Deck 7: Collective Bargaining Legislation

Question 1

What would be the best description of the impact the Charter has had at least up until the year 2001)on Canadian labour relations law?

A)liberalizing
B)restrictive
C)massive
D)minimal
E)variable

Answer 1

D

Question 2

All but which one of the following groups of professionals is excluded from unionization rights in at least three Canadian provinces?

A)lawyers
B)engineers
C)teachers
D)architects
E)dentists

Answer 2

C

Question 3

Which of the following plays the most important role in administering Canadian labour relations legislation?

A)labour relations boards
B)the courts
C)the police
D)arbitration panels
E)single arbitrators

Answer 3

A

Question 4

Today,the courts' major role in the IR system is

A)issuing injunctions limiting picketing.
B)convicting striking workers on civil conspiracy charges.
C)handling grievances.
D)regulating bargaining- table behaviour.
E)jailing union organizers on criminal conspiracy charges.

Question 5

Which of the following has been one of the criticisms of collective bargaining from people on the left in recent years?

A)It takes away too much power from the state.
B)It wastes too much time in senseless ritual and posturing.
C)It doesn't work very well because power is strongly tilted toward big business.
D)It is an intrusion on individuals' freedom to choose.
E)It takes away too much control from employers and managers.

Question 6

An important consequence of the decree system is that

A)employers' associations are more prominent in Quebec than in other provinces.
B)Quebec's unionization rates are low.
C)extended agreements deal with union activities.
D)there are employers' associations in the construction industry.
E)Quebec does not have a labour relations board.

Question 7

All but which one of the following occurred when industrial activity was carried out in Canada without labour relations law?

A)a low standard of living for most working people
B)extensive property damage from strikes
C)death and loss of life from strikes
D)frequent grievances
E)inadequate health and safety protection in workplaces

Question 8

A legislative provision designed specifically to address the problem of workplace violence during strikes is

A)anti- strikebreaker provision.
B)reverse onus provision.
C)technological change provision.
D)expedited arbitration.
E)first- contract arbitration.

Question 9

Why have many Canadian jurisdictions moved away from three- person arbitration panels to single arbitrators?

A)because the use of single arbitrators saves time and money,and the decisions are just as good
B)because of the duty to accommodate
C)because single arbitrators give better decisions
D)to help keep unqualified people out of arbitration
E)because there are not enough arbitrators available

Question 10

The labour board's job,in deciding certification cases,is

A)to ascertain the union's level of support.
B)to determine the appropriate bargaining unit.
C)neither of the above.
D)both of the above.
E)to simply hold votes and otherwise let the parties fight things out themselves.

Question 11

All but which of the following are or may be a result of Canada's legislative fragmentation?

A)frequent innovation in labour law
B)difficulties in determining whether an enterprise falls under federal or provincial jurisdiction
C)a high incidence of strikes
D)a highly decentralized bargaining structure
E)a clear national standard in labour law

Question 12

From a union perspective,what is the most important potential benefit of first- contract arbitration provisions?

A)They can help unions achieve certification.
B)They allow ministerial discretion in their application.
C)They offer unions permanent protection against unfair employer labour practice.
D)They can prevent employers from refusing to bargain seriously in order to prevent the union from achieving a collective agreement.
E)They allow unions to avoid the unpleasant task of bargaining with unwilling employers.

Question 13

Why is the P.E.I.freedom to communicate provision potentially of great concern?

A)because it permits direct communication with workers on collective bargaining issues and could thus encourage employers to circumvent the collective bargaining process itself
B)because it could affect the union status of millions of workers
C)because it could affect certification votes in the province
D)because it permits employers to threaten and intimidate their workers
E)because it's a blemish on an otherwise strongly pro- labour act

Question 14

Canadian labour relations law differs from American law in all but which one of the following ways?

A)in being relatively voluntarist
B)with respect to "right- to- work" provisions regarding union security
C)with respect to jurisdiction
D)with respect to anti- strikebreaker provisions
E)in the way the law is enforced

Question 15

The major rationale for the exclusion of management from unions is

A)these people earn enough already.
B)to avoid conflict of interest.
C)managers don't want to join unions.
D)the unions don't want them in.
E)non- existent.

Question 16

Of the following five provinces,the one with the most restrictive labour act is

A)Quebec.
B)B)C.
C)Alberta.
D)New Brunswick.
E)P)E.I.

Question 17

Labour boards in most provinces have all but which one of the following remedies available to them?

A)to subpoena witnesses
B)to order unfairly discharged employees reinstated
C)to enter workplaces to inspect work processes and questions workers and managers
D)to certify a union with less than majority support where an unfair labour practice has prevented employees' true wishes from becoming known
E)to close down unsafe workplaces

Question 18

All but which one of the following is an advantage of using labour boards rather than courts to administer labour legislation?

