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Courses and Requirements:

The following is a complete list of courses offered in the Industrial and Labor Relations Program. 

------------------- Graduate Courses -------------------

ILR 526/426 Case Studies In Labor-Management Relations (3 s.h.)
Study of labor-management relationships in a variety of organizational settings through utilization of the case study technique.
Syllabus

ILR 557/PLSC 557 Labor and Business In Politics (3 s.h.)
Analysis of labor and business involvement in politics with special attention to the involvement of labor and business in Pennsylvania and national politics.


ILR 581 Special Topics In Labor Relations (3 s.h.)
According to student demand, special graduate course in selected topics. (Only 6 hours of Special Topics may be scheduled.)


ILR 610 Employee Rights Under Law (3 s.h.)
A review of the legislated rights and benefits of employees in terms of their impact on labor and management in the collective bargaining process.
Syllabus


ILR 611 Development and Theories of the Labor Movement (3 s.h.)
Institutional and theoretical overview of the development of the American labor movement with special emphasis on major labor movement theorists. (Alternative: HI 566).
Syllabus


ILR 612 Labor Relations: Practice and Administration (3 s.h.)
Practice and administration of labor relations focusing on the operation and internal relationship of the individuals involved and upon the applications of labor relations skills.


ILR 613 Fundamentals of American Labor Relations (3 s.h.)
Introduction to the terms, theories, and practice of Labor Relations in the United States.
Syllabus


ILR 615 Dispute Settlement (3 s.h.)
Review of the theories underlying and legislation supporting labor arbitration, emphasizing the development of advocacy skills through simulations of actual disputes.
Syllabus


ILR 618 Seminar: Current Issues In Labor Relations (3 s.h.)
Detailed examination of current professional issues in the field.
Syllabus


ILR 619 Research Methods In Labor Relations (3 s.h.)
Nature of and major outlets for contemporary research in labor relations as well as the historical development of research in the field. Elements of statistics and quantitative interpretations are introduced.
Syllabus


ILR 621 Labor Relations In the Public Sector (3 s.h.)
Development in federal, state, and local relations including presidential orders and federal agencies; survey of the states; Pennsylvania Acts 111 and 195, and the effects of public fact-finding and arbitration.
Syllabus


ILR 622 Discrimination In Employment (3 s.h.)
Investigation of employment discrimination in the United States with special attention to the roles of government, industry, and labor and the impact of federal intervention since 1960.
Syllabus


ILR 623 Structure and Government Of Unions (3 s.h.)
The union examined as an institution with a focus on its organizational structure, administration, relationships with the employer, its members, and its state and national affiliates. Particular unions will be chosen for case study.


ILR 624 Comparative Labor Relations (3 s.h)
International dimensions of labor relations are explored by examining the labor-management relations in a foreign country and region.
Syllabus


ILR 625 Processes Of Collective Bargaining (3 s.h)
Survey of the current laws, principles and procedures in use in modern collective bargaining and evolving trends.
Syllabus


ILR 631 Human Resource Management In The Public Sector (3 s.h.)
Human resource management systems with a special examination of public sector organizations.
Syllabus


ILR 632 Compensation and Benefits Administration (3 s.h.)
Study of the field of compensation management and benefits administration in the public and private sectors. Special emphasis on the input of collective bargaining in the development and administration of compensation and benefit systems and the necessary skills to function as a professional in the field.
Syllabus


ILR 640 Negotiations (3 s.h.)
A course on negotiations theory and practice which applies negotiations strategies from a variety of fields in hands-on simulations of collective bargaining in labor relations.
Syllabus


ILR 641 Contract Administration (3 s.h.)
Analysis of the practices and responsibilities of labor and management in the mutual performance of a collective bargaining agreement, with primary attention given to the process of grievance resolution.
Syllabus


ILR 642 Concerted Activity (3 s.h.)
This course deals exclusively with the complex legal issues that inevitably arise during periods of labor-management conflict. Topics such as when, where, and for what purpose a union may picket, why special considerations apply to hand billing, and the distinction between primary and secondary activity will be explored in detail.


