Section 3 Nature of the Claim

• Library: Employer-Employee Law 2008

The duty of fair representation (DFR) is, perhaps, most commonly implicated when an employer fires or otherwise disciplines a worker protected under a collective bargaining agreement and the union is unsuccessful in securing the worker’s reinstatement. A worker in that circumstance may file what is commonly known as a hybrid § 301/DFR action. The worker contends that the company breached the collective bargaining agreement by punishing the worker in violation of its contractual obligations, which typically require “just cause” for termination or other serious discipline. And the worker contends the union failed to adequately challenge the punishment through the contractual grievance process. The contract claim arises under § 301 (29 U.S.C. § 185) of the Labor-Management Relations Act, 1947 (commonly referred to as the...