Rico 1

Walter Rico explains the labor laws in the United States. He discusses the concepts of collective bargaining units and labor organizations. A collective bargaining unit is a group of people who negotiate with employers on behalf of employees for things like wages and working conditions. A labor organization is a group that represents and bargains for multiple collective bargaining units. The agreement is between the labor organization and the employer, not the individual units. The terms union and labor organization are often used interchangeably. Hello, we're on the streets of Dublin, Ireland, where we've caught up with our old friend, Walter Rico. Rico is going to explain a few things about the labor laws of the United States. And with that, we'll get started right away. Rico, you want to say hi? Hi, and hi to you too, Sharon, and I'd be happy to answer any questions you want about labor law in the United States. If I can, I will do the best I can with this. Just be patient with me. Is there any particular law or situation you'd like to deal with, Walter? Sharon, I think that before we get any basic understanding of what it means to be in a union or collect a bargaining labor law with you, it gets very complicated very quick, and I don't want to bore people with a lot of facts. But I think the main thing we want to start with is what is a collective bargaining union, what is a labor organization, and what is a union. Well, you've had before, Walter. You tell us. There are thousands of people today in unions in the United States. They're mostly in local unions, and for most people, that's all they know. They're in a union. And inside that union, there's something called a collective bargaining unit. Usually, if you're in a union, you're also a part of a collective bargaining unit. A collective bargaining unit is just what it sounds like. It's a group of people that collectively get together, and they approach an employer because they are employees, and they negotiate things like wages and working conditions and things like that. Now, if these people form a group for this, this group, this collective bargaining unit, it's also a labor organization. So, Mr. Rico, it doesn't seem like there's much difference between a collective bargaining unit and a labor organization. Not on the surface, Sharon. But you have a labor organization. Let's say there's a local union. And in that local union, you might have five different bargaining units, ten different bargaining units. Each one is a separate unit, a collective bargaining unit. And what they've done, they've recognized the labor organization as the exclusive representative for the purpose of collective bargaining. Essentially, they've turned over their bargaining rights to the organization. The organization now does the bargaining for them. Let's say the organization might have five, ten units. It might just have one. That's the ideal situation, by the way. If it just has one, then basically the collective bargaining unit and the labor organization are basically the same thing. I'm talking about how it is today in the United States. There's usually one labor organization that has a multitude of units in it. So, let's start with a basic case of five bargaining units. One unit wants to negotiate a contract. They have designated or selected the labor organization that they are actually members of to do the bargaining for them. And yet, they are part of that labor organization. Also, as members of that labor organization. But they're the members of the unit first. Or second, if you like. It's just the idea that they are distinct. So, then the labor organization has five units. Those five units basically are the bargaining agent. The bargaining agent. They're the representatives of this one unit for the purposes of the contract that they are negotiating. So, the negotiators go to the table. The employer recognizes the bargaining, the labor organization as the bargaining agent for that particular unit. A deal is worked out. And at that point, ideally, it goes back to the unit. And the unit would probably say, yes, we like it or we don't like it. And if they don't like it, then the next logical step, the next, say, legal step even, would be to go bring it to the entire labor organization. Because in most cases, if not all cases, the agreement is between the labor organization and the employers. It's not between the collective bargaining unit and the employer association. So, let me get this straight, Walter. You have a labor organization that has units in it. And every once in a while, one of these units wants to negotiate a contract. Every two years, every three years, every four years, when their contract is coming to an end. So, instead of the unit negotiating the agreement, the labor organization does it. And the agreement is between the labor organization and the collective, not the collective bargaining unit, excuse me, but the employer. And the collective bargaining unit is right there as part of that organization. So, it is a courtesy, if nothing else, to have the unit agree to it. And if they agree to it, then you would move up to the general membership meeting where the entire membership would vote on this agreement and approve it. Because the agreement is not between the unit and the employer group. It's between the labor organization and the employer group. That sums it up real well, Sharon. And I'm glad you explained it just like that because I understood it the way you explained it. I hope I explained it the same way. It sounds like you're getting it. But now that you're getting it, that's the basic points we've got to start with. That's a good starting point, understanding the difference between a collective bargaining unit and a labor organization. Now, Walter, there's one more ground I want to cover before we move on. And that is, isn't a labor organization a union? Yes, a labor organization would be considered a union. It's hard to differentiate between the two. The reason I use the word labor organization is because that's the word that the Title 29 labor law in the United States uses. They use the word labor organization. In fact, in probably the most famous labor legislation, the National Labor Relations Act, known as the Wagner Act, the word union is never even used anywhere in the Act. If you think union every time you see the word labor organization, then you're probably on the right track. I'm sure there could be a fine line of difference in different contexts where a union might be slightly different than a labor organization. And we might even get into that in our discussions. Right now, let's just keep it the way it is. You have labor organizations and collective bargaining units and collective bargaining units make up the labor organizations. Just one collective bargaining organization can make up that labor organization. I should say one collective bargaining unit can make up the entire labor organization and represent the entire membership. Or it could be several units with several different fields of labor that they're representing or different tiers or whatever of similar work. I don't want to make examples right now. This thing can get longer than hell. But just for today, we'll leave it at that. And we think of a labor organization also as the same thing as a union. Can we do that, Sharon? Yes, we can, Walter. I want to thank you for giving us a few minutes. And we're going to be on the streets of Dublin tomorrow. We hope to hook up with you tomorrow somewhere in Dublin. We know you can be here for a while. So this is sharing secrets. This is Walter Rico. This is the continuing adventures that we started years ago called Rico Tapes. And we hope you tune in and move along with us and progress with us as we share information with you. Thanks for listening.