Collective Bargaining

And
Labor Relations

The National Labor Relations Act

established the National Labor Relations
Board and required employers to use
collective bargaining. This lesson
explains these labor law concepts.

The Formation of Unions

The early 1900s marked some rough times for American
laborers. Workers formed organized groups so that they
could bargain for and secure better workplace safety,
wages, and hours. These organized groups of laborers were
known asunions. During the Industrial Revolution and Great
Depression eras, employers weren't known for treating
employees with respect and fairness. Union members were
especially resented because of their conflicting interests
with employers. Employers spied on, interrogated,
disciplined and often fired their union members.
The union members responded by organizing in even
greater numbers and creating a wave of sit-down strikes
from 1933 through 1934. These resulted in violent
confrontations with police, general citywide strikes, and
factory takeovers.

The National Labor Relations Act

MAJOR PROVISIONS OF NLRA
The first major legislative provision is found in Section 7. This section is
known as the real heart of the NLRA and gives a considerable amount
of power to employees that they didn't have before. It says that
employees have the right to:
A.

Form, join, or assist labor organizations. This basically means that

employees can unionize, or form organized groups.

B.

Secondly, it says that they canbargain collectively with the

employer. We'll talk about this concept a little bit more in a moment,
but essentially this means that employees can negotiate with their
employers using groups for more clout.

C.

Thirdly, it says that employees canengage in concerted activity.

This means that employees can form organized groups to protest,
picket, or strike against employers.

Collective Bargaining
Now, let's talk about negotiating. This is the primary
reason employees formed unions. The NLRA marked
the first time employers were required to
usecollective bargainingto negotiate with
unions. Collective bargaining is the process of
negotiation involving representatives of both the
employer and the employees. The goal is to give
workers a safe way to voice their concerns and
opinions.
It's called 'collective' because the opinions of both
sides, or the entire group, are considered. The
concept is based on fairness and equality.

The next major legislative provision is Section 8 and

outlinesunfair labor practices. These are specific acts
prohibited by employers under the NLRA or other labor
laws. In other words, these are things employers cannot
legally do to employees. Employers can't:
a)

b)
c)

d)

e)

Interfere with employees' rights to unionize or bargain

collectively
Dominate or contribute to employees' unions
Discriminate against employees because of their union
activities
Retaliate against employees because they complained
of unfair labor practices or cooperated with an
investigation
Refuse to bargain in good faith with unions

REPUBLIC ACT No. 875

(1953)
The reason why collective bargaining is
recognized as an international human right is
that the compromises resulting from a
process in which workers have an
autonomous voice reflect principles of
dignity, equality, and democracy consistent
with human rights principles.