Description
HRM 310 Project Two Guidelines and Rubric
Competency
In this project, you will demonstrate your mastery of the following competencies:
Assess an organization’s adherence to employee and labor relations laws and policies
Apply various techniques to address employee and labor relation challenges
Scenario
In Project One, your company went through a union campaign and a majority of employees voted in favor of union representation. Subsequently, union leadership and company management negotiated a collective bargaining agreement. The presence of represented (union) and non-represented (nonunion) employees means that Human Resources must work to ensure all employees receive fair and similar treatment within the guidelines of applicable laws and the provisions negotiated in the collective bargaining agreement.
As the HR analyst you received a complaint from the union representative that alleges a member of the company’s management team violated the negotiated progressive discipline process when handling a recent HR incident. The specifics of the complaint are as follows:
The company manager suspended the union employee for one day with no pay because the union employee left the shift early without permission from the manager. The union representative claims the suspension was not necessary. The company manager claims that the suspension was appropriate because all nonunion employees would be suspended for the same issue.
The union representative claims the union employee was not given an opportunity to have another employee present at the conversation in the manager’s office. The manager claims the union employee was offered the opportunity to have representation and the employee said no. There were no other witnesses in the manager’s office.
The union representative claims the company manager did not allow the union employee to explain the reason for leaving early. The company manager disagrees and states that 30 minutes were spent listening to the employee’s story as would be the case for any employee in the company.
The company manager claims that everyone in the department is treated the same way if an employee leaves the shift early without permission. Leaving a shift early impacts all other members of the team because work is not completed and may fall on nonunion employees to complete, creating overtime and possibly creating the need for nonunion employees to complete union employee work.
The director of Human Resources, who is your manager, has requested that you research the complaint in preparation for HR’s meeting with the union representative and recommend an initial course of action.
Directions
In the first part of this project, you will look at the employee complaint and draft a memo to management that outlines the issues and your recommendations for resolution. Refer to the Management Memo Guidelines located in the Supporting Materials section for guidance. Consider the scenario to begin your work. Identify key issues in the complaint and determine how the situation may differ for union and nonunion employees. Discuss the ramifications for the company from both a union perspective and a general employee-confidence perspective. Describe any risks that the company might face if they do not address the complaint.
In the second part of this project, the investigation of the complaint is underway. To begin, you will need to identify the role that HR will play in the process. Your next step would be to draft questions for use in interviews with management to get the right information about complaints. Discuss how your questions would promote the intended outcome as well as the ramifications if the right questions are not asked. Next, describe ways in which your questions may need to differ depending on the level of management you are interviewing. Lastly, provide your recommendation for appropriate communication methods to demonstrate that union and nonunion employees are being treated fairly and equitably. Refer to the Investigation Process Guidelines located in the Supporting Materials section to guide your submission.
Specifically, you must address the following rubric criteria:
Union Grievance
Key Concerns: Identify the key concerns of the employee complaint.
Union vs. Nonunion: Discuss how this situation differs in a union and nonunion environment.
Employee Confidence: Describe the potential impact that the complaint situation will have on employee confidence. Provide examples to support claims.
Employee Relations: Explain the impact on employee relations in other areas of HR within the organization.
Risk Potential: Discuss the risk potential for the company for failure to address this complaint.
Investigation Process
Role of HR: Explain the role of HR in the complaint-resolution process.
Interview Questions: Develop 4–5 interview questions used in employee complaint resolution issues.
Consider questions that would make the most efficient use of interview time.
Consider the use of open-ended vs. closed questions.
Stakeholder Communication: Explain how interview questions may differ for supervisors, managers, and executives.
Determine who should ask questions and when conflicts of interest are a factor?
Discuss the importance of asking the right questions to the right audience providing specific examples to support your claims.
Employee Communication: Recommend the appropriate communication method for all employees to demonstrate fairness among union and nonunion employees.
What to Submit
To complete this project, you must submit the following:
Management Memo – Union Grievance
Your submission should be a 1- to 2-page Word document with 12-point Times New Roman font, double spacing, and one-inch margins. Any sources should be cited according to APA style.
