saint leo mgt441 module 4 midterm exam latest 2016 july

Module 4 midterm

1. Question : Why are contracts renegotiated periodically?

To lead employees into believing that they are individually unable to influence a change in the conditions causing their dissatisfaction

To lead employees into believing that changing jobs would improve conditions more than collective bargaining would

To take into account changes in the economy and in society

To take into account changing goals and objectives of the government

Question 2. Question : Who are responsible for making operational decisions for corporations?

Managers hired by the shareholders through their elected board of directors

Shareholders

Investors and directors of the company

The managing directors and the partners of the company

Question 3. Question : __________ offers employees a method for countering employers’ powers to unilaterally change employment conditions.

Spillover

Unionization

Certification

Picketing

Question 4. Question :

While labor is somewhat mobile, with workers able to move between employers as opportunities occur, it is less mobile than __________.

shareholder wealth

the company itself

information

financial capital

Question 5. Question :

What led to a decline in the Knights of Labor’s membership in 1893?

The leaders’ short-run perspective of satisfying day-to-day grievances but ignoring long-term issues

Differences in opinion between the leaders and the general membership of the union

The leaders’ emphasis on the use of strikes rather than arbitration in the labor movement

The conflict with the Roman Catholic Church over the rule that Catholics were prohibited from joining the Knights

Question 6. Question :

Which of the following is a provision under the Norris-LaGuardia Act?

The act permitted the federal courts to issue injunctions against union activities

The act did not allow federal employees to strike

The act mandated that employers recognize a union of their employees

The act forbade federal courts from enforcing yellow-dog contracts

Question 7. Question :

Which of the following is true of the American Federation of Labor?

It advocated legislation only when it could not bargain successfully for its objectives.

The leaders did not accept the economic system and aimed to replace it completely.

It was a conglomeration of local unions rather than national-level unions.

Membership was open to both skilled and unskilled workers.

Question 8. Question :

The __________ removed unions from Sherman Act jurisdiction and limited the use of federal injunctions.

Norris-LaGuardia Act

Taft-Hartley Act

Landrum-Griffin Act

Clayton Act

Question 9. Question :

The Knights of Labor was initially in conflict with the Roman Catholic Church because:

it was a labor organization.

its beliefs were inconsistent with Catholic dogma

it was a secret society.

it recognized the legitimacy of capitalism.

Question 10. Question :

What is the Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service directed to emphasize?

The encouragement of hot cargo clauses

Services in contract negotiations

Internal activities of employers covered by the Railway Labor Act

The implementation of yellow-dog contracts

Question 11. Question :

__________ regulates internal activities of employers and unions covered by both Taft- Hartley and the Railway Labor Act.

The Fair Labor Standards Act

The Norris-LaGuardia Act

The Landrum-Griffin Act

Title VII of the Civil Service Reform

Question 12. Question :

The __________ Act was enacted following the largest incidence and the most time lost from work due to strikes of any year in U.S. history.

Landrum-Griffin

Norris-LaGuardia

Railways Labor

Taft-Hartley

Question 13. Question :

In states that have right-to-work laws in place, __________ are banned.

mediation boards

company unions

agency shop clauses

representation elections

Question 14. Question :

Which of the following statements is true of stewards?

All stewards have experience representing employees before they assume their positions.

They are the most junior members of the unit.

They are activists; most are involved in other organizations outside their jobs.

They prohibit participation in union activities.

Points Received: 0 of 2

Question 15. Question :

Members do not generally feel a need to be “protected” from their union; on the contrary, it is __________ they worry about.

lack of membership

business agents

mediators

management

Question 16. Question :

Which of the following committees reviews members’ grievances and negotiates with management over grievances and contract changes?

Political action committee

Negotiation committee

Executive committee

Benefits committee

Question 17. Question :

Which of the following acts requires local elections at least once every three years?

Landrum-Griffin Act

Wagner Act

Norris-LaGuardia Act

Taft-Hartley Act

Question 18. Question :

What is the major goal of national unions?

Bringing the AFL-CIO under their wing

Organizing an increasing number and share of the labor force

Providing representation services to enhance management well-being

Enhancing economic gains of the management

Question 19. Question :

Which of the following is true about the election of local officers?

