What Are Your Rights

While management has the right to call you in to discuss job performance or possible disciplinary action, they may not work within the parameters of your rights. Our focus is solely on you and making sure that you know the rights that are in place to protect you and your job. 

Knowing your rights, working with your Union, and an EAP that we can source for you can help you navigate disciplinary meetings.

Before you even walk into a meeting about your work performance, especially before attending a disciplinary hearing, you need to know your Weingarten Rights. The Weingarten Rights are federal rights that have been put in place to protect you from vulnerable situations, such as being in a disciplinary hearing without your Union representative present. 

If you happen to find yourself in a situation where your Union representative is unavailable to attend a meeting, follow these steps:

1. Inform your Union representative of what is happening and why.
2. Report to the meeting and bring a pen and paper to take notes. 
3. Let management and all meeting attendees know that you are aware of your rights established under the Weingarten Act. State the following:
   “I am aware of my rights under the Federal Weingarten Act. I am unable to answer questions until such a time as I have my Union representation present.”
4. Remember always to keep your tone respectful and avoid responding defensively.
   

Above all else, remember that you have the right to wait until your union representative is available. You can state, ”If this discussion could in any way lead to my being disciplined or terminated or affect my personal working conditions, I respectfully request that my union representative be present at the meeting. Without representation, I choose not to answer any questions.”