Labor Information

A union is an organization that represents employees in collective bargaining with their employer regarding wages, benefits, and working conditions.

The National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) is an independent federal agency created in 1935 and vested with the power to protect employees’ rights to organize and choose whether or not to have a collective bargaining representative negotiate on their behalf with their employer.

A bargaining unit refers to various groupings of employees that may be represented by a labor union. Under the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA), there are rules and case law that define what is and what is not an appropriate bargaining unit, including who should be included and excluded from that unit.

The proposed bargaining unit consists of full-time teaching faculty in five schools at Tulane – the School of Architecture, School of Business, School of Liberal Arts, School of Professional Advancement, School of Science and Engineering – who hold the ranks of instructor, lecturer, professor of practice, and visiting professor.

Federal labor law provides that “statutory supervisors” or “managers” should not be part of a bargaining unit with non-managerial/non-supervisory employees, which could lead to a conflict of interest in their responsibilities.

No.

Yes. The definition of employee under the NLRA does not distinguish between US citizens and non-citizens.

No. We fully respect the legal right of these faculty members to vote via secret ballot on whether they want union representation. We are committed to operating in good faith and following the rules and regulations established by the NLRB. Our priority is to ensure that faculty are as well-informed as possible.

Being in a union can affect the ability of individual members of the bargaining unit to communicate directly with their supervisors and organization leaders on subjects that are part of the collective bargaining agreement, such as wages, hours, and other terms and conditions of employment. Currently, faculty can talk directly with their department, program head, or dean about any of these issues. Through such dialogue, we work together with individual employees to hear their concerns and identify options that might provide them with a better work experience. Such conversations may no longer be legal under a union framework. Instead, employees may have to communicate with university leaders through their union representatives.

If you are a member of the proposed bargaining unit and abstain from voting, that is not considered a vote against unionization. Only the votes of those who cast a ballot are counted and a simple majority decides the outcome. So, if only a handful of members of the bargaining unit participate in the vote, they will decide the outcome of the election.

Like most membership organizations, unions have operating costs. Unions fund those operating costs and expenses largely from dues collected from their union members, which typically represent a percentage of employee pay. In addition, there may be initiation fees and, in certain circumstances, assessments and even fines. Unions typically negotiate to require the employer to collect, with authorization from the union member, dues from the employee’s paycheck and send those funds directly to the union. Because Louisiana has a right-to-work law, however, employees cannot be required to join the union that represents them. However, even in states with right-to-work laws, unions strongly encourage employees to join the union that represents them.

Any collective bargaining agreement applies to all faculty in the bargaining unit, even those who decline to join the union or pay the dues.

Probably not. As a general rule, a collective bargaining agreement sets out the terms and conditions of employment applicable to all bargaining unit members.

No one can predict what would happen as a result of unionization and subsequent collective bargaining. Not Tulane, the union, nor anyone else. Under NLRB rules, both parties must operate in good faith, but this does not require either party to agree to a proposal from the other. Terms and conditions of employment (including salary) could improve, stay the same, or decrease under a collective bargaining agreement.

The timing can vary. For newly unionized employees, the parties must negotiate what is typically referred to as a "first contract." Bloomberg Law recently reported that the average time to negotiate a first union contract is 409 days.

Voting for unionization is called the certification process. Voting a union out is called decertification. If employees change their minds after a union is voted in and want to vote to decertify the union, they cannot do so the first year after the union is certified. Also, a union cannot be decertified during the term of any negotiated collective bargaining agreement up to a maximum of three years. If the majority of voters who cast votes chose to be represented by a union, all members of the bargaining unit – including those who either did not vote, or cast votes against union representation, or who choose not to pay dues or join the union – are still represented by the union and must comply with all elements of any collective bargaining agreement.

The collective bargaining process occurs behind the scenes and need not have any direct impact on students. However, if negotiations stall, unions can authorize strikes or other labor actions that can disrupt teaching and research. In the event of a strike, students may experience canceled lectures, delayed grading, or changes in syllabi.

Please email laborinfo@tulane.edu with any questions. You can also visit the NLRB’s website at NLRB.gov.