Deck 4: Union Membership and Sturcture

Question 1

Which of the following best summarizes the difference between Canadian and American union democracy at the national level?

A)There is no difference.
B)The CLC is marginally more democratic than the AFL- CIO.
C)The CLC is a republic whereas the AFL- CIO is a monarchy.
D)The AFL- CIO is a republic whereas the CLC is a banana republic.
E)The CLC takes its orders from the AFL- CIO.

Answer 1

C

Question 2

With respect to firm size and job tenure,union membership rates are much higher for those who

A)work for small or medium- sized firms and have long job tenure.
B)work for small or medium- sized firms and have short job tenure.
C)work for large firms and have long job tenure.
D)work for large firms and have short job tenure.
E)work for large firms and have medium job tenure.

Answer 2

C

Question 3

Which of the following statements about why union democracy is so difficult to achieve in practice is false?

A)In unions,who you know may be as important as what you know.
B)Full membership participation at each stage of collective bargaining would be impossible.
C)Some leaders are more concerned with getting re- elected than with serving their members.
D)Most union officials have authoritarian characters and personalities.
E)Unions have limited resources for handling grievances.

Answer 3

D

Question 4

All but which one of the following options is generally open to Canadian union members who are unhappy with their union leadership?

A)a vote against the incumbent executive at the next election
B)a decertification bid at the appropriate time
C)a duty of fair representation complaint to the labour board
D)rejection of tentative agreements
E)internal appeals culminating in arbitration conducted by a neutral from outside the union

Question 5

All but which one of the following helps explain the growing divergence between Canadian and American membership rates?

A)more supportive public sector legislation in Canada
B)roughly similar economic conditions in the two countries
C)stricter enforcement of labour legislation in Canada
D)greater organizing efforts in Canada
E)lack of a social democratic party in the U.S.

Question 6

Which of the following does not help explain why union membership rates are low in Alberta?

A)the Gainer's strike in 1986
B)the strong agricultural sector of the province's economy
C)restrictive exclusion policies
D)restrictive union certification policies
E)the fact that the province has never had an NDP government

Question 7

Which of the following best explains why provincial labour federations are so important?

A)most unions' inability to carry out research and organizing on their own
B)the weakness of the CLC
C)a desire to create additional jobs for union officials
D)the fact that they carry out collective bargaining with employers
E)the fact that most labour legislation is under provincial jurisdiction

Question 8

Which of the following best explains why the CLC has granted the QFL special status?

A)the inability of most CLC leaders to read or speak French
B)CLC leaders' dislike of CFL leaders
C)a francophone conspiracy within the CLC's executive committee
D)a desire to keep the QFL within the CLC
E)the CLC's NDP leanings

Question 9

The major responsibility of shop stewards is generally

A)going shopping to buy supplies.
B)keeping the organization's books.
C)negotiating with management.
D)helping members with their grievances.
E)serving wine at official union functions.

Question 10

Which of the following is not a limitation on union democracy?

A)Iron law of oligarchy
B)need for effective collective bargaining
C)Merit is of little benefit to those seeking to rise within union hierarchies.
D)inherent nature of union as collective majoritarian political organization
E)wide geographic spread of members

Question 11

Which of the following is not a normal activity of the CLC?

A)international representation of the labour movement
B)collective bargaining with employers
C)providing research assistance to member unions
D)handling jurisdictional disputes between member unions
E)legislative and political liaison

Question 12

The lower union membership rates for part- time workers reflect primarily

A)the higher dues which must be paid by these workers when they join unions.
B)the greater difficulty and expense of organizing these workers.
C)their lack of desire for union representation.
D)the fact that many are women.
E)the superior working conditions most part- timers enjoy.

Question 13

All but which one of the following help to explain the decline in Canadian union membership rates during the 1920s?

A)hardline employer opposition
B)change in government policy on employer harassment of union activists
C)a post- World War I depression
D)welfare capitalist management practices
E)the increasing involvement of the Catholic Church in Quebec's labour movement

Question 14

Since 1990,the number of Canadian union members has

A)decreased steadily and sharply.
B)both increased sharply and decreased sharply.
C)decreased slowly.
D)remained roughly constant.
E)increased gradually.

Question 15

Between 1947 and 1967,Canadian and American union membership rates were generally

A)far lower in Canada.
B)in no fixed relationship to each other.
C)roughly equal.
D)somewhat higher in the U.S.
E)far higher in Canada.

Question 16

Which of the following is perhaps the most important cause of the two major periods of Canadian union growth during the post- World War II period?

A)the women's movement
B)the passage of two major pieces of labour legislation making it easier for workers to join unions
C)the unionization of large numbers of managers
D)the election of John Diefenbaker
E)the death of Mackenzie King

Question 17

Which of the following statements about international unions is true?

A)They represent large numbers of Canadian public sector workers.
B)In the 19th century,they provided Canadian workers a level of service they couldn't have received from their own country's unions.
C)They have been growing rapidly in recent years.
D)They have never been controversial.
E)They are genuinely international.

Question 18

Canada's fragmented union structure refers to

A)the existence of both national and "international" unions.
B)internal disagreements within unions.
C)the country's large number of relatively small unions.
D)the existence of unions in every province.
E)the existence of separate unions for private and public sector workers.

Question 19

Which provision,found in most Canadian labour legislation,helps to explain why Canadian unions tend to be more democratic than American ones?

A)requirement for secret strike votes
B)expedited arbitration
C)first- contract arbitration
D)exclusion provisions
E)duty of fair representation

Question 20

George Meany's attitude toward organizing the unskilled can best be described as

A)indifferent.
B)supportive.
C)opportunistic.
D)enthusiastic.
E)uneven.

Question 21

As most readers will be aware,the lion's share of recent job growth in Canada has been in small or medium- sized businesses.Why does this fact not augur well for the Canadian labour movement?

Question 22

Why do traditionally heavily unionized industries such as manufacturing and construction represent a much smaller share of the country's union membership than they did 20 or 30 years ago?

Question 23

Why do provincial Labour Federations play such an important role in Canada's labour movement?

Question 24

Which of the following statements about the growth of Canadian national unions is false?

A)It was halted by the CLC's autonomy guidelines.
B)It has been fuelled in part by political disagreements.
C)It has been fuelled in part by concerns over poor servicing of Canadian branches of internationals.
D)It was related to a growing climate of nationalism in the country at large.
E)It was caused in large part by public sector unionization.

Question 25

Which best describes the relationship of Canadian and American union membership rates since 1967?

A)higher in Canada,with an increasingly narrow gap
B)consistently higher in the U.S.
C)higher in Canada,with an increasingly wide gap
D)higher in the U.S.,with an increasingly wide gap
E)consistently higher in Canada

Question 26

What is social unionism?

Question 27

Why is low attendance at most union meetings perhaps not as serious a concern as some observers have suggested.

Question 28

What stages has the CSN CNTU)gone through?

Question 29

What's one important difference between the way craft unions and industrial or public service unions are run?

Question 30

What differences were there between those who joined unions as the result of PC1003 and those who joined because of the PSSRA?

Question 31

Why have many people argued that special status for the QFL is necessary to keep it in the CLC?

Question 32

The only province in which union membership rates rose significantly between 1977 and 2003 is:

A)Saskatchewan.
B)Ontario.
C)Quebec.
D)B)C.
E)Newfoundland.

Question 33

How did George Meany's actions as AFL- CIO president weaken the American labour movement?

Question 34

Since 1970,American union membership rates have

A)decreased steadily and sharply.
B)decreased slowly.
C)both increased sharply and decreased sharply.
D)remained roughly constant.
E)increased gradually.

Question 35

What are some of the consequences of Canada's highly fragmented labour movement?

Question 36

Which of the following is not a component of union democracy as defined by Edelstein/Warner?

A)membership participation
B)due process
C)fair union dues
D)selection of officers
E)legitimacy of opposition

Question 37

List the main factors that led to the growing nationalization of the Canadian labour movement.

Question 38

How does a pro- labour government affect union membership rates?

Question 39

Why has union membership and density fluctuated over time?

Question 40

Does the CLC have extensive powers over its affiliated unions?

Question 41

Safeguards for union democracy are generally weaker in Canada than in the U.S.

Question 42

In what ways does union structure in Quebec differ from that in other provinces?

Question 43

Which union membership growth prompted by PC1003 or the PSSRA,has had the most profound effect on the Canadian labour movement?

Question 44

The U.S.experience with labour law reform suggests that political parties make key contributions to national labour movements.

Question 45

Discuss the factors which have led to a growing divergence of Canadian and American union membership rates since 1965,despite roughly similar economic experiences in the two countries,and indicate whether or not you expect the pattern of growing divergence to continue.

Question 46

Discuss the reasons for the early internationalization and much more recent nationalization of the Canadian labour movement.

Question 47

Poor attendance at union meetings may be the most serious concern with respect to union democracy.

Question 48

U.S.union membership rates were higher in 1980 than they had been in 1945.

Question 49

Economic restructuring is a major cause of union raiding.

Question 50

There are important differences in public sector workers' bargaining rights in Canada and the U.S.

Question 51

Competition for members among Quebec's various labour federations has left that province's labour movement weaker than that of most other Canadian provinces.

Question 52

In Canada people have enormously high expectations of unions.

Question 53

Of the activities engaged in by union locals,municipal and district labour councils,and provincial and national labour federations,which is are the most important? Justify your answer.

Question 54

Large numbers of women joined the Canadian labour movement during the early postwar period.

Question 55

Canadian union membership rates peaked later than U.S.rates.

Question 56

Overall,large unions probably offer their members better service than smaller ones.

Question 57

The CLC's autonomy guidelines governing the Canadian branches of international unions guarantee these branches full control over their unions' strike funds.

Question 58

Most Canadian unions appear to provide adequate mechanisms to ensure due process for members who feel that their unions have treated them unfairly.

Question 59

"International unions" are truly international organizations.

Question 60

There's a significant difference between union membership rates of all goods- producing industries and those of all service- producing industries.

Question 61

Can a union truly meet the definition of democracy as described in the Edelstein- Warner definition quoted in the text given its inherent contradiction of a majority ruled collective that must also advocate for its individual members' rights?