Wednesday Wisdom: Martin Luther King Jr. on the Vital Importance of Union Recognition

[U]nion recognition meant the real beginning. Union meant strength, and recognition meant the employer’s acknowledgment of that strength, and the two meant the opportunity to fight again for further gains with united and multiplied power. As contract followed contract, the pay envelope fattened and fringe benefits and job rights grew to the mature work standards of today. All of these started with winning first union recognition.

Speech given to the shop stewards of Local 815, Teamsters, and the Allied Trades Council, New York City, May 2, 1967

Your Weingarten Rights Turned 40 Today!

You Are Being Asked Questions That Might Lead To Disciplinary Action: What Do You Do?

If you believe that discipline will result from a meeting with management/administration (in legalese, “an investigatory interview”), you can insist that a union representative be present during this interview. This is part of your “Weingarten Rights,” which references the 1975 United States Supreme Court case NLRB vs. Weingarten. Weingarten Rights apply only to members of a collective bargaining unit and are among the many benefits of having a union.

When an investigatory interview occurs, the following rules apply:

Rule 1) – You must make a clear request for effective union representation before or during the interview. Often an employee may not know at the outset that a meeting with management could lead to discipline. If such a meeting is or becomes an “investigatory interview,” you should assert your right to have a union officer of your choosing present. You cannot be punished for making this request. (Note: If the union representative of your choice is not available in a reasonable time period, it may be necessary for an alternative union officer to represent you.)

A typical Weingarten request would be: “If this discussion could in any way lead to my being disciplined or terminated, or affect my personal working conditions, I respectfully request that my union representative be present at this meeting. Until my union representative arrives, I choose not to participate in this discussion.” Or you may simply say, “I want my union representative here.”

Rule 2) – After you make this request, the interviewer has three options:

    1. Grant the request and delay the interview until your union representative arrives and has a chance to consult privately with you. (Note: The right to representation is the right to effective representation, which translates in this rule as the right to consult privately with the representative before the interview. The union representative should also know what the meeting is about ahead of time so that he/she can effectively advise you.)
    2. Deny the request and end the interview immediately; or
    3. Give you a choice of: (I) having the interview continue without representation or (II) ending the interview. (Note: It is not wise to choose the first option.)

Rule 3) – If the interviewer denies your request and continues to ask questions, this is an unfair labor practice. You have the right not to answer any questions until you have union representation. You cannot be disciplined for refusing to answer the questions, but you are required to sit there until the supervisor terminates the interview. Leaving before this happens may constitute punishable insubordination in some cases.

The AAUP-UC represents all members of the bargaining unit, both those who pay dues and those who do not, and is obligated to come to your aid without prejudice. If you are summoned to a meeting with a member of administration and discover that it is an “investigatory interview,” assert your right to have a union representative present.

Download a printable PDF of this information here

 

Wednesday Wisdom: Martin Luther King Jr. on the Organization of Unions

“The labor movement was the principal force that transformed misery and despair into hope and progress. Out of its bold struggles, economic and social reform gave birth to unemployment insurance, old-age pensions, government relief for the destitute and, above all, new wage levels that meant not mere survival but a tolerable life.

The captains of industry did not lead this transformation; they resisted it until they were overcome. When in the thirties the wave of union organization crested over the nation, it carried to secure shores not only itself but the whole society.”

– Martin Luther King, Jr. Speech to the state convention of the Illinois AFL-CIO, Oct. 7, 1965

Wednesday Wisdom: Martin Luther King Jr. on the Labor Movement

“History is a great teacher. Now everyone knows that the labor movement did not diminish the strength of the nation, but enlarged it. By raising the living standards of millions, labor miraculously created a market for industry and lifted the whole nation to undreamed of levels of production. Those who today attack labor forget these simple truths, but history remembers them.”

– Martin Luther King, Jr. Address at the AFL-CIO Fourth Constitutional Convention, December 11, 1961

Wednesday Wisdom: Martin Luther King Jr. on Right-to-Work Laws

“In our glorious fight for civil rights, we must guard against being fooled by false slogans, such as ‘right to work.’ It is a law to rob us of our civil rights and job rights. It is supported by Southern segregationists who are trying to keep us from achieving our civil rights and our right of equal job opportunity. Its purpose is to destroy labor unions and the freedom of collective bargaining by which unions have improved wages and working conditions of everyone.Wherever these laws have been passed, wages are lower, job opportunities are fewer and there are no civil rights. We do not intend to let them do this to us. We demand this fraud be stopped. Our weapon is our vote.”

Martin Luther King Jr. speaking on right-to-work laws in 1961.

AAUP National: Book Review Editor Sought for Academe

Book Review Editor Sought

The American Association of University Professors seeks a book review editor for Academe, our bimonthly magazine. The book review editor’s primary responsibilities include identifying books for review, soliciting book reviews, and editing first drafts of reviews for content. The book review editor works closely with Academe’s faculty editor, managing editor, and other editorial staff on planning the book review section, which appears annually in four issues of the magazine. The ideal candidate for this volunteer position will be an AAUP member with a broad knowledge of contemporary issues in higher education, familiarity with AAUP policies, and literary skill.

To apply, send a cover letter and résumé to

AAUP Book Review Editor Search
1133 Nineteenth Street NW, Suite 200
Washington, DC 20036
E-mail: academe@aaup.org

Web: www.aaup.org/academe
No telephone calls, please.
The application deadline is March 1, 2015.

Original Post :
Publication Date: Thursday, January 22, 2015