ILR 650 Alternative Work Styles (3 s.h.)
Review of the efforts to increase worker participation in certain levels of managerial decision making in private and public production or service enterprise, through shares of ownership, through seats an boards, through shop level team work, etc. Results will be considered from the point of view of productivity, of worker satisfaction, of social utility.
Syllabus


ILR 651 Conflict Resolution (3 s.h.)
An applied course examining the dynamics of problem-solving, interpersonal communication, mediation, conciliation and facilitation for the resolution of inter-group conflict. Course material is not limited to labor-management relations problems.
Syllabus


ILR 681 Special Topics In Labor Relations (3 s.h.)
According to student demand, special graduate course on selected topics. (Only 6 hours of Special Topics may be scheduled.)


ILR 698 INTERNSHIP (3 s.h. or 6 s.h)
Field experience in labor relations. An internship log and term paper are required. (Only 6 hours of Internship may be scheduled).
Syllabus


ILR 699 Independent Study (3 s.h.)
Students will select one or more topics of critical importance in labor relations and will meet with faculty for independent reading, analysis, and evaluation. (Prerequisites: Approval of Departmental Chairperson, Dean and Provost) (Only 6 hours of Independent Study may be scheduled).


ILR 6XX Employment And Staffing (3 s.h.)
Subject will include modern innovations that relate to selection and staffing. The impact of laws prohibiting various forms of discrimination will be included and emphasized. (To be proposed as a regular offering).


ILR 6XX Benefits (3 s.h.)
Study of the administration and management of employee benefits. The impact of collective bargaining with regard to growth and development of benefit programs will be discussed in depth. (To be proposed as a regular offering).


ILR 6XX SUPERVISION (3 s.h.)
Enable students to understand the meaning and importance of supervision; the basic functions of a supervisor; the impact of the organization on the supervisor; and the causes of supervisory success and failure. (To be proposed as a regular offering).


ILR 850 THESIS (3-6 s.h.)
For students writing a thesis. ILR 850 should be scheduled for the semester in which the student plans to complete his/her work. The thesis may be a non-committee thesis (3 s.h.), with one faculty member serving as the student's adviser, or committee thesis (6 s.h.).


------------- Undergraduate Courses -------------------

ILR 426 Case Studies In Labor-Management Relations (3 s.h.)
Study of labor-management relationships in a variety of organizational settings through utilization of the case study technique.
Syllabus


ILR 480 Practices and Procedures of Collective Bargaining (3 s.h.)
An examination of the historical, legal, and functional parameters of collective bargaining. Topics covered include the organizing process, negotiation, contract administration, dispute resolution, and public sector relations.
Syllabus


LBST 499 Labor Relations: Hope or Hopeless?
The picture of labor-management relations in America has often been blood red and painful to behold. Why has this been so? What is the current state of the relationship? Why is management so resistant to unions? Why do unions seem to risk economic suicide by striking? What challenges face unions and corporations as they end the twentieth century and begin the next? Who do the unions actually represent? Can labor and management learn to cooperate? We will draw on the disciplines of history, law, ethics, politics, economics, and business to seek answers to these and other questions.
Syllabus


LBST 499 Pittsburgh: A City and Its People
Pittsburgh during its two hundred year history was an incubator of modern industrial society. The growth of an incredibly productive, innovative manufacturing center and its subsequent decline provides a rich subject for a variety of approaches and perspectives. History, economics, technology, political science, religion, literature, art, music, and architecture provide windows on aspects of the story. The challenge is to grasp the underlying unity of the evolution of a great city through facets revealed by specific disciplines. This course will be particularly useful to anyone teaching, working, or living in Western Pennsylvania.

LBST 499 Surviving the World of Work: Labor Relations
As students prepare themselves for a career, few are ready to tackle the diversity of issues that face them once they are employed. Concerted activities, collective bargaining, compensation and benefits, employment law, or diversity within the workplace are issues employees/employers of the future will have to face. This course will explore the history behind these employment issues, the impact on the parties involved, and how the results of the past have influenced the working environment of today through labor laws, bargaining practices, affirmative action, and trends in labor relations.

Syllabus