Certification of Collective Bargaining Representatives

T HE National Labor Relations Board is authorized to investigate two kinds of labor relations problems. One consists of those acts and policies of employers which the law defines as labor practices. Upon finding that an employer has been engaged in such practices, the Board is empowered to order him to cease and desist. The other type of situation over which the Board has jurisdiction is the so-called representation dispute, involving a question as to whether a labor organization represents a majority of the employees for whom it seeks to bargain. Under the act it is not an unfair labor practice for an employer to refuse to bargain with representatives of less than a majority of the employees in an appropriate unit. The present article proposes to describe some of the issues involved and the methods developed by the Board in handling representation disputes. Representation disputes arise when two or more labor organizations claim the right to bargain for the employees, when an employer questions the majority claimed by the union, or when there is a difference of opinion regarding the unit suggested by the union for purposes of collective bargaining. The act provides that when a question concerning representation arises, the Board may investigate the dispute, ascertain the choice of the majority by an election or other suitable method, and certify to the parties the name of the duly authorized representative. Certification entitles the representative to be the sole agent of employees for purposes of collective bargaining. While individuals may act as representatives, with rare exceptions representation is vested in a labor organization

Business · Certification · Collective bargaining · Economics · Law and economics · Political science · Public relations · Corporate Governance and Law · Labor Movements and Unions · Law · Legal Issues in South Africa · Public Administration