Human Resource Blog

In all Fairness

I am a manager at small private tax firm. For many of years there were little perks that were given to outgoing employees. Now  the firm has to change their hours and many things concerning money. 6 out of 20 employees have to come together and unionized against management. Even though they were getting some of the perks they are now making it seems like the company is violating them against the National Labor Law. What can we do to make the workplace better?

This is a very complex issue. Labor Relations law is a specialty all its own, and we certainly cannot address every issue in a single question. Any employer who is faced with employees who want to start or join a union, should consult an attorney specializing in labor relations. The money is well spent, because it can save thousands in future years.

You say that 6 out of 20 of your employees wants to join a union. Generally, for a union to be brought in, a majority of the employees must vote for the union in a fair and impartial election. So 11 employees would have to vote for the union, in order for it to represent the employees as a group. (It is possible that what you actually have is not a union, but simply a group of malcontents. *Union* has a specific legal definition in U.S. employment law.)

Just so you know, you cannot retaliate against these employees in any way for working to bring a union into the workplace. Nor can you make threats about what will happen if the employees unionize.

However, if the union is approved and brought in, you can let the employees know that everything will have to be renegotiated. If the employees are currently earning $12 per hour, you will begin negotiating with the union at the minimum wage. If employees currently have 5 paid holidays, you will begin negotiating with the employees at 0 paid holidays. Many times employees who bring in a union end up with lower pay and fewer benefits than they had before unionizing.

The problem with a company providing *little perks* is that they set a precedent and become benefits. The employer then needs to offer them to every employee, or face discrimination charges. If you need to discontinue some benefits, you should issue a written memo with a the new policy on it. However, it would be retaliation for you to eliminate any benefits for the pro-union employees, while keeping benefits for the anti-union employees.