Investigation Process
Your submission should be a 1- to 2-page Word document with 12-point Times New Roman font, double spacing, and one-inch margins. Any sources should be cited according to APA style.
Supporting Materials
The following resource(s) may help support your work on the project:
Resource: Management Memo Guidelines
Use this guide to help you draft your communication with your manager.
Resource: Investigation Process Guidelines
Use this guide to help you draft your communication with your manager.
Unformatted Attachment Preview
HRM 310 Management Memo Guidelines
Directions: Use this document to outline the issues in the employee/labor complaint and provide your
recommendations for resolution. Your memo will have three parts: in part one, you will summarize the
employee/labor complaint; in part two, you will describe the impact of the complaint to employees, the
union, and the organization; and in part three, you will recommend a resolution to the complaint.
When completing this assignment, use the following elements for your memo:
1. Memo Heading
a. Your memo is written to your supervisor, the director of Human Resources.
b. The memo is from you, the HR analyst. Use your name and the title HR Analyst.
c. The subject of the memo is Employee/Labor Complaint.
d. Date the memo.
2. Memo Elements
a. In the first part of your memo, summarize the complaint and explain the situation.
Include the following:
i. Describe the complaint
ii. Identify who filed the complaint
iii. Explain why the complaint was filed
iv. State who from management was identified in the complaint.
v. Explain how the situation might differ for union and nonunion employees.
b. In the second part of your memo, describe the impact of the complaint.
i. What is the impact to the employee?
ii. What is the impact to the relationship with the union?
iii. What is the impact to the organization?
c. In the third part of your memo, discuss the risk potential to your employer.
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HRM 310 Investigation Process Guidelines
Directions: Use this document to respond to the assignment in Project Two. Your process will have four
parts. In part A, you will identify the steps to be used in your investigation and discuss the role of human
resources in the investigation process. In part B, you will write interview questions that would be used in
your investigation. In part C, you will identify how interview questions will differ for different
interviewees and discuss why it is important to assign the right question to the right person. In part D,
you will recommend a communication approach to communicate the outcome of the investigation to
both union and nonunion employees.
When completing this assignment use the following elements for your process:
1. Process Heading and First Paragraph
a. Your process heading should read: Investigation Process.
b. Your first paragraph should summarize the issue of your investigation and discuss the
major steps you will use to conduct the investigation (e.g., gather information that led
to the complaint, identify interviewees, review contract or policies, etc.).
c. You will also explain why your investigation should be followed and identify the
importance of HR’s involvement in the investigation process.
2. Second Paragraph
a. In your second paragraph, you will identify the key questions HR will ask in the
investigation process.
b. Offer an explanation about why the questions you chose will help you find out more
about the complaint and assist you in the investigation process.
3. Third Paragraph
a. In your third paragraph, you will explain how the interviews were conducted, identifying
who will be asking the questions, how you determined the type of questions to be
asked, and how you will track and retain the notes from the investigation.
b. You will offer an explanation about the importance of asking the right questions to the
right audiences and provide examples to support your decisions regarding the design of
your questions and the selection of interviewees.
4. Fourth Paragraph
a. In your final paragraph, you will discuss how the results of the investigation will be
communicated to employees who were part of the original complaint, to union
leadership who brought the complaint, and to all other union and nonunion employees.
b. You will need to show your director of Human Resources that you understand how to
demonstrate fairness through your communication approach so that union and
nonunion employees receive a consistent message about the results of the
investigation.
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HRM 310 Project One
Cherelle Pratt
HRM 310- Employee and Labor Relations
September 17, 2023
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Campaign Steps Table
Union Campaign Steps
Management Prohibited activities
Union Prohibited activities
Organizing Campaign
• Spy on the workers or appear to use
• Contact workers during
unapproved ways to obtain information
working hours if the
not volunteered.
employer has prohibited it.
• Coercive questioning of employees to
• Restrain or coerce workers
gain information on unionization
from practicing their labor
processes.
rights (Cornell Law school,
• Threaten disciplinary actions to workers,
2023).
such as termination of employment or any
penalization (Cornell Law school, 2023).
