ABA Family Legal Guide

Law and the Workplace

On the Job

Unions in the Workplace

What is covered in a collective bargaining agreement?

Most collective bargaining agreements cover the basic terms and conditions of employment. These include rates of pay, hours of work, health insurance, pension benefits, vacations, seniority rights, job assignments, work rules, and procedures for promotions, layoffs, recalls, and transfers. Most contracts also contain a provision allowing the employer to discipline or discharge employees only if there is "just cause" and a provision in which the employer deducts union dues directly from the employees' paychecks and sends them to the union.