collective bargaining, and to take part in strikes. The act also created a National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) to arbitrate deadlocked labor-management disputes, guarantee democratic union elections, and penalize unfair labor practices by employers. The law applied to all employees involved in the interstate

In labor as in all things there is strength in numbers it is this strength that American labor unions provide. Labor unions provide a collective voice for those who had not previously been heard. As the professor in the “Frustrated Labor Historian” Dr. Horace P. Karastan is left with the dilemma what are the three most important events in American labor union history it would be difficult to choose with so many important moments. There are however several events that stand out as being turning points in giving employees unquestionable protections. The Norris-LaGuardia Act of 1932 allowing employees the right to organize. Further the Wagner Act protecting employees from reprisal from employers for organizing spurring the growth of unionization. The Landrum-Griffin Act of 1959 building on the Wagner Act as well as the Taft-Hartley Act of 1947 which granted protections from the unions. It is these Acts that have changed the landscape of American labor union history and leave us with the unions that we have today.

All organizations are in business to make money, but there are rules that the employer and the employee must follow as well. Any influence that management and labor have over the organization should be equal. The “Landrum-Griffin Act also knows as the Labor Management Reporting and Disclosure Act.” Was passed in 1959 through U.S. Congress. This is the result of certain improper activities that was going on between labors, management, employers and certain union officials. Many of the officials in higher positions misused numerous labor funds as well as being involve in violent activities. This act regulated union affairs internally and also controlled the use of union funds.

The Taft-Hartley Act, which can also be referred to as the labor management relations act was implemented in 1947 (Legal Dictionary, 2015). The purpose of this act was to resolve unfair labor practices that were being exercised in unions. This act served to act as an amendment to previous laws, which were established under the Wagner act of 1935. The changes that were included focused on prohibiting secondary boycotts, required equal treatment between independent and affiliated unions, and altered the conditions on collective bargaining which

NLRA was considered to be the law that affected the relationship among the federal government and private enterprise; this measure considerably increased the government’s powers to arbitrate in labor relations. Prior to this law, employers had the emancipation to chastise, spy on, question for no reason and fire union members. Work stoppages commenced in the mid 1930’s (Gould, 1986), which included striking by factory and industrial occupational workers. By the time the strikes came to a halt, America had a more conservative Congress. This Congress led to balance the power between employers and unions. While the Wagner Act addressed only unfair labor practices by employers, it was added to the enactment of

The Taft-Hartley Act (also known more properly as the Labor Management Relations Act of 1947) as issued to amend the Wagner Act of 1935 and discontinued parts of the Federal Anti-Injunction Act of 1932. This law helped to reinforce flaws that were in the Wagner Act. Where the Wagner Act had only spoken of the right to participate in union activities, the Taft-Hartley Act helped to fill in the gaps by allowing for the right to refrain from union activities.

As previously discussed from the textbook, the Labor Management Relations Act of 1947 (known as Taft-Hartley Act) was an amendment to the Wagner Act of 1935. The Taft- Hartley Act was basically created to benefit the employer, the employee and the labor unions. When the Wagner Act of 1935 was created, it gave the rights to employees who only participated in union activities. The Wagner act protected the employees from being fired for joining the union. Whereas the Taft-Hartley Act protected the employees from losing their jobs for not joining a union.

Union organizers were dismissed and union meetings forbidden as indicated by Fossum (2012) who writes that “employers used security forces to police the workforce, forcibly kept out organizers, or ferreted out internal union activists or sympathizers from the late 1800s to World War II” (p. 196).

The Taft-Hartley Act was passed in 1947 to protect the employee’s rights from the union and their unfair practices ("1947 Taft-Hartley Substantive Provisions | NLRB," n.d). The ACT changed the language of the Wagner ACT, to protect the employees who did not want to participate in union activities but they were required to become a member as one of the conditions when they were hired ("1947 Taft-Hartley Substantive Provisions | NLRB," n.d.). Another change made to protect the employees was stopping the union from overcharging the dues and fees. The amendment also noted that unions had an obligation to all members to bargain in good faith ("1947 Taft-Hartley Substantive Provisions | NLRB," n.d.).

The first law, which supports collective bargaining, is the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA) or the Wagner Act, as it is also called. Robert F. Wagner put this Act into place in 1935, hence the Wagner Act. Prior to this Act taking form, employers were allowed given full control over the outcomes of numerous employees who questioned their labor practices and went on strike as a result. Employees were left without any protection from such occurrences and thus were left with little voice in regards to the terms and employment conditions. Once the Wagner Act was put into place, this labor law provided a significant amount of protection to employees everywhere and gave them the ability to not only participate in unions and collective bargaining, but to also be protected from injustice at the hands of their employers by prohibiting any loss of jobs in the union process.

Taft-hartley act is also known as the labor management relations act, it amended Wagnet to be able to address the concerns of employees. With this act, the new language was added in order to provide employers the ability to limit or stop employees from participating in union or mutual aid practices and events except that they could be required to become member in a union as a condition of their employment. The amendment additionally imposed on unions to bargain in good faith that the Wagnet act placed on employers. The act could prevent secondary boycotts, making it unlawful for a union that has a primary dispute with one employer to pressure a neutral employer to stop doing business with the first employer.

One of the first federal labor laws was the Norris LaGuardia Law of 1932. This law supported organized labor even though it had limited powers at the time. The Society of Human Resource Management [SHRM], (2016), considered it “a significant victory in labor reform” (SHRM, 2016). This law was a major breakthrough in the 20th century. Prior to the Norris LaGuardia Law of 1932, employees did not have an advocate in the workplace. Employees were thrown in jail and fined if they chose to strike or picket against their employer. The employer would go to court

The National Labor Relations Act (NLRA) started in July 1935 to protect the rights of employees, rather, they be union or nor-union employees (Pozgar, 2012). The employees are protected under the Act or may employ in bubble-like, rigorous goings-on in situations other than the customary union organizations and cooperative bargaining. The National Labor Relations Board regulates the employers from interfering with the rights of the employees to implement or organize and join with a groups that offers assists with collective bargaining purposes like organization union or joining one (Pozgar, 2012). The employer may not restrain, coerce or stop employees

The National Labor Relations Act was enacted by congress in 1935 in order to define and defend the rights of the employment relationship. The act allows employees of a company the right to form a union and have the union organization represent them through collective bargaining. Collective bargaining is the process of negotiation between both parties; Union representatives and a corporation, with the purpose of reaching an agreement for the best interests of employees and the corporation. In the negotiation process the attempt is to establish primary factors of importance which are advantages the union fights for and ultimately provide for its stakeholders that would otherwise not have

Collective bargaining is the process by which conditions of employment are negotiated between management, and the labor organization representing employees in the bargaining unit. However, “collective bargaining refers to a situation in which union members and officials meet with an intent to resolve any issues or conflicts, in an attempt to maintain relationships” (Holley, Jennings, & Wolters, 2012, p. 243). The collective bargaining process relies on four aspects: recognition of the meeting, meeting with appropriate parties, bargaining in good faith, and incorporating the reached agreement (Adam, 1997). Nevertheless, collective bargaining activities are governed by the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA). The NLRA requires bargaining