Mandatory subjects are the core working conditions your employer must bargain with your union over. These include:
- Wages
- Hours
- Schedules
- Job duties
- Workplace policies
- Safety rules
- Evaluation systems
- Leave practices
- Performance standards
- …Any change that affects how you do your work, where you do your work, or how you are paid.
Employers cannot change mandatory subjects unilaterally. Any change requires notice to the union and an opportunity to bargain.
Your employer will not alert your stewards out of goodwill. The only early-warning system your co-workers have is you. When a manager introduces a new rule, changes a schedule, reassigns work, alters expectations, adjusts performance metrics, updates leave approval processes, moves workstations, shifts duties between classifications, or announces any “pilot,” “temporary,” or “informal” practice, that is reportable.
Report changes immediately to your steward and to the union. Slow reporting means missed deadlines, lost grievances, and employers locking policies in before anyone can respond. Fast reporting gives the union time to demand information, file notice objections, and stop harmful changes before they spread.
If you are unsure whether something is a mandatory subject, assume it is and report it. Stewards and staff will sort out the details. The harm comes from silence, not from over-reporting.
Your contract is only as strong as the information flow from the shop floor. Early reporting is how violations are caught, how bargaining leverage is protected, and how co-workers defend each other long before a situation becomes disciplinary or permanent.
