Dr. Laura Crawshaw - "Taming Abrasive Managers: How to End Unnecessary Roughness in the Workplace"

Terry Srsen, Wal-Mart - " Union Campaign EFCA Style - Life in the Fast Lane"

Randel Johnson, US Chamber of Commerce - "Union Legislative Agenda"

David Wimmer, Swerdlow Florence Sanchez Swerdlow & Wimmer- "Eureka! Why Employers Love the Golden State"

Mark Freeman, Ashgrove Cement; Vicky Dodson, Wal-Mart; Debbie Furness, Caterpillar - "Preparing For EFCA"

Aaron Tharpe, Catholic Healthcare Partners - "A Corporate Campaign: One Company's Approach"

"Card Check/1st Contract Arbitration - What's It Really Like"
Mike Sherrard, Sherrard Kuzz, LLP
Danny Kaufer, Heenan Blaikie Law Firm

"EFCA: What If?"
Andy Eisenberg, Seyfarth Shaw
Clyde Jacob, Coats Rose

"Significant Developments in UK and European Labor Relations"
Martin Warren, Eversheds Soliciters

"Retail Discussion Group"
Kirk Gautreau, OfficeMax
Drew Jackson, Lowes

"How To's of Incident Investigation"
Bernie Berrigan, Tenneco
Cookie Walden, Snap-on Tools

"Winning Results: Successful Union-Free Strategies"
Peter Bergeron

As the prospect of some form of labor law reform looms on the horizon, currently embodied in the form of the Employee Free Choice Act, what should HR, ER and LR professionals be doing to prepare their companies for its passage? This highly interactive workshop will provide the opportunity to examine which policies and processes might be impacted, which might become less or more important, which might become obsolete altogether and what might have to be added.

No one knows for sure that EFCA will pass or if so what form might ultimately take, but just as companies assess Threats and Opportunities in their planning cycles, this threat should be considered.

Conference presentations by Randel Johnson, Terry Srsen and panelists Mark Freeman,

Vicki Dodson and Debbie Furness will help set the stage for this workshop.

Continental breakfast and break will be provided. Participants in the Certification Course will not be able to participate in this session.

To earn the Certification students will complete the following three courses:

1. Creating and Maintaining a Positive Employee Environment
   Course #1 is designed to highlight key elements of a successful plan to maintain a positive employee environment; present some elements of the ER programs and processes in use in the instructors' companies and provide an interactive environment focused on sharing and discussing best practices in the positive ER field.
   
   Course Objectives:
   1. Identify the key elements of an ER plan designed to create and maintain a positive environment in an effort to render a union useless to employees.
   2. Compare their company's ER efforts to others presented.
      
      
   Targeted audience: The course is targeted at persons who have some experience in ER and will serve as an excellent review and opportunity to network for those with extensive experience. The course will be challenging for those who have no experience in the field.
   
   
2. U.S. Labor Law and its Impact on a Union Free Environment
   Course #2 is designed to highlight key sections of the National Labor Relations Act and Labor Management Reporting and Disclosure Act, as well as a few seminal cases and how those elements impact employers' plans for remaining union free. The instructors will present the relevant elements of the Acts and then provide scenarios designed to elicit discussion on how the Acts impact that scenario.
   
   Course Objectives: Upon completion of this course the participant will:
   1. In the conduct of Employee Relations for their company, be able to recognize
      which company processes and programs could possibly be impacted by the
      Acts and when to seek further guidance.
   2. Better understand the terminology of Labor Law and Labor Relations.
      
      
   Targeted audience: The course is targeted at persons who have at least some
   experience in Labor Relations and will serve as a review and refresher for those
   with significant experience. The instruction will be a challenge for those with
   no LR experience.



3. Successfully Conducting and Combating a Union Organizing Campaign
   Course #3 is designed to break down and organizing campaign into its critical elements and provide instruction on how employers and manage or combat that particular element. The format will involve instructions and then an interactive opportunity to apply the materials covered to various scenarios presented by the instructors.
   
   Course Objectives: Upon completion of this curse persons should be able:
   1. Recognize the key elements of a union organizing campaign.
   2. Recognize and apply key strategies and tactics applicable to the stages.
      
      
   Targeted Audience: This course is targeted at persons who have at least some experience in a union campaign and will serve as a review and refresher for those with significant campaign experience. Persons with no experience in this area may find this course challenging and fast paced.