Basic Guide to the National Labor Relations Act

Section 8(b)(3)—Refusal to Bargain in Good Faith. Section 8(b)(3) makes it illegal for a labor organization to 
refuse to bargain in good faith with an employer about wages, hours, and other conditions of employment if it is the 
representative of that employer’s employees. This section imposes on labor organizations the same duty to bargain 
in good faith that is imposed on employers by Section 8(a)(5). Both the labor organization and the employer are 
required to follow the procedure set out in Section 8(d) before terminating or changing an existing contract (see p. 
6). 
A labor organization that is the employees’ representative must meet at reasonable times with the employer or 
his designated representative, must confer in good faith on matters pertaining to wages, hours, or other conditions of 
employment, or the negotiation of an agreement, or any question arising under an agreement, and must sign a 
written agreement if requested and if one is reached. The obligation does not require the labor organization or the 
employer to agree to a proposal by the other party or make a concession to the other party, but it does require 
bargaining with an open mind in an attempt to reach agreement. So, while a union may try in contract negotiations 
to establish wages and benefits comparable to those contained in other bargaining agreements in the area, it may not 
insist on such terms without giving the employer an opportunity to bargain about the terms. Likewise, a union may 
seek voluntary bargaining on nonmandatory subjects of bargaining (p. 20), such as a provision for an industry 
promotion fund, but may not insist on bargaining about such subjects or condition execution of a contract on the 
reaching of agreement on a nonmandatory subject. 
When a union has been bargaining with a group of employers in a multiemployer bargaining unit, it may 
withdraw at any time from bargaining on that basis and bargain with one of the employers individually if the 
individual employer and the multiemployer group agree to the union’s withdrawal. And even in the absence of 
employer consent, a union may withdraw from multiemployer bargaining by giving the employers unequivocal 
notice of its withdrawal near the expiration of the agreement but before bargaining on a new contract has begun. 
Section 8(b)(3) not only requires that a union representative bargain in good faith with employers, but also 
requires that the union carry out its bargaining duty fairly with respect to the employees it represents. A union, 
therefore, violates Section 8(b)(3) if it negotiates a contract that conflicts with that duty, such as a contract with 
racially discriminatory provisions, or if it refuses to handle grievances under the contract for irrelevant or arbitrary 
reasons. 
Examples of violations of Section 8(b)(3). Section 8(b)(3) is violated by any of the following: 
•
Insisting on the inclusion of illegal provisions in a contract, such as a closed shop or a discriminatory hiring 
hall. 
• 
Refusing to negotiate on a proposal for a written contract. 
•
Striking against an employer who has bargained, and continues to bargain, on a multiemployer basis to 
compel it to bargain separately. 
• 
Refusing to meet with the attorney designated by the employer as its representative in negotiations. 
•
Terminating an existing contract and striking for a new one without notifying the employer, the Federal 
Mediation and Conciliation Service, and the state mediation service, if any. 

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•
Conditioning the execution of an agreement on inclusion of a nonmandatory provision such as a 
performance bond. 
•
Refusing to process a grievance because of the race, sex, or union activities of an employee for whom the 
union is the statutory bargaining representative.