Clarifications

ADVOCACY

For the purposes of this Indicator, advocacy refers to external-facing efforts and actions an organization is taking to support employee self-organization and/or unionization for collective bargaining purposes. Examples could include, but are not limited to:

• Lobbying for pro-union legislation;
• Conducting external educational and promotional campaigns;
• Presenting on the proven benefits of or real case study about employee self-organization at an industry conference; and
• Contacting the organization’s trade or industry association about supporting unionization.
  

Organizations may identify different actions that are equally applicable. Living Future encourages organizations to select and implement practices that are most meaningful and impactful based on their own industry and context.

APPLICABILITY

Indicator metrics apply to all of the following groups (see definitions in General Clarifications):

• Employees
• Contract workers
• Interns
  

EMPLOYEE GOVERNANCE

The purpose of this metric is for an organization to demonstrate that employees genuinely have a say in governance. Demonstration of an organization’s employee governance could include, but is not limited to:

• A percentage of strategic decisions (like entering new markets or financial investments) requiring an employee vote;
• Equitable profit sharing;
• Employee representation on the board;
• Transparent financial reporting (i.e., where comprehensive financials are reviewed by employees regularly with opportunities for open discussion); and
• Participatory budgeting.
  

EMPLOYEE INPUT

For the purposes of this Indicator, organizations must seek employee input about policies before decisions are made. Organizations should also provide a means for employees to share feedback after policies are in place at least on an annual basis.

EMPLOYEE-OWNED BUSINESS

For the purposes of Just, an employee-owned business is one that meets the tenets of employee ownership set forth by CertifiedEO:⁴¹

• At least 30% owned by employees, with shares held by company founders not counting toward this threshold;
• Reasonable access to ownership must be open to every employee; and
• Ownership must not be over-concentrated and is controlled either through a cap on the maximum distribution or a maximum ratio between maximum and median distribution.
  

EMPLOYEE STOCK OWNERSHIP PLAN (ESOP)

While employee stock ownership plans (ESOPs) provide a form of employee-ownership, ESOPs may only qualify for consideration for Level 4 performance if they can demonstrate they meet the definition of a worker cooperative structure when it comes to decision-making and control of business operations.

INTERNAL SUPPORT

For the purposes of this Indicator, organizations must be able to provide specific examples of how they provide internal support for employee self-organization and/or unionization for collective bargaining purposes. Examples could include, but are not limited to:

• Paying for membership dues;
• Allocating budget for meetings and/or activities;
• Allowing time off for participation in employee empowerment activities;
• Providing letters of support; and
• Having a written, agreed-upon process for negotiation and de-escalation.
  

Organizations may identify different actions that are equally applicable. Living Future encourages organizations to select and implement practices that are most meaningful and impactful based on their own industry and context.

ISSUE RESOLUTION

Organizations need to have established protocols to address collective bargaining issues and resolve employee concerns. In particular, it is necessary for management to meet with any employee group representatives to discuss and resolve items of importance to employees that are not otherwise covered in collective bargaining agreements or established individual check-in protocols.

WORKFORCE EMPOWERMENT POLICY

In addition to the policy components stipulated in the metrics, the Workplace Empowerment policy must include a commitment to not interfering with workers’ rights to organize or taking action against employees for involvement or membership in a union or informal self-organization. At minimum, this should follow the stipulations in Section 8(a)(1) of the U.S. National Labor Relations Act, which prohibits employers from interfering with, restraining, or coercing employees in the exercise of their right to organize and engage in collective bargaining,⁴² or an international equivalent.

WORKPLACE ORGANIZATIONAL STRUCTURES

Recent decades have seen the emergence and resurgence of different models of workplace organizational structures. Many businesses start and develop from a more hierarchical model, which, in and of itself, does not perpetuate inequity, as long as structures and systems are in place to promote transparency and provide opportunities for employee input and feedback on decision-making. Flat organizational models based on self-management and self-organization can encourage certain aspects of workforce empowerment, such as transparency and power distribution; however, adopting these types of structures does not guarantee equity.⁴³

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⁴¹ Dudley, T. (2022, March 21). Defining “Employee-Owned”: How We Set Our Certification Standards. CertifiedEO. Retrieved December 5, 2023, from https://www.certifiedeo.com/blog-posts/defining-employee-owned-how-we-set-our-certification-standards.

⁴² National Labor Relations Act. (n.d.) Interfering with Employee Rights (Section 7 & 8(a)(1)). National Labor Relations Board. Retrieved October 18, 2023, from https://www.nlrb.gov/about-nlrb/rights-we-protect/the-law/interfering-with-employee-rights-section-7-8a1.

⁴³ HolocracyOne. (2022). Explore Holocracy. Retrieved February 8, 2023, from https://www.holacracy.org/explore.