Rhode Island General Laws 28-7-13. Unfair labor practices
It shall be an unfair labor practice for an employer to:
(1) Spy on or keep under surveillance, whether directly or through agents or any other person, any activities of employees or their representatives in the exercise of the rights guaranteed by § 28-7-12;
(2) Prepare, maintain, distribute, or circulate any blacklist of individuals for the purpose of preventing any of the individuals from obtaining or retaining employment because of the exercise of the individuals of any of the rights guaranteed by § 28-7-12;
(3) Dominate or interfere with the formation, existence, or administration of any employee organization or association, agency, or plan that exists in whole or in part for the purpose of dealing with employers concerning terms or conditions of employment, labor disputes, or grievances, or to contribute financial or other support to any such organization, by any means, including, but not limited to, the following:
(i) By participating or assisting in, supervising, controlling, or dominating:
(A) The initiation or creation of any employee organization or association, agency, or plan; or
(B) The meetings, management, operation, elections, formulation, or amendment of constitution, rules, or policies of any employee organization or association, agency or plan;
(ii) By urging the employees to join any employee organization or association, agency, or plan for the purpose of encouraging membership in the organization or association; or
(iii) By compensating any employee or individual for services performed in behalf of any employee organization or association, agency, or plan, or by donating free services, equipment, materials, office or meeting space, or anything else of value for the use of any employee organization or association, agency, or plan; provided, that an employer shall not be prohibited from permitting employees to confer with him or her during working hours without loss of time or pay;
(4) Require an employee or one seeking employment, as a condition of employment, to join any company union or to refrain from forming, or joining, or assisting a labor organization of his or her own choosing;
(5) Encourage membership in any company union or discourage membership in any labor organization, by discrimination in regard to hire or tenure or in any term or condition of employment; provided that nothing in this chapter precludes an employer from making an agreement with a labor organization requiring membership in that labor organization as a condition of employment, if that labor organization is the representative of employees as provided in § 28-7-14 — § 28-7-19;
(6) Refuse to bargain collectively with the representatives of employees, subject to the provisions of § 28-7-14 — § 28-7-19, except that the refusal to bargain collectively with any representative is not, unless a certification with respect to the representative is in effect under § 28-7-14 — § 28-7-19, an unfair labor practice in any case where any other representative, other than a company union, has made a claim that it represents a majority of the employees in a conflicting bargaining unit;
(7) Refuse to discuss grievances with representatives of employees, subject to the provisions of § 28-7-14 — § 28-7-19;
(8) Discharge or otherwise discriminate against an employee because he or she has signed or filed any affidavit, petition, or complaint or given any information or testimony under this chapter;
(9) Distribute or circulate any blacklist of individuals exercising any right created or confirmed by this chapter or of members of a labor organization, or to inform any person of the exercise by any individual of that right, or of the membership of any individual in a labor organization for the purpose of preventing individuals so blacklisted or so named from obtaining or retaining employment;
(10) Do any acts, other than those already enumerated in this section, that interfere with, restrain, or coerce employees in the exercise of the rights guaranteed by § 28-7-12; or
(11) Fail to implement an arbitrator’s award unless there is a stay of its implementation by a court of competent jurisdiction or upon the removal of the stay.
History of Section.
P.L. 1941, ch. 1066, § 5; G.L. 1956, § 28-7-13; P.L. 1979, ch. 126, § 1.
Terms Used In Rhode Island General Laws 28-7-13
- Affidavit: A written statement of facts confirmed by the oath of the party making it, before a notary or officer having authority to administer oaths.
- Amendment: A proposal to alter the text of a pending bill or other measure by striking out some of it, by inserting new language, or both. Before an amendment becomes part of the measure, thelegislature must agree to it.
- Company union: means any committee employee representation plan or association of employees that exists for the purpose, in whole or in part, of dealing with employers concerning grievances or terms and conditions of employment, that the employer has initiated or created or whose initiation or creation he or she has suggested, participated in or in the formulation of whose governing rules or policies or the conducting of whose management, operations, or elections the employer participates in or supervises, or which the employer maintains, finances, controls, dominates, or assists in maintaining or financing, whether by compensating any one for services performed in its behalf or by donating free services, equipment, materials, office or meeting space or anything else of value, or by any other means. See Rhode Island General Laws 28-7-3
- Complaint: A written statement by the plaintiff stating the wrongs allegedly committed by the defendant.
- Employee: means any person who has entered into the employment of or works under contract of service or apprenticeship with any employer, except that in the case of a city or town other than the city of Providence it shall only mean that class or those classes of employees as may be designated by a city, town, or regional school district in a manner provided in this chapter to receive compensation under chapters 29 — 38 of this title. See Rhode Island General Laws 28-29-2
- Employees: includes , but is not restricted to, any individual employed by a labor organization; any individual whose employment has ceased as a consequence of, or in connection with, any current labor dispute or because of any unfair labor practice, and who has not obtained any other regular and substantially equivalent employment; and shall not be limited to the employees of a particular employer, unless the chapter explicitly states otherwise;
(ii) "Employees" does not include any individual employed by his or her parent or spouse or in the domestic service of any person in his or her home, or any individuals employed only for the duration of a labor dispute, or any individuals employed as farm laborers; provided that, any individual employed by an employer in an industry established or regulated pursuant to chapters 28. See Rhode Island General Laws 28-7-3
- Employer: includes any person acting on behalf of or in the interest of an employer, directly or indirectly, with or without his or her knowledge, but a labor organization or any officer or its agent shall only be considered an employer with respect to individuals employed by the organization. See Rhode Island General Laws 28-7-3
- Jurisdiction: (1) The legal authority of a court to hear and decide a case. Concurrent jurisdiction exists when two courts have simultaneous responsibility for the same case. (2) The geographic area over which the court has authority to decide cases.
- Labor organization: means any organization that exists and is constituted for the purpose, in whole or in part, of collective bargaining, or of dealing with employers concerning grievances, terms or conditions of employment, or of other mutual aid or protection and which is not a company union as defined in this section. See Rhode Island General Laws 28-7-3
- Person: includes one or more individuals, partnerships, associations, corporations, legal representatives, trustees, trustees in bankruptcy, or receivers. See Rhode Island General Laws 28-7-3
- Representatives: includes a labor organization or an individual whether or not employed by the employer of those whom he or she represents. See Rhode Island General Laws 28-7-3
- Testimony: Evidence presented orally by witnesses during trials or before grand juries.
- Unfair labor practice: means only those unfair labor practices listed in § 28-7-13 and Rhode Island General Laws 28-7-3