Trainer Manual. Free Sample Exercise. Labor Relations Institute, Inc.

Transcription

1 Trainer Manual Free Sample Exercise Labor Relations Institute, Inc.

2 Welcome to Tripwire Training! Our objectives: Ø You will know the reasons employees sometimes trust third-party representation over a direct relationship with their employer. Ø You will be able to spot the early warning signs of union activity in your workplace and respond appropriately and effectively. Ø You will understand the crucial role you play in maintaining a positive, union-free workplace. Agenda Introductions Your personal Learning Journal & Action Plan Q&A on pre-workshop reading and exercises What s at Stake: Managing a Unionized Shop Why Would Your Employees Want a Union? Tripwire: Recognizing the Signs of Potential Union Activity Ø Ø Ø What Does Union Activity Look Like? What Do Your Employees Believe About Unions? What Does Union Activity Feel Like? Left of Boom: Your Proactive Strategy to Remain Union-Free Do you know your company s position on unions? What is your position on unions? For Internal Use Only Company Confidential Page 1

3 Behavioral changes to watch for 1. Use of new terms like at will, grievance, just cause, and living wage and questions about the disciplinary process. 2. New keen interest in the employee handbook and company policy. 3. Missing schedules or employee lists. 4. Workers are seen in back office areas without good reason. 5. Keeping notes about interactions with management or work assignments. 6. Questions about use of the bulletin board or an employee phone list. Changes in workplace dynamics 7. Those who previously never talked are now talking to each other frequently. 8. New worksite leaders emerge whom others now seek out for advice. 9. A previously well-liked person is now shunned or isolated. 10. Attitudes and reactions to supervisors change; the grapevine suddenly goes dead. 11. The number of employee complaints and challenges increases, especially over longstanding policy, and those who complain may seem more hostile or well-informed. Changes in morale and mood 12. You sense something has changed in the workplace the energy is different and you don t know why. 13. People seem overly nervous about losing their jobs. 14. Emotions don t match the circumstances. 15. People seem much more down on the job than usual or more energized at work than seems normal. 16. Pro-company employees seem withdrawn. For Internal Use Only Company Confidential Page 2

4 EXERCISE: Tripwire Early Warning Signs Exercise Break out into small groups and consider the following scenarios. Share as a group what that might look like to management (you) in each of your worksites, then answer the scenario questions. Scenario One: The Union Man of Mystery Management doesn t know it yet, but there s a rumor going around that a union organizer has been waiting in the parking lot trying to catch people and talk to them before and after work. He s also been following people to the bus stop. No one really knows much more than that. Do you think the shift supervisor would notice anything different about workers as they came in or left to go home? Do you think these rumors would affect the mood in the worksite? How? Scenario Two: Harry the Hot Head Harry applied for a promotion six months back and didn t get it, and now every chance he gets (when management isn t around) Harry is talking to whoever will listen about getting a union. He s even started having coffee with a union organizer who told him he needs to get people to come to a union meeting on Friday and no one showed up. What might Harry s supervisor notice about interactions between Harry and his coworkers? Scenario Three: A New Best Friend The union has started making house visits and the union organizer has been working hard to show how much she cares about the workers she s met. She s been listening to worker s complaints and doing favors for them. She even helped one worker apply for food stamps! She s also been telling those same workers that the company is taking advantage of them and no one in management can be trusted. How might this scenario be felt in the workplace? Would the change be sudden? Can you imagine your first conversation with a worker the morning after a house visit from a union organizer? For Internal Use Only Company Confidential Page 3

5 Scenario Four: Pat the Rat Pat is a popular worksite leader who is refusing to sign a union card. Union supporters have been spreading the word that Pat can t be trusted anymore because she sides with management and the rumor is she s ratting out her co-workers to secure a promotion. Pat knows the union supporters are mad she won t sign, but she doesn t know they are spreading vicious lies about her. What might Pat s supervisor notice about how others treat Pat or act around her? Can you imagine some ways Pat s behavior or demeanor might change at work? How might this scenario change attitudes towards management? Scenario Five: Termination Terrors Jack was terminated for falling asleep on the job but the union is telling everyone he was fired for being pro-union and standing up to the boss. The union is promising Jack they will get his job back with back pay and they are already paying him to work down at the union hall! The union says without union protection the company will clean house and eventually fire everyone. Of course with a union, the union reminds them, they can only be fired for just cause. How would workers behave if they believed their jobs were at risk? Scenario Six: Solidarity Forever! A group of workers have attended their first union meeting and they are fired up! At the meeting they were surrounded by union supporters and people who love their union! They understand now how the union is behind them and if they stick with the union they can achieve anything! They are mad at the 1% and ready to stand up for dignity, respect and their fair share! What might the shift supervisor notice the morning after a successful union meeting? How might workers behave differently if they believed the most important thing was to stick together no matter what? How might it look if workers felt they were part of a cause? For Internal Use Only Company Confidential Page 4

6 Like this module? Bring LRI s Tripwire Training LIVE to your company today. The sample training module you ve just read is a brief section of LRI s complete Tripwire training module. This highly interactive live training builds on the lessons learned here, focusing supervisors on the critical skill of noticing behavior change in the workplace. The learning objectives for the training module can be found on page 1 of this sample. Training front-line leaders to identify problems early and resolve them quickly is your best defense against organizing activity. And the key skill to do that is noticing behavior change in the workplace that is the Tripwire concept. Why waste valuable time and effort trying to develop training materials yourself? Call LRI today to discuss how we can economically and quickly provide our popular training to your supervisors. Call to learn more or to schedule your session today. For Internal Use Only Company Confidential Page 5