Work Industry And Canadian Society 7th Edition By Harvey J. Krahn – Test Bank

Chapter 11: Unions and Industrial Relations

Multiple-Choice Questions

Identify the choice that best answers the question.

1. According to mainstream industrial relations theory, the rules and regulations regarding collective agreements have which of the following functions?

a. To ensure that the government does not have to get involved in labour relations.
b. To inject stability into employment relations by making sure unions don’t have too much power.
c. To inject stability into employment relations by tilting the balance of power slightly away from management.
d. To discourage workers from joining unions.

ANS: C PTS: 1 REF: p. 330 BLM: Remember

2. Which of the following scenarios would be an example of what C. Wright Mills had in mind when he said that unions were “managers of discontent?”

a. Union organizers signing up members in a nonunionized workplace.
b. Union leaders trying to convince their members that a new wage offer received from their employer was not good enough.
c. Union leaders trying to convince their members to not go on strike because their collective agreement had not yet expired.
d. Leaders of one union trying to encourage members of another union to leave that union and join theirs.

ANS: C PTS: 1 REF: p. 331 BLM: Higher Order

3. Which of the following would be evidence in support of Robert Michels’s “iron law of oligarchy?”

a. Union leaders manipulating union activities in order to stay in power.
b. Strong worker groups opposing the decisions of union leaders.
c. High levels of attendance by members at union meetings.
d. Corporate managers influencing how union members vote during union elections.

ANS: A PTS: 1 REF: p. 332 BLM: Higher Order

4. Which of the following statements best describes results of research on the economic impact of unions?

a. Overall, unions lead to reduced productivity in unionized workplaces.
b. At the societal level, unions are associated with lower wage inequality.

c. On average, they have virtually no effect on employees’ wages.
d. They generally lead to higher wages for members, but have no other real effect on working conditions or employment relationships.

ANS: B PTS: 1 REF: p. 333–334 BLM: Remember

5. Union X represents the 1,200 workers employed in a Canada Bicycle Corporation (CBC) factory in a large Canadian city. The union has not been all that successful in negotiating higher wages for its workers, but it has been able to convince management to allow workers to make decisions about how to do their jobs and to listen to workers’ suggestions for improving health and safety in the factory. Which of the following perspectives on unionism is Union X highlighting, according to Richard Freeman and James Medoff?

a. The “managers of discontent” perspective.
b. The “social unionism” perspective.
c. The “monopoly face” of unionism.
d. The “collective voice” face of unionism.

ANS: D PTS: 1 REF: p. 334 BLM: Higher Order

6. Which of the following best distinguishes craft unions from industrial unions?

a. Craft unions exist only in Quebec; industrial unions are active in all parts of Canada.
b. Craft unions represent specific occupations; industrial unions try to organize all the workers in a particular industry
c. Craft unions are mainly found in developing countries; industrial unions are most common in industrialized economies.
d. Craft unions are gaining members; industrial unions are declining in size.

ANS: B PTS: 1 REF: pp. 335–336 BLM: Higher Order

7. Which of the following descriptions best defines an “industrial union?”

a. Unions with membership in the manufacturing industries.
b. Unions with their head offices in the United States.
c. Unions that focus mainly on improving wages and working conditions.
d. Unions that try to organize all the workers in a particular industry.

ANS: D PTS: 1 REF: p. 336 BLM: Remember

8. Which of the following is a unique feature of the labour movement in Quebec?

a. Many contemporary unions were originally organized by the Roman Catholic Church.
b. A much lower degree of centralized bargaining than elsewhere in Canada.

c. Despite a high level of nationalism in Quebec, unions in the province have avoided getting involved in debates about separatism and sovereignty.
d. The willingness of unions to accept provincial legislation allowing strike-breaking by employers.

ANS: A PTS: 1 REF: p. 338 BLM: Remember

9. Which of the following statements describes the “Rand Formula”?

a. It is used to determine what percentage of an employee’s earnings can be deducted for union membership dues.
b. It identifies the public sectors in which workers are not allowed to strike because of the percentage of citizens who might be negatively affected.
c. It requires employers to deduct union dues from all employees in a workplace that is unionized, whether or not they belong to the union.
d. It is used to determine whether or not an international union can be forced to allow Canadian workers to set up their own union.

ANS: C PTS: 1 REF: p. 339 BLM: Remember

10. Leo Panitch and Donald Swartz use the phrase permanent exceptionalism to describe which of the following labour relations trends in Canada?

a. The shift from craft unions to industrial unions.
b. The Canadianization of formerly international unions.
c. Attempts to introduce “right-to-work” laws in Canada.
d. Repeated government intervention in collective bargaining over the past few decades.

ANS: D PTS: 1 REF: p. 340 BLM: Higher Order