March 28, 2008...9:23 am
Coursework Survey
O.K. Kids, I am going to post my survey questions here. If you decide you want to participate please email your answers to me at muzeuterpe1 [at] aol.com. You may choose to respond as either an employee or a supervisor. I don’t need your name, but would like you to identify your general geographic region. That will allow me to state that I interviewed “X” number of people from the Kanawha County, WV area and “X” number of people from the Cuyahoga County, Ohio area, etc.
Here is some background and the questions:
The reason for this interview is to complete a research paper as a requirement of my coursework at Mountain State University. Each semester my class is required to present an action research paper. The primary subject of my paper this semester is House Bill 4132 of the 2008 Legislative Session. HB 4132 was:
A BILL to amend the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended, by adding thereto a new section, designated §21-3-22, relating to employer mandating employee participation in certain activities; prohibiting employers from mandating communication with employees regarding certain employer beliefs and activities; granting commissioner of labor enforcement powers; authorizing commissioner of labor to establish administrative process and rulemaking; authorizing commissioner of labor to seek injunctive relief; providing for civil damages to employees; providing for special revenue account for administrative penalties; providing that certain employers have limited exemptions from the provisions of this section; and providing for exemption of the provisions of this section when federally preempted.
The question I am trying to answer is:
Are the workers in West Virginia being forced to listen to the employer’s opinions or directives on political and labor issues, thus violating their Constitutional right to free association to the degree that it has become necessary to introduce legislation to regulate the activity, cite and fine the employer?
In doing this research I have to identify ‘stakeholders’, or people who are affected in some way by the issue. For this paper, stakeholders are identified as employees, supervisors, union officials, politicians, and government employees. Others may be identified as the research progresses.
Some of the questions I will be asking employees are:
1. How long have you been in the workforce?
2. Have you always been a union member?
3. Can you tell me about a time when you (or someone you know) felt a supervisor, or influential person in your workplace, directly or indirectly pressured or coerced you to act in a way you generally would not have. (i.e. vote for/against union organization, withhold important information from a report, agree to a course of action you knew was wrong, distance yourself from someone because they were perceived to be a bad employee).
4. Can you tell me if you (or someone you know) have ever been forced to listen to religious/pro-union/anti-union, or discriminatory language during a mandatory staffing, safety or other work-related meeting?
5. Have you (or someone you know) ever filed a complaint with the National Labor Relations Board because you were forced to listen or participate in activities such as those described above?
6. If so, what happened?
7. In your experience, do these types of activities happen with such frequency that the West Virginia Legislature needs to develop legislation more strict than that found in the National Labor Relations Act?
8. In your experience, is the NLRB ineffective in enforcing the Act?
Please keep in mind, I do not need you to name the employers. You may choose to provide that information. However, I may or may not use identifying information at my discretion. This paper is not a work of investigative journalism, will not be published and will not be used to affect the legislative process.
Some of the questions I will be asking supervisors/managers are:
1. How long have you been in the workforce?
2. Have you ever been a union member?
3. Can you tell me about a time when you (or someone you know) felt a union organizer, or other influential person in your workplace, directly or indirectly pressured or coerced employees to act in a way you believe they would not have. (i.e. vote for/against union organization, withhold important information from a report, agree to a course of action you knew was wrong, distance themselves from someone because they were perceived to be a company man).
4. Can you tell me if you (or someone you know) have ever been forced to listen to religious/pro-union/anti-union, or discriminatory language during a mandatory staffing, safety or other work-related meeting?
5. Have you (or someone you know) ever experienced a complaint filed against your employer with the National Labor Relations Board because someone was forced to listen or participate in activities such as those described above?
6. If so, what happened?
7. In your experience, do these types of activities happen with such frequency that the West Virginia Legislature needs to develop legislation more strict than that found in the National Labor Relations Act?
8. In your experience, is the NLRB ineffective in enforcing the Act?
Please keep in mind, I do not need you to name the employees. You may choose to provide that information. However, I may or may not use identifying information at my discretion. This paper is not a work of investigative journalism, will not be published and will not be used to affect the legislative process.
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