If the local represents several occupations, the numerically non-dominant occupation is likely to elect the officers.

Where no occupation constitutes a majority, coalitions will develop depending on their perceptions of how local officers are achieving important outcomes for them.

When the local union has contracts with several employers, and if the employees of one employer constitute a minority, they are likely to elect officers from that group.

When the local union has contracts with several employers, and if there are a number of bargaining units, union officers would probably attempt to negotiate a no-employer agreement.

Question 20. Question :

NAFTA was negotiated by representatives of Canada, Mexico, and the United States during the __________ presidency.

Bill Clinton

Barack Obama

George H. W. Bush, Sr.

John F. Kennedy

Question 21. Question :

Since the founding of the __________, the core of the American labor movement has taken a consistently business-oriented approach.

Knights of Labor

Change to Win Federation

American Federation of Labor

National Labor Union

Question 22. Question :

__________ was predicted by involvement in union decision making, perceived lack of outside job opportunities, influence on the employer, being a woman, and being unskilled.

No commitment

Unilateral commitment to the union

Unilateral commitment to the employer

High dual commitment

Question 23. Question :

Which of the following is true of successor organizations?

Where ownership changes but operations continue unchanged, the new owner must honor the existing contract but need not recognize the union.

Where operations continue but, because of layoffs and/or new hires, the union lacks a majority, the employer has to strictly honor a contract.

When a closed firm is reopened by new owners, the bargaining relationship continues if a majority of the employees worked for the former company and were in a represented unit.

A firm that acquires or merges with another firm need not honor the existing contractual obligations.

Question 24. Question :

Which of the following best describes the degree of functional integration?

The extent to which all potentially includable employees are required to provide the company’s output

A group of employees with a substantially different community of interests that is allowed to establish a separate unit

When a new facility is added to the bargaining unit or when an existing union in an employer wins representation rights for employees previously represented by another union

Where there is no union shop or required agency fee, employees do not need to pay dues to the union to receive contractual benefits.

Question 25. Question :

Which of the following is true about successor organizations?

Where ownership changes but operations continue unchanged, the new owner must honor the existing contract.

A firm that merges with another firm assumes existing contractual obligations.

Where operations continue but, because of layoffs and/or new hires, the union lacks a majority, the employer has an obligation to honor a contract.

When a closed firm is reopened by new owners, the bargaining relationship ceases to exist if a majority of the employees worked for the former company and were in a represented unit.

Question 26. Question :

Employees who are hired after __________ need to be recruited to join and get socialized to better understand and support the union’s goals.

the negotiation of the neutrality pledges

decertification elections

craft severance

unionization in the firm

Question 27. Question :

In determining appropriateness, the board considers carefully the __________ of the employees in the proposed unit.

racial identity

social status

community of interests

financial background

Question 28. Question :

Which of the following are classified as mandatory bargaining issues?

Issues that have no direct impact on management

Internal affairs of the union

Issues that have a direct effect on union members’ jobs

Issues that are statutorily outlawed

Question 29. Question : When is the supply of labor elastic?

When an employer is a relatively small factor in a labor market

When there are a lot of employment opportunities in the market

When several employers hire the same type of labor simultaneously

When the rate of unemployment is low in the market

Question 30. Question : When is the derived demand for labor more inelastic?

If a given type of labor is essential in the production of the final products

If the market demand for the final products is elastic

If the cost of labor is a significant part of the total product cost

If the supply of materials is elastic

Question 31. Question : What would an employer in a competitive market do when the cost of labor increases?

Reduce cost on capital

Change capital-labor mix

Hire only unskilled workers

Decrease its dependence on technology

Question 32. Question : Which pay system refers to entitlements that individuals accrue from continuous employment?

Scanlon plan

Productive efficiency

Benefit status seniority

Gain-sharing plan

Question 33. Question : Why are performance-based pay programs used less in unionized organizations?

Lack of measurable performance criteria

Demand for equal pay across functions

Performance monitoring is difficult.

Union jobs are more repetitive.

Question 34. Question : According to a study across income distribution in Canada:

employees whose earnings are in the top quintile lose from unionization.

employees whose earnings are in the lowest quintile lose from unionization.

average earning of the nonunion worker in the first four quintiles is higher than the nonunion worker.

employees who are most advantaged in the labor market benefit the most.

