Private sector and public employers of unionized work forces know the importance contract rights and obligations have on the success of their enterprises. Miller Johnson labor lawyers counsel clients and represent them in:

  • Collective bargaining
  • Mediation
  • Public sector fact-finding and Act 312 arbitration
  • Litigation and legal counseling in work stoppages, hand billing and picketing, and corporate and consumer union campaigns against clients
  • Contract administration and arbitration (see the Management-Union Relations, and Labor Arbitration and ADR descriptions)

Collective bargaining is adversarial by nature. It’s give-and-take even when the parties seek management-union cooperation. Clients should choose a labor lawyer with whom they are comfortable and who builds supreme confidence, who listens, and can readily grasp the client’s goals, both economically and in terms of management flexibility in decision-making and implementing management rights. The labor lawyer must be able to assist the client in honestly making what are often hard choices and looking into the future. We take a practical view and approach in negotiations as it’s important to manage the personal and organizational dynamics to a successful outcome.

Collective bargaining is not for the faint of heart or uninitiated. It requires quick maneuvering, knowing when to back off and when to drive it to the hilt, when not to paint the union into a corner but provide face-saving to achieve the ultimate win. The law can be slippery and errors can have long term, expensive consequences.

We represent employers with employee bargaining units ranging from a handful to thousands across virtually the entire occupational spectrum.