What happens if there is an impasse in collective bargaining

Employers have a legal duty to bargain in good faith with their employees' representative and to sign any collective bargaining agreement that has been reached.

This duty encompasses many obligations, including a duty not to make certain changes without bargaining with the union and not to bypass the union and deal directly with employees it represents. These examples barely scratch the surface.

Section 8(d) of the Act sets forth what is encompassed within the duty to bargain collectively.

Section 8(a)(5) of the Act makes it an unfair labor practice for an employer "to refuse to bargain collectively with the representatives of its employees, subject to the provisions of Section 9(a)" of the Act. (An employer that violates Section 8(a)(5) also derivatively violates Section 8(a)(1).) For example, you may not

• Make changes in wages, hours, working conditions, or other mandatory subjects of bargaining before negotiating with the union to agreement or overall impasse, unless (1) t
  is good faith legally binding
  is bargaining good