Labor Vulnerability Checklist September 2010

LABOR VULNERABILITY QUESTIONNAIRE

This Checklist was prepared as a general guide to help employers consider the types of policies, practices and procedures that could help them remain union-free. Employers need not adopt every item on this checklist. Some items may not be appropriate for every employer. Nevertheless, employers should use this checklist as an aid in the process of tailoring their employment-related policies, practices and procedures to improve employee relations in their own organizations. Remember, each organization is unique and a “one size fits all” approach is not recommended.

If you have any questions about specific items on this checklist or if you need assistance in developing your own tailored union-proofing plan, please feel free to contact your Fisher & Phillips lawyer.

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Labor Vulnerability Audit Questionnaire

YES NO

UNION ACTIVITY

Has this facility ever had an NLRB-conducted election?(If so, provide details in the Notes section of this questionnaire.)

Has this facility ever been subject to a union organizing drive of any sort?(If so, provide details in the Notes section of this questionnaire.)

Within the past 36 months, has there been any report of:

union authorization cards in the workplace?

employees being solicited to sign union authorization cards?

pro-union literature or handbills?

pro-union graffiti?

anti-company literature?

anti-company graffiti?

other anti-company messages?

union meetings?

visits by union solicitors?

telephone calls to employees’ homes by union solicitors?

work stoppages or strikes?

mass complaints or petitions signed by a group of employees?

COMMUNICATIONS

Union-Free Policy Statement

Have you adopted a written union-free policy statement?

Do you communicate your union-free policy to employees:

during the orientation procedure?

in the employee handbook?

on the employee bulletin board?

in meetings with employees?

Problem-Solving Procedure

Do you have a written, publicized, step-by-step procedure for handling employee complaints or grievances?

Is your procedure covered:

in the employee handbook?

by posting on the employee bulletin board?

in the orientation procedure for new employees?


2


YES NO

Do you have a procedure for handling claims of discrimination, harassment or retaliation?

Is that procedure different from your normal complaint resolution process?

Are employees encouraged by managers and supervisors to get their complaints out into the open so they can be addressed before they fester into more serious problems?

Does the company make every effort to resolve employee complaints promptly?

Are supervisors trained to respond to employee complaints?

Do employees believe that supervisors listen to and resolve employee complaints?

Do supervisors encourage employees to come up with ideas and suggestions on how to make the company a better place to work?

Regular Meetings

Do supervisors conduct regular, informal meetings with their employees?When?

Are employees given the opportunity in group meetings to ask questions, raise problems, and make suggestions?

Do you regularly inform employees about company policy and personnel changes, plans, etc.? How? ___________________________________

Does top management regularly visit with employees in their work areas?When?

Are written agendas used for conducting employee meetings?

Does top management find occasion to address large meetings of employees on company time on subjects of importance and interest (such as a “state of the company” address, i.e., the forerunner of the "captive audience" speech in an organizing campaign)?

Are supervisors given information about the company’s plans to pass along to employees before the information hits the “grapevine”?

Before changes are introduced in the company, is every effort made to give employees advance notice or subsequent explanation?

Employee Committees

When issues arise at the company, do you ever appoint an employee committee to help address the problem?

Have you confirmed that your committee procedures are consistent with the requirements of the Labor Board’s Electromation decision?

Climate or Opinion Surveys

Do you have a system for finding out how your employees and supervisors really feel about the company, such as through periodic confidential employee attitude or “flash” surveys?


3


YES NO

Are the questions on employee surveys carefully formulated with specific objectives in mind?

Do you give timely feedback with a summary of the survey results to employees, letting them know what action you are taking to correct areas of concern as indicated by the survey?

Do you ever use 360o surveys to evaluate management performance?

Written Communications

Do you disseminate information to employees about the company’s:

customers?

competitors?

challenges?

history?

culture?

values?

mission?

industry?

Do you use various forms of communication to be sure to get the message across, such as: posters?

graphics?

videos?

recorded messages?

Do you have closed circuit televisions, video monitors or digital photo frames in your break rooms?

Do you use closed circuit televisions, video monitors or digital photo frames in any other locations to communicate current events or notices to employees?

Do you orally explain written information you pass on to employees?

Do you periodically write letters to the homes of employees?

Do you have a contingency communication plan in the event you get notice of any union organizing activity?

Do you maintain relationships in the community to help detect union organizing activity in or around your facility?


4


YES NO

Bulletin Boards

Do you maintain bulletin boards in strategic locations?

Do you post interesting and important information and change notices regularly?

Do you have a written bulletin board policy?

Are the bulletin boards placed under glass, Plexiglas or otherwise protected from defacement?

Is any place designated for employee postings?

Electronic Communications

Do you have an “acceptable uses” or “electronic communications” policy?

Do you have a “social media” policy?

Do you have a “blogging” policy?

Do your employees use your electronic systems (computers, phones, PDAs, etc.) for personal business?

Do you allow employees to use your electronic systems for soliciting other employees for any cause, charity or other business?

Do you have a spam-blocker?

Do you use different levels of security clearance in the Company’s electronic systems?

Do you have a “no recordings” policy?

Do you permit employees to access Facebook, MySpace, YouTube or similar sites through your electronic systems?

Upward Communications

Do you hold regular supervisory meetings?

Do you consider the suggestions, criticisms and opinions of your supervisors?

Are supervisors aware of their responsibility to relay information from employees to top management?

Before making key decisions, is an effort made to determine what employees really want and how they would feel about the decision?

Have you established procedures to ensure that your supervisors talk with their employees on a regular basis?

Are supervisors regularly questioned about their knowledge of their employees?

Are supervisors evaluated based on their relationships with their employees?

Are supervisors rewarded based on their relationships with their employees?

Are supervisors required to seek employee opinions, information, or suggestions?


5


YES NO

Human Resources

Is there commitment from the top down to the company’s human resources function?

Does management visibly support human resources programs?

Does the official in charge of the human resources function report directly to a top company executive?

Do you have an HR representative present at all times when employees are working (i.e., off-shifts, nights or weekends?)

Do your human resources personnel actively participate in local human resources groups?

Supervision

Has the company established which leadership positions are considered “supervisory” under the National Labor Relations Act?

When new supervisors are selected, is consideration given to the candidate's leadership skills and respect among employees?

Are supervisors given substantial authority?

Do supervisors know the extent of their authority?

Have supervisors been issued an up-to-date personnel policy manual?

Have supervisors actually used the policy within the last 60 days to resolve an employee question or issue?

Do supervisors conduct periodic performance evaluations of each employee, in which they let employees know how they stand, their progress, their strengths and weaknesses, where they need to improve and what the company will do to assist the employee?

Do employees believe that supervisors assign work in a fair and equitable manner?

Do supervisors work the same hours as the employees they supervise?

Do supervisors take breaks with employees?

Do supervisors park in the same place with the employees they supervise?

Are supervisors eligible for a different benefit program/package than the employees they supervise?

Are supervisors compensated more than the employees they supervise, even when overtime is taken into account?


6


YES NO

Supervisory Training

Does the company provide a training program for supervisors, covering:

Two-way communications?

How to handle complaints?

How to discipline?

Proper orientation procedures?

Employee training and instructions?

Performance reviews?

Leadership/setting the example?

Union avoidance?

Does the company insist that each supervisor treat his or her employees with courtesy and respect?

Do supervisors understand the rules and policies they administer and are these policies administered consistently?

PROPER EMPLOYMENT PRACTICES

Personnel Policies

Do you have an employee handbook for communicating to employees the company’s history, policies, and benefits?

Have you updated your employee handbook in the past 18 months?

Do your written policies actually reflect what your company does in practice?

Do employees understand your personnel policies?

Do employees feel that these policies are administered in a fair and consistent manner?

Do you consistently enforce a solicitation and distribution policy that allows you to limit organizing at the company to the maximum extent allowed under the law?

Disciplinary Procedures

Have you communicated your disciplinary procedures to employees in writing?

Is attention given to the fairness of policies on tardiness and absenteeism?

Before disciplinary rules are instituted or changed, are employees consulted and informed about the need for the change?

Does your disciplinary procedure provide for written notations of warnings to be placed in the employee's personnel file?

Do you allow employees to provide a written response to disciplinary actions issued to them?

YES NO


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Do you ever allow employees to have a witness to an investigatory interview?

Do you have an arbitration system in effect?

Do supervisors discipline employees in private?

In administering discipline, do supervisors consider the employee's story or point of view?

Do supervisors suspend employees before issuing serious discipline?

Do supervisors suspend employees before terminating them?

Hiring & Selection

Does your employment application meet your needs on background information, and has it been checked to determine its compliance with applicable laws prohibiting discrimination, polygraphs, and background checks without obtaining the applicant’s proper permission?

Does the company carefully screen the previous employment history and background of all job applicants?

Orientation & Job Assignments

Do you provide a formal orientation so that the new employee is properly introduced to the job and the company?

Do you utilize a checklist to ensure that all points are covered?

Do you utilize educational videos or demonstrative aids to orient new employees?

Do you attempt to assign new employees to jobs in which they will be satisfied?

Promotion & Training Opportunities

Do you give proper training to new and current employees?

Have you checked to see if employees feel they have been given sufficient training?

Do you have a written policy on job bidding for vacant jobs or employee transfers?

Do employees understand the job bidding procedure?

Do you have a policy of promoting from within the company?

Are employees given information concerning their opportunities for advancement in the company?

Seniority or Length of Service

Do you have a written policy on seniority (or length of service)?

Have you considered whether your seniority policy should be applied within job class, department, or throughout the entire company?


8


YES NO

Do employees understand your seniority policy?

Do employees believe your seniority system is fairly and consistently administered?

In the case of promotions and layoffs, where qualifications are relatively equal, is seniority the determining factor?

Do you favor the senior employee in promotions and layoffs, unless the junior employee is obviously superior?

Do you recognize seniority in determining eligibility for other employee rights and privileges such as:

shift preference?

length of vacation?

choice for vacation time?

overtime?

Do you give advance notice of unavoidable layoffs to employees with an explanation or reason for the layoff?

In the case of layoffs, are senior employees given an opportunity to transfer to vacant jobs in which they are qualified to perform?

Wages

Do you know how your company’s wages compare with those paid for similar work at other companies in your area and industry?

Have you examined your wage rates to determine whether they provide fair differentials between jobs based upon skill, effort and responsibility?

Is your wage program administered consistently and effectively so that employees are being paid their proper rate within their classifications in line with established rules?

Do you have significant differences in pay for the same or similar work performed by men and women?

Do employees understand how the company’s pay plans work?

Do you know whether employees consider the pay plans consistent and fair?

If you use a merit system, is it structured so employees can have an impact on their performance?

Do you have objective metrics for employee performance?

If you do vary rates within a job class, has consideration been given to recognizing length of service?

Benefits

Do you provide fringe benefits that are better than your competition?


9


YES NO

Do you consider the suggestions and recommendations of employees and supervisors before making changes in your benefit program?

Do you know how your benefits program compares with those of other companies in your area and industry?

Do you offer employees options on certain types of fringe benefits?

Do you publish an explanation of all employee benefits and services for employees and their families?

Do employees understand the fringe benefit program?

Do employees understand the circumstances under which they are or are not eligible for certain benefits?

Do employees complain about delays or red tape in the claims filing process?

Do you take steps to make sure employees understand the monetary value of their benefits (in terms of the cost to the company per year)?

Have you actually prepared a breakdown on the average dollar value of each benefit and service to the employees and presented it to them?

When employees are not eligible for benefit claims, do you explain to them why they are not eligible, and show it to them in writing?

Employee Complaints

In the past 18 months, have employees complained about:

heat or cold?

noise in the workplace?

dust?

odor or scents?

equipment or machinery?

lack of tools?

lack of personal protecting equipment (PPE)?

safety hazards?

overtime?

hours of work or schedule?

awards or promotions?

hiring from outside your company?

an abusive supervisor?

unfair pay?

their benefits package?


10


YES NO

Physical Facilities

Do you have reserved parking only for management employees?

Are employee work areas made as attractive, clean, and pleasant as possible?

Are employees aware of the efforts you have made to control conditions contributing to unusual or excessive heat, cold, noise, dust, and odor?

Do you insure that your facilities are as safe as possible for employees?

Have you ever had a security audit of your facilities?

Do you have security guards on your premises?

Do you have a close working relationship with local law enforcement?

Are your facilities locked to third parties?

Do you use card or key access-controlled systems to minimize access to your property or different departments?

Work Schedules

Do you make every effort to avoid prolonged involuntary overtime?

Do you explain to employees the necessity for such overtime?

Do you give employees at least 72 hours advance notice of mandatory over time?

Do you have a consistently-applied system for selecting employees to work overtime?

Support Staff

Are your office clerks and guards putting forth the proper company image?

Do you utilize your office clerks and guards as sources of information?

Equal Employment Opportunity

Do you have a formal written policy publicized to employees on diversity or equal employment opportunity?

Have you appointed an equal opportunity officer to handle discrimination complaints by employees?

Do you have female supervisors or managers?

Do you have minority supervisors or managers?

Have you developed responsible minority/female advocates who would be available to put forth the company’s position?

Have you received an internal complaint of harassment, discrimination or retaliation?

Have you received an EEOC charge (or state equivalent) alleging harassment, discrimination or retaliation?


11


YES NO

Have you been sued in any court for alleged harassment, discrimination or retaliation?

Have you been sued for any employment-related claim other than harassment, discrimination or retaliation?

MISCELLANEOUS

Do you try to eliminate bottlenecks of employees entering and leaving work, so that a union organizer will have difficulty communicating with employees?

To the extent possible, have you minimized contact between Company employees and the employees of other companies who come on to company property, such as delivery drivers?

Do employees believe the Company has a favorable “image” in your community?

Do you have a working relationship with a local public relations firm or media consultant?

Do you maintain a file on union-related articles or stories about unions, particularly in your industry?

Do you have any contracts with the United States government?

Do you post the Notice to Employees required by Executive order 13496?

This checklist is not intended to be all-inclusive and other actions that are not listed may be appropriate or necessary for your organization.

NOTES


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Labor Vulnerability Checklist September 2010

Documents

Transcript of Labor Vulnerability Checklist September 2010