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Private Resolution Of Public Disputes: Employment, Arbitration, And The Statutory Cause Of Action, Griffin Toronjo Pivateau Jun 2012

Private Resolution Of Public Disputes: Employment, Arbitration, And The Statutory Cause Of Action, Griffin Toronjo Pivateau

Pace Law Review

In this Article, I argue that arbitration agreements fall somewhere along the middle of the rights/contract continuum. My understanding of the nature of arbitration agreements relies on a previously existing area of employment law. There is a particular aspect of the employment relationship that, while open to contract, remains subject to constraints imposed by the law. A noncompete agreement permits an employee to contract with his employer to not work for a competitor following the termination of the employment relationship. This right to contract away the right to compete is, however, narrowly construed by the court system. A court may …


Adoption And Use Of Dispute Resolution Procedures In The Nonunion Workplace, Alexander Colvin Jun 2012

Adoption And Use Of Dispute Resolution Procedures In The Nonunion Workplace, Alexander Colvin

Alexander Colvin

[Excerpt] This paper investigates the adoption, structure, and function of dispute resolution procedures in the nonunion workplace. Whereas grievance procedures in unionized workplaces have been an important area of study in the field of industrial relations, research on dispute resolution procedures in nonunion workplaces has lagged behind. As a result, our knowledge of the development of nonunion procedures remains relatively limited. Similarly, with a few noteworthy exceptions (e.g. Lewin, 1987, 1990), our knowledge of workplace grievance activity is almost entirely based on research conducted in unionized settings. Given the major differences in the institutional contexts of union and nonunion workplaces …


An Empirical Study Of Employment Arbitration: Case Outcomes And Processes, Alexander Colvin Jun 2012

An Empirical Study Of Employment Arbitration: Case Outcomes And Processes, Alexander Colvin

Alexander Colvin

Using data from reports filed by the American Arbitration Association (AAA) pursuant to California Code requirements, this article examines outcomes of employment arbitration. The study analyzes 3,945 arbitration cases, of which 1,213 were decided by an award after a hearing, filed and reaching disposition between January 1, 2003 and December 31, 2007. This includes all the employment arbitration cases administered nationally by the AAA during this time period that derived from employer-promulgated arbitration procedures. Key findings include: (1) the employee win rate amongst the cases was 21.4%, which is lower than employee win rates reported in employment litigation trials; (2) …


Improved Metrics For Workplace Dispute Resolution Procedures: Efficiency, Equity, And Voice, John W. Budd, Alexander Colvin Jun 2012

Improved Metrics For Workplace Dispute Resolution Procedures: Efficiency, Equity, And Voice, John W. Budd, Alexander Colvin

Alexander Colvin

Many debates surround systems for resolving workplace disputes. In the United States, traditional unionized grievance procedures, emerging nonunion dispute resolution systems, and the court-based system for resolving employment law disputes have all been criticized. What is missing from these debates are rich metrics beyond speed and satisfaction for comparing and evaluating dispute resolutions systems. In this paper, we develop efficiency, equity, and voice as these standards. Unionized, nonunion, and employment law procedures are then qualitatively evaluated against these three metrics.


Institutional Pressures, Human Resource Strategies, And The Rise Of Nonunion Dispute Resolution Procedures, Alexander Colvin May 2012

Institutional Pressures, Human Resource Strategies, And The Rise Of Nonunion Dispute Resolution Procedures, Alexander Colvin

Alexander Colvin

The author investigates factors influencing the adoption of dispute resolution procedures in the nonunion workplace. Various explanations are tested using data from a 1998 survey of dispute resolution procedures in the telecommunications industry. The results suggest that both institutional pressures and human resource strategies are factors driving the adoption of nonunion procedures. Among institutional factors, rising individual employment rights litigation and expanded court deferral to nonunion arbitration have led to increased adoption of mandatory arbitration procedures in the nonunion workplace. At the same time, an older institutional factor—union substitution by nonunion employers aimed at avoiding union organizing—continues to inspire the …


Employee Voice, Human Resource Practices, And Quit Rates: Evidence From The Telecommunications Industry, Rosemary Batt, Alexander J.S. Colvin, Jeffrey Keefe May 2012

Employee Voice, Human Resource Practices, And Quit Rates: Evidence From The Telecommunications Industry, Rosemary Batt, Alexander J.S. Colvin, Jeffrey Keefe

Alexander Colvin

The authors draw on strategic human resource and industrial relations theories to identify the sets of employee voice mechanisms and human resource practices that are likely to predict firm-level quit rates, then empirically evaluate the predictive power of these variables using data from a 1998 establishment level survey in the telecommunications industry. With respect to alternative voice mechanisms, they find that union representation predicts lower quit rates, even after they control for compensation and a wide range of other human resource practices that may be affected by collective bargaining. Also predicting lower quit rates is employee participation in offline problem-solving …


Telecommunications 2004: Business Strategy, Hr Practices, And Performance, Rosemary Batt, Alexander J.S. Colvin, Harry C. Katz, Jeffrey Keefe May 2012

Telecommunications 2004: Business Strategy, Hr Practices, And Performance, Rosemary Batt, Alexander J.S. Colvin, Harry C. Katz, Jeffrey Keefe

Alexander Colvin

This national benchmarking report of the U.S. telecommunications services industry traces the tumultuous changes in management and workforce practices and performance in the sector over the last 5 years. This is a follow-up report to our 1998 study. At that time, when the industry was booming, we conducted a national survey of establishments in the industry. In 2003, we returned to do a second national survey of the industry, this time in a sector that was recovering from one of the worst recessions in its history.