Authorization
• Bribe the workers to influence them to
• Collude with the employer
refrain from signing the cards to authorize
to discriminate against
union representation.
employees practicing their
• Spy on the employees to find out who has
unionization rights.
signed up for unionization and who has
• Distribute union literature or
not yet.
other documents during
• Discriminate employees based on union
work hours if the employer
activity, such as signing the cards
has prohibited it.
(Cornell Law school, 2023).
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Union Files for Election
• Coerce employees against voting a certain
• Coerce or harass employees
way.
into voting for unionization
• Restrict employees from soliciting others
(Cornell Law school, 2023).
to vote even during their free time.
• Ask for financial support
• Make promises to employees to persuade
from the employer to
them to vote a certain way (SHRM, n.d.).
finance union activities.
Employees with Union
• Refrain from negotiating in good faith
• Show bad faith in bargaining
Representation and
with the union.
with the employer (Cornell
Management Create a
• Threaten employees with more
Law school, 2023).
Contract
challenging tasks or other discriminatory
• Collude with the employer
actions such as transfers or employment
to get unfavorable contract
termination.
terms for the employees.
• Threaten to shut down the business to
gain bargaining power during contract
negotiations (SHRM, n.d.).
Common Provisions for Collective Bargaining
Benefits
The collective bargaining agreement puts negotiation mechanisms the employer can use
to negotiate with the employees in pivotal matters, which helps make the process much more
straightforward (International Labor Organization, n.d.). For instance, section 1 of Article 4 of
the agreement puts union representation for employee interests in place. Another benefit is that
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the employer is made aware of the employees’ expectations (International Labor Organization,
n.d.). A good example is Article 5 of the agreement, which highlights employee rights. The
agreement helps keep the employees committed to maintaining a conducive work environment,
as stated in Section 1 of Article 9, The labor-management relationship. The agreement provides a
straightforward way of engaging employees, making them more predictable. For instance, in
Section 4 of Article 4, the channels the employer could follow to notify the employee of changes
in conditions of employment.
Drawbacks
The agreement provides room for dragging on the negotiation process. Section 2(B) of
Article 4, which falls under union rights, necessitates the union’s involvement in negotiation, and
a meeting can not be set without unanimous agreement between the parties (Jacobs & Münder,
2022). The agreement does not preclude the participation of a labor organization in internal
matters such as employee grades, as stated in Article 8 Section 1 A (B) (1), which falls under
management rights. The agreement also limits the involvement of upper management to a human
resource designee on labor relation matters, as stated in Article 8 Section 1 C, which points to the
limitation of management rights. In Article 4 Section 2, A, the agreement calls for a cooperative
working relationship, which is a union right that interferes with management responsibilities in
policy formation.
Rights Conflicts
From the Collective Bargaining Agreement excerpt, the management is given the
organization’s rights within its premises. Organization in a work environment may include
ranking and job classification, which entails employee grading. However, the agreement also
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requires the involvement of a union representative in employee grading activities, which may
spell out a conflict. The management may discuss and state grading activities that may not
require union representatives’ input and those that need the same. Putting this agreement in
writing would help prevent future conflicts on the matter.
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References
Cornell Law school. (2023). Unfair Labor Practices (ULPs). LII / Legal Information Institute.
https://www.law.cornell.edu/wex/unfair_labor_practices_(ulps)
International Labor Organization. (n.d.). Benefits of the Collective Bargaining Agreement.
https://www.ilo.org/beirut/projects/WCMS_222595/lang–en/index.htm
Jacobs, M., & Münder, M. (2022). A Worthy Import? Examining the Advantages and
Disadvantages of Sectoral Collective Bargaining in Germany – International Center for
Law & Economics. International Center for Law & Economics.
https://laweconcenter.org/resources/a-worthy-import-examining-the-advantages-anddisadvantages-of-sectoral-collective-bargaining-ingermany/?doing_wp_cron=1694971095.4047079086303710937500
SHRM. (n.d.). What can management do during a union campaign?
https://www.shrm.org/resourcesandtools/tools-and-samples/hrqa/pages/unioncampaigns.aspx
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