Complaints, Grievances, and the Union

Arbitration:

The use of a neutral third party in a dispute between labor and management to resolve the areas of conflict. It may be binding and compulsory.

Collective Bargaining:

The process of negotiating a union agreement that will govern wages, hours, and working conditions for employees who are union members.

Complaint:

Any expression of unhappiness with working conditions or on-the-job relationships that comes to a manager's attention.

Employee Association:

A group that bargains collectively with management but has given up or has been barred by law from the right to strike.

Grievance:

Any alleged violation of the collective bargaining agreement as filed by management or labor.

Grievance Processing:

Settling an alleged violation of the collective bargaining agreement in accordance with the method outlined in the labor agreement.

Labor Relations:

Management activities that are created by the fact that the organization has a union or unions to bargain with. The two major labor relations duties are collective bargaining and grievance processing.

Mediation:

The use of a neutral third party in a dispute between labor and management to recommend a solution to the issues that divide the two parties. The recommendations of a mediator are not binding or compulSOry.

Steward:

The union's elected or appointed first-line representative in the areas in which workers are found.

Union:

A group of workers who are employed by a company or an industry or who practice the same skilled craft and have banded together to bargain collectively with their employers with one voice-the union's. A union possesses the right to strike.