Rethinking Bargaining Unit Determination: Labor Law And The Structure Of Collective Representation In A Changing Workplace, Alexander Colvin May 2012

Rethinking Bargaining Unit Determination: Labor Law And The Structure Of Collective Representation In A Changing Workplace, Alexander Colvin

Alexander Colvin

[Excerpt] Arguably the leading issue for current labor law research is whether the existing system of law based on the Wagner Act model can continue to be relevant and appropriate for the contemporary workplace. Changes in the environment of work during the over half-century since this model was developed have brought pressures for re-evaluation and adaptation of key elements of its structure. Criticism of this system has focused on a number of areas, including: the reliance on the formal grievance procedure and arbitration; the separation of the realms of collective bargaining and business decision making; the limitations on employee participation …


From Supreme Court To Shopfloor: Mandatory Arbitration And The Reconfiguration Of Workplace Dispute Resolution, Alexander Colvin May 2012

From Supreme Court To Shopfloor: Mandatory Arbitration And The Reconfiguration Of Workplace Dispute Resolution, Alexander Colvin

Alexander Colvin

[Excerpt] In a series of court battles during the 1990s, employers successfully defended the use of mandatory employment arbitration against challenges that the procedures inherently undermined the statutory rights of employees. Efforts to introduce legislation in Congress aimed at reversing the Gilmer decision were unsuccessful. In 2001, the Supreme Court reaffirmed its acceptance of mandatory arbitration to resolve employment disputes in Circuit City Stores, Inc. v. Adams. However, some courts have been willing to strike down arbitration procedures that contain particularly egregious violations of due process. For example, courts have refused to enforce arbitration agreements that restrict employee damage awards, …


Construction Partnering: Can These Protocols Build A Stronger Labor-Management Community?, Jim Stott, Juan Carlos Gonzalez Apr 2012

Construction Partnering: Can These Protocols Build A Stronger Labor-Management Community?, Jim Stott, Juan Carlos Gonzalez

Pepperdine Dispute Resolution Law Journal

In an expansive marketplace where large organizations in the construction, manufacturing, service and union industries are facing increased global competition, collaborative labor relations are essential to maximizing efficiency and productivity. It is for this reason that developing collaboration between labor and management is highly researched and consulted by academics and professionals throughout the world. Although various models of collaboration have been developed, none have been found to clearly overcome that insidious conflict and paradigm of "Labor vs. Management." The purpose of this paper is to provide academics and consultants (mediators/facilitators) an additional perspective for designing, developing and implementing the best …


Eliminating The Mandatory Trade-Off: Should Employees Have The Right To Choose Arbitration ?, Michael Peabody Apr 2012

Eliminating The Mandatory Trade-Off: Should Employees Have The Right To Choose Arbitration ?, Michael Peabody

Pepperdine Dispute Resolution Law Journal

As more employers include mandatory arbitration provisions in their employment contracts, policy-makers are becoming concerned that employees are being forced to trade their civil and statutory rights for their jobs. The California Legislature is considering legislation designed to combat this tendency and to provide legal protection for employees who might otherwise be forced to waive the right for redress of grievances, legal protections against discrimination, and other rights. Although the legislation was designed to protect the constitutional rights of employees, there are legal considerations and policy concerns that challenge the viability of this type of legislation. The primary question is …


Making It Work At Work: Mediation's Impact On Employee/Employer Relationships And Mediator Neutrality , Allison Balc Apr 2012

Making It Work At Work: Mediation's Impact On Employee/Employer Relationships And Mediator Neutrality , Allison Balc

Pepperdine Dispute Resolution Law Journal

This Comment discusses the ADR process of mediation in the employment setting, specifically addressing its benefits and effects on the employer/employee relationship and the potential for a non-neutral mediator who is paid by, or has some previous tie to, one of the parties. Section IA examines judicial and legislative views of ADR and mediation. IB discusses mediation's effectiveness in the workplace. Section II discusses the mediation process in an employment dispute. Section III discusses the effects of mediation on the employer and employee, empirical studies, the neutrality of mediators, and potential remedies. Section IV discusses neutrality in the mediation process. …


The Aclu And The Propriety Of Dispute Resolution In Civil Rights Controversies, Amber Mckinney Mar 2012

The Aclu And The Propriety Of Dispute Resolution In Civil Rights Controversies, Amber Mckinney

Pepperdine Dispute Resolution Law Journal

Section I examines the history, purpose, and methodology of the American Civil Liberties Union. Section II discusses the historical development and use of Alternative Dispute Resolution. Section III, Part A provides examples of its use in environmental controversies, Americans with Disabilities Act disputes, and employment conflicts. Section III, Part B explains the arguments for and against the use of Alternative Dispute Resolution in Civil Rights Controversies. Section IV, Part A looks at examples of the use of Alternative Dispute Resolution by the American Civil Liberties Union, while Part B provides insight into the interplay of Alternative Dispute Resolution and the …


Customizing Employment Arbitration, Randall Thomas, Kenneth J. Martin Jan 2012

Customizing Employment Arbitration, Randall Thomas, Kenneth J. Martin

Vanderbilt Law School Faculty Publications

According to the dispute resolution literature, one advantage of arbitration over litigation is that arbitration enables the parties to customize their dispute resolution procedures. For example, parties can choose the qualifications of the arbitrator(s), the governing procedural rules, the limitation period, recoverable damages, rules for discovery and the presentation of evidence and witnesses, and the specificity of required arbitrator findings. While other scholars have questioned whether parties to arbitration agreements frequently take advantage of this customization, there is little solid empirical information about the topic. In this article, we study the arbitration clauses found in a random sample of 910 …