Labor Law and Contract Interpretation

Understanding the key do’s and don’t of the labor law and how arbitrators interpret collective bargaining agreements is critical to operating in a union environment.  Designed for non-lawyers, this program covers the key aspects of operating under the NLRA and other labor law statutes, including union organizing, unfair labor practices, good faith bargaining and what happens on impasse.  Learn how to address ambiguous contract language, apply the maxims of contract interpretation and identify binding past practice. Multiple case studies and small group work.

Key Course Takeaways

• Legal rights and limitations for companies and unions
  • Identifying and avoiding "unfair labor practices"
  • The legality of employee participation and self-directed work teams
  • Employee activities that are protected by law
• The "duty to bargain"
  • An employer's bargaining obligations
  • Parameters for communicating with employees
  • The obligation to provide information
• Representation cases
  • The election process and how it works
  • Establishing the appropriate bargaining unit
  • The employer's rights and obligations during a union organizing campaign
  • The legal and practical issues during union elections
• Latest developments under the NLRA
• Labor law implications of sales, acquisitions, and mergers
• Principles of contract interpretation
  • Determining how language is construed
  • Arbitrators' views on contract language
• The role and impact of past practice
  • Standards for defining/proving a binding past practice
  • The impact of past practice on the meaning of contract language
  • Termination of a past practice
• The role of management's rights
  • Understanding the source of management's rights
  • How management's rights can be affected by contract language or past practices
  • How arbitrators view the doctrine of reserved rights
• Drafting contract language
  • How to write contract language that means what you intended
  • Common drafting mistakes

Who Should Enroll

• HR and labor relations professionals
• Managers and executives working in a union environment
• Attorneys involved in collective bargaining
• Union officials involved in collective bargaining