Discharge for Cause

This professional book for labor arbitrators, mediators, administrative law judges, practitioners in the field of labor relations representing either management or labor (or both), and others involved in labor relations and dispute resolution provides insight into the elements of an arbitrator's decision-making process in disputes involving employee discharge. Drawing on his own extensive background in the field, the author uses his own advisory letters of opinion, written to the parties of a dispute, to outline issues involved and the reasoning processes used in making decisions. These letters are from real-life dispute situations and provide sample case studies in a variety of settings and fact situations allowing the reader inside the arbitral resolution process.

The work sets forth the factors that an arbitrator will likely consider to be important in his or her determination of when an action by the employer should be sustained (judged fair and right) or overturned (judged to be wrongful). The work takes the process of dispute resolution out of the unpredictable, moving it instead to the methodical search for basic elements that have been considered by the Courts to be fair and supportable. Legal terminology is used within the context of particular cases, but is not so excessive as to create a problem for the average labor relations practitioner.

DOUGLAS H. THOMPSON is a labor arbitrator and has spent a number of years hearing, deciding, and advising on labor rights disputes. He has served as an administrative law judge for the California Unemployment Insurance Appeals Board and as a mediator for the California State Mediation/Conciliation Service. In addition, he has been associated with the Merchants and Manufacturers Association in Los Angeles, advising member companies on employee relations. Mr. Thompson holds a B.S. from the University of Southern California and a J.D. from Southwestern University.