The Duty To Furnish Information Under NLRA
The Duty to Furnish Information
Under the National Labor Relations Act
American Bar Association
Labor and Employment Law CLE Conference
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
November 7-10, 2007
Jeffrey I. Pasek
Charles J. Kawas
Cozen O’Connor
1900 Market Street
Philadelphia, PA 19103
(215) 665-2000
I.
INTRODUCTION
II.
THE GENERAL DUTY TO FURNISH INFORMATION
A.
B.
Creation of the Duty
1.
Union Must be the Bargaining Party
2.
The Nature of the Union’s Request for Information
The Information Requested Must be Relevant and in Good Faith
1.
III.
IV.
C.
Information Requests Must not be too Cumbersome for Either Party
D.
Union’s Duty to Furnish Information
E.
Information Must be Provided in a Timely Manner
REQUESTS FOR SPECIFIC INFORMATION
A.
Specific Instances of Relevant Information Requests
B.
Financial Information of the Employer
C.
Witness Statement Disclosure
EMPLOYER DEFENSES
A.
V.
Presumptively Relevant Information
Confidentiality
1.
Trade Secrets
2.
Information on Striker Replacements
3.
Third-Party Disclosure
B.
Restrictions on Use of the Information
C.
Privacy Interests
D.
Deferral to Arbitration
E.
Waiver
Conclusion
I.
INTRODUCTION
The duty to furnish information is an integral component of the collective bargaining process.
An employer’s disclosure of information provides the union with necessary information so that it can effectively carry out its statutory duty to represent the bargaining unit, both in bargaining a new contract and in policing administration of an existing collective bargaining agreement.
NLRB v. Acme Industrial Co., 385 U.S. 432 (1967). Likewise, under certain circumstances, a union must provide information requested by an employer. This paper will provide a general overview of a party’s duty to furnish information upon a proper request. Although the duty is a bilateral one, most information requests, and therefore most of the case law, involve requests made by unions to employers.
Keep in mind that
Under the National Labor Relations Act
American Bar Association
Labor and Employment Law CLE Conference
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
November 7-10, 2007
Jeffrey I. Pasek
Charles J. Kawas
Cozen O’Connor
1900 Market Street
Philadelphia, PA 19103
(215) 665-2000
I.
INTRODUCTION
II.
THE GENERAL DUTY TO FURNISH INFORMATION
A.
B.
Creation of the Duty
1.
Union Must be the Bargaining Party
2.
The Nature of the Union’s Request for Information
The Information Requested Must be Relevant and in Good Faith
1.
III.
IV.
C.
Information Requests Must not be too Cumbersome for Either Party
D.
Union’s Duty to Furnish Information
E.
Information Must be Provided in a Timely Manner
REQUESTS FOR SPECIFIC INFORMATION
A.
Specific Instances of Relevant Information Requests
B.
Financial Information of the Employer
C.
Witness Statement Disclosure
EMPLOYER DEFENSES
A.
V.
Presumptively Relevant Information
Confidentiality
1.
Trade Secrets
2.
Information on Striker Replacements
3.
Third-Party Disclosure
B.
Restrictions on Use of the Information
C.
Privacy Interests
D.
Deferral to Arbitration
E.
Waiver
Conclusion
I.
INTRODUCTION
The duty to furnish information is an integral component of the collective bargaining process.
An employer’s disclosure of information provides the union with necessary information so that it can effectively carry out its statutory duty to represent the bargaining unit, both in bargaining a new contract and in policing administration of an existing collective bargaining agreement.
NLRB v. Acme Industrial Co., 385 U.S. 432 (1967). Likewise, under certain circumstances, a union must provide information requested by an employer. This paper will provide a general overview of a party’s duty to furnish information upon a proper request. Although the duty is a bilateral one, most information requests, and therefore most of the case law, involve requests made by unions to employers.
Keep in mind that