𝐅𝐫𝐚𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐚𝐥 𝐋𝐚𝐛𝐨𝐫 𝐑𝐞𝐥𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐬: 𝐖𝐡𝐲 𝐒𝐌𝐁𝐬 𝐂𝐚𝐧’𝐭 𝐀𝐟𝐟𝐨𝐫𝐝 𝐍𝐨𝐭 𝐭𝐨 𝐇𝐚𝐯𝐞 𝐈𝐭

When a steward walks in with a grievance, when a supervisor mishandles a conversation, when your collective bargaining agreement suddenly becomes a minefield, these are not slow burn problems. They are operational fires. Big companies have entire in-house labor relations teams to put those fires out before anything spreads. Small and mid-sized businesses usually have one person staring at the phone wondering if this is a six hundred dollar question.

In this episode of the Left of Boom Show, Michael and Phil break down why fractional labor relations support is becoming a game-changer for smaller employers. They talk about the real operational issues that arise with CBAs, the nonstop nature of grievance handling, and the value of having an expert on call when you need clarity. No waiting. No guessing. No escalation.

This conversation cuts through the noise and gets into the practical stuff. Why immediate expert support changes outcomes. Why proactive navigation of the contract matters. Why communication during disputes can protect the culture you are trying to build. And why fractional LR might be the closest thing to a Fortune 500 advantage without the Fortune 500 budget.

Key Themes Covered

• Operational issues show up without warning

• Collective bargaining agreements require real-time expertise

• Grievance resolution depends on accuracy, speed, and communication

• Advice anxiety leads to costly hesitation

• Fractional labor relations give SMBs expert support on demand

• Proactive problem solving beats reactive cleanup every time

Labor Relations Benchmark Data Survey

If your company has unionized locations, we have a quick question: Where do you rank on labor relations performance?

Fortune 500 companies with unionized facilities have internal labor relations teams that constantly track metrics—grievance resolution rates, arbitration frequency, legal spend ratios. They know where they stand.

Mid-market companies? Mostly guessing.

We're fixing that problem by building the first comprehensive labor relations performance database. But we need your help—we need data from union facilities like yours.

Here's what happens when you participate:

Take our 7-minute survey about your labor relations metrics (completely confidential).

You automatically receive the Managing the Union Shop Toolkit, including:

• 7 Tests of Just Cause Decision Flowchart
• 6-Step Grievance Investigation Cheat Sheet
• Union Steward Communication Playbook (including scripts), your supervisors can use for handling the 10 most common steward interactions

When we hit 500+ responses, you'll receive your customized benchmark report, including:

• Your exact percentile ranking across 5 categories
• Side-by-side comparison with top performers
• Industry-specific insights for your sector
• Specific gaps and improvement recommendations

Please help us build better industry intelligence. Every union facility that participates helps create the kind of performance visibility that the big companies already enjoy.

Thanks! The Labor Relations Institute Benchmarking Team.

P.S. Are you a Fortune 500 labor department? We’d love to hear from you, too! Your data is just as important for setting the benchmark data!