A)Problems are generally resolved more quickly by boards.
B)Boards have expert staff available to them.
C)Judges generally know more about IR than board members.
D)Boards are more concerned with finding practical solutions to workplace problems.
E)Boards include both management and union representatives.

Question 19

The best description of the nature of industrial conflict under labour relations law would be

A)civilized.
B)non- existent.
C)anarchic.
D)rough,but not out of hand.
E)no holds barred.

Question 20

All except which one of the following would be considered an unfair labour practice in one or more Canadian jurisdictions?

A)a union kicking people off its executive committee for refusing to engage in an illegal wildcat strike
B)a union making a financial contribution to an employer's association
C)management promising a 10% pay raise to workers during a union organizing drive
D)locking out employees after conciliation has failed and several weeks have elapsed
E)hiring professional strikebreakers

Question 21

Overall,the most liberal labour act is that of

A)Quebec.
B)the federal jurisdiction.
C)Alberta.
D)Saskatchewan.
E)Ontario.

Question 22

What are two exceptions to Canadian LRL's general emphasis on processes rather than outcomes.

Question 23

The most important difference between PC 1003 and the American National Labor Relations Act was

A)the latter's use of a vote to verify union certifications.
B)the former's incorporation of compulsory conciliation.
C)the former's establishment of a board to enforce the act.
D)the latter's exclusion of agricultural workers.
E)the former's exclusion of management.

Question 24

Why do labour boards generally take a dim view of employers' hiring additional workers during a union organizing drive?

Question 25

What's the basis for David Beatty's criticism of LRL and collective bargaining?

Question 26

Why are decertification provisions a critical aspect of public labour policy?

Question 27

What is the major exception to the general pattern of provincial jurisdiction in LRL?

Question 28

What's different about collective bargaining in the construction industry in Quebec?

Question 29

The reason why unions generally prefer a card count to a vote as a means of establishing certification is

A)because it's what they're used to.
B)because a card count allows unions to harass and intimidate workers into joining.
C)voting is costly.
D)with a card count,the labour board doesn't have to get involved.
E)because if there's a vote,employers can get involved and influence the process.

Question 30

Why were unionism and collective bargaining slow to evolve in Canada?

Question 31

Are mid- term strikes allowed in Canada?

Question 32

Quebec's decree system applies mainly in

A)the public sector.
B)low- wage industries made up of smaller firms.
C)rural areas.
D)heavy "core" industries like steel and autos.
E)the para- public sector.

Question 33

How much use has the Charter been in striking down exclusion laws on constitutional grounds?

Question 34

What are the provisions which would appear to have the greatest actual or potential effect on union membership growth?

Question 35

Though most industrial relationists like labour boards' accommodative approach,some have concerns about it.Why is that?

Question 36

What must a labour board do before it can determine whether a union which has applied for certification should be certified?

Question 37

What's the most compelling reason for having labour relations legislation LRL)?

Question 38

What do labour boards do?

Question 39

Comprehensive private sector bargaining legislation first took effect in Canada in which year?

A)1907
B)1976
C)1967
D)1944
E)1872

Question 40

Why is union certification generally easier in Canada than in the U.S.?

Question 41

Institutionalists are mainly concerned with the economic benefits which collective bargaining confers on workers.

Question 42

Agreements under Quebec's decree system are virtually identical to agreements negotiated in the normal way.

Question 43

Unfair labour practice provisions apply to unions as well as to employers.

Question 44

There appears to be no connection between the type of government a province has,or has had,and the liberal or restrictive character of its labour act.

Question 45

Discuss the function and powers of labour boards and the type of approach they generally take in carrying out those functions.

Question 46

Managerialists primarily resent the loss of control unions and collective bargaining mean to employers and managerialists.

Question 47

Anti- strikebreaker legislation is generally favoured by people on the right.

Question 48

Within the group of provinces which requires a vote for certification,the certification procedure is completely uniform.

Question 49

How has human rights legislation affected the grievance procedure and the interpretation of collective agreements?

Question 50

In Canada,employer freedom to communicate provisions have been decreasing in importance in recent years.

Question 51

Discuss the major features of Canadian LRL.

Question 52

Grievance processes in Canadian agreements are purely a voluntary affair.

Question 53

Discuss some of the key provincial variations in LRL.

Question 54

It would be fair to say that labour boards are generally more accommodative in their approach to workplace problems than are the courts.

Question 55

Although the "duty to accommodate" sounds noble,it really imposes few responsibilities on any of the parties.

Question 56

There is some interprovincial variation in the type of expedited arbitration provisions in place.

Question 57

It would probably be fair to say that worker- employer conflict can be made more civilized,but never eliminated.

Question 58

Becoming a labour lawyer or IR specialist in Canada is a quick and easy process.

Question 59

Canadian arbitrators are free to interpret collective agreements however they choose,so long as they stick to the agreement.

Question 60

Compare and contrast Canadian and American LRL.

Question 61

Discuss the major stages in the evolution of Canadian LRL.