Just Cause:

All of our SWU contracts require that discipline can only be for 'Just Cause.' But what does that mean?

Without the Union contract workers in our jobs are can be fired "at any time, for any reason, or for no reason. -It's against the law to fire you or threaten you for organizing a union, but usually if there's no union, it's completely up to the boss to decide who stays and who goes.  "Just Cause" means that any discipline has to be fair. There are many ways of figuring out what's fair. One of the most common is to use the following 7 standards.

1.    Was the worker warned about the conduct?
2.    Was the rule reasonable?
3.    Did management investigate what happened?
4.    Was the investigation fair?
5.    Is there proof or substantial evidence of the worker's guilt?
6.    Has the rule been enforced fairly for everyone?
7.    Is the level of discipline reasonable?

If you believe that you were disciplined or fired without just cause, then immediately contact your Shop Steward and the WRC.

Seniority:

Most SWU contracts recognize seniority as the time you worked for your company or in the worksite with prior employers from your date of hire.  The most important reason we use seniority in our contracts is so management cannot base decisions on favoritism.  It rewards people for how long they have worked at the company.  It is measurable and objective, not based on a supervisor's opinion of you.  Seniority is used for 2 main purposes:

• Seniority often determines how much vacation or sick time that you receive or other benefits which may be tied to length of service.  Check your contract.

• Seniority is often used when two or more employees request the same time off, or apply for another position in which more than 1 employee meets the minimum qualifications for the job, or in a layoff, or when overtime is offered.  Some contracts use job classification seniority for some or all of these decisions.  Job classification seniority is based on how long you have worked in your current job. Title.  Check your contract how seniority is used in each circumstance.

Weingarten Rights

If you are ever called in the office and reasonably believe that the meeting is investigating possible discipline or could lead to possible discipline, then the law gives you the right to request Union representation, your Shop Steward, in the meeting.  Before they can ask you any questions, Management must comply with the request.

• Do not answer any questions until your Shop Steward arrives.
• You and your Shop Steward have the right to ask clarifying questions of management or ask to review any documents that management is referring to in the meeting.
• You have the right to step out of the meeting to discuss a question or issue with your Shop Steward at any point during the meeting.
• If management does not grant your request for Union representation in the meeting, then you cannot walk out of the meeting, but you can and should politely decline to answer any questions or make any comments
  

Unilateral Changes:

When you don't have a union, you have no voice or vote on the decisions that affect your job--management has the first and last word on every decision that affects your job and they can change the rules whenever they want without discussing it with employees.

When you and the majority of your-co-workers decide to form a union (even before you negotiate your first contract), management is required to bargain in good faith over any proposed changes on your job Bargaining in good faith means sitting down and negotiating as equals with the goal of reaching an agreement.

In all cases, when management makes a change without negotiating over it first, you should contact your Shop Steward or the WRC so that SWU can formally make the demand that management stop implementing the change and bargain in good faith.  This way you guarantee that workers will always have a seat at the table, a voice and vote on the decisions that affect you now and in the future.