Question 35. Question : Which factor directly affects the health care cost of the employer?

Standard-of-living of workforce

Age and gender composition

Ethnic background of workforce

Manual labors and non-manual labor composition

Question 36. Question : Which of the following is a method used to determine how much an individual will earn within a job?

Shift differentials

Land-and-step plans

Piece rate systems

Two-tier structures

Question 37. Question : Which of the following statements is true about the corporatist environment following World War II?

Wage rates were not associated with specific jobs.

Rank-and-file employees had a lot of responsibility for workplace decision making.

Supervisory control was substantially checked by the union compared to the drive system.

It was not possible for a person to be temporarily transferred to a job with higher levels of responsibilities.

Question 38. Question : According to the administrative rules issued by the Department of Labor in 2004:

all employees, regardless of wage scales, were to receive overtime.

all supervisors were reclassified as nonexempt.

any job that was paid on an hourly basis was classified as non-exempt.

jobs requiring primary manual work changed classifications.

Question 39. Question : In firms where continuous-flow operations are most efficient or where product demand levels and heavy plant investment justify multi-shift operations, __________ specify work schedule assignment rules.

grievance procedures

maintenance of memberships

management rights clauses

contracts

Question 40. Question : Under which of the following is renegotiating long-term contracts harder?

When global competition is the least

Where buyer or seller concentration in the industry is low among larger employers

When there are periods of low inflation

Where capacity utilization varies during the contract period

Question 41. Question : Explain the concept of "duty to bargain."

The “duty to bargain” concept is applicable towards the management of an organization where there is a presence of the union as well. This concept basically refers to any mutual understanding between the management and the workers’ union regarding the workers’ wages, working hours, working conditions, terms of employment and other aspects, in good faith. Whenever the management is planning to bring in some changes to the above-mentioned aspects, they have the duty to discuss these changes in an open discussion with the union and this is where the concept of mutual understanding and cooperation comes in where the management and the union, both have a duty to bargain about. With this kind of a bargaining concept in place, there is no requirement of either party to agree to any binding proposal or making any kind of concession against their consent and thus this concept is a fair process too.

Question 42. Question : Explain yellow-dog contracts.

A yellow-dog contract is a contract that is formed between an employer and employee. In this contract the employer dictates to the employee to not become a member of the labor union and the employee agrees to it be consenting and signing on the contract. However, the employer needs to offer certain benefits to the employees that should come across as a better opportunity for the employee rather than joining the labor union and in this manner the employer tries to maintain a relationship with the employee in good faith and vice-versa as well. These contracts were used voraciously in the United States in the 1930s in an attempt to curb the formation of labor unions, as many strikes and protests were witnessed during this time that led to the organizations losing out on many business and growth opportunities. Thus, the basic concept of yellow-dog contract has been defined here.

Question 43. Question : What are the three ways by which employees can become union members?

There are several ways in which an employee can become a member of the union. The first process is very easily understandable because if there is no workers’ union present within the organization, any individual can take the initiative to start a union, for the protection of the rights, conditions, wages and other aspects for the workers’ comfort and situations. The second way in which an employee can become a member of the union is by locating the right union, internally or externally and then communicating with the existing members to understand the benefits of acquiring a membership to this union, subsequently filing an application for the membership and then acquiring it. The third way of how an employee can become a member of the union is completing certain kinds of training in order to become members of certain workers’ unions and belonging to a niche work force and the related union as well.

Question 44. Question : List the factors that the NLRB considers to determine a bargaining unit.

NLRB is basically the National Labor Relations Board that was recently engaged in taking a decision regarding the new approach taken up for the determination of the aspects that comprises a bargaining unit. The aspects that have been taken into account would include if the employees are organized and belong to certain departments, have specific skill sets, gone through trainings, and engage in unique job responsibilities, are in constant communication with their peers, have well defined terms of employment and are supervised separately as well. These are the essential aspects that the NLRB understood to be important for acknowledging a bargaining unit and its importance lies in the way they operate and thus the above-mentioned factors have been taken into account here. Therefore, it would be very meaningful to take these factors seriously before trying to form any kind of a workers’ union and is very important in large manufacturing